About 85,000 people in the Asia-Pacific region, including Singapore, are carrying around Sony laptop computers that are in danger of overheating.
The Japanese electronics giant on Thursday (September 4) called for owners of 19 models of its Vaio TZ series to have the machines inspected and repaired for free, if necessary, at its offices.
Sony said heat emitted from around the input point for the power adapter and the frame of the screen may cause 'deformation' of the laptop's plastic casing.
A spokesman for the firm also told The Straits Times that some units had wires positioned wrongly near the hinge of the laptop, or a dislodged screw inside the hinge, or both.
This may cause a short circuit and the notebook to overheat.
Seven people - five in Japan, one in the United States and one in Italy - received slight burns as a result.
Sony did not have a breakdown of the number of laptops affected here, but it is known that nine of the 19 models were sold here between May last year and last month.
As of the end of last month, 209 reports about overheating laptops were received from users worldwide. Fewer than 10 were from Singapore, said the Sony spokesman.
Notebook computers from the affected series are still in stores, but those for sale are fine, she said.
This is Sony's second major overheating-related recall exercise. In 2006, it recalled some 10 million laptop batteries worldwide due to concerns that they would overheat and catch fire.
The Financial Times reported yesterday (September 5) that shares of Sony Corp fell by more than 4 per cent to hit the lowest in almost three years after the latest recall was announced.
Laptop repair companies interviewed said overheating was common for such machines, adding that about 70 per cent of all the laptops brought in for servicing had such problems.
One possible reason was that "laptops are getting smaller and smaller and smaller these days", said Tan Ching Hwee, 29, who owns laptop retail and repair company PC Dreams.
"The smaller they are, the more cramped the components are inside, and the harder it is for the heat to dissipate," he said.
Muthiah Nagappan, 46, managing director of repair firm Worldwide Computer Services, said overheating was also common because users leave their machines on for long stretches of time.
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