Text: Shen Sihan Shi Dan
ID：BMR2004
HP has launched another “recall” of laptop batteries.
Recently, Hewlett-Packard Co., Ltd. of China announced a battery recall plan, announcing the recall of some models of lithium-ion batteries for HP notebooks and mobile workstations manufactured between December 2015 and December 2016, involving 254 pieces.
The reason for this recall is that the lithium-ion battery pack of the relevant notebook has insufficient overlap between the positive and negative electrodes during the production process, which may lead to a short circuit in the core edge plating, and there is a safety hazard of overheating and fire during use.
It is worth mentioning that another HP OMEN 2 Pro game book battery bulge problem that has been constantly complained about on the Internet is not included in the list of recalled models.
(Source: Sina Black Cat Complaint Platform)
In this regard, the “Business School” reporter contacted the relevant person in charge of HP China, and the other party said that the batteries and battery cells used in the relevant products are different batteries from the recalled products, and there are no safety hazards or safety incidents.” ”
Although HP’s recall of notebooks with potential safety hazards is an active act, product problems with HP notebooks have occurred frequently recently, and related doubts and complaints are not uncommon, which requires HP’s attention to the quality of its products.
The recall plan is updated frequently
In recent years, explosion accidents in electronic product batteries have occurred from time to time, and the recall plan for related products has been continuously updated.
This latest recall is also HP’s third expanded recall since January 2018 and February 2019 when HP China Co., Ltd. recalls some notebook battery packs.
The recall was first announced in January 2018, when about 50,000 batteries were recalled for “fire and burn hazards.” Since then, HP has received more reports of battery accidents and expanded its recall program for laptop batteries in March to about 78,500 units.
Lv Lishun, senior research manager of TrendForce, said, “Most of the large-scale recalls were previously produced models, when the notebook part used square batteries, which caused safety problems when the production process and battery design were still immature. ”
In fact, battery problems with HP notebooks have a long history, dating back to 2008.
In October 2008, HP recalled about 74,000 batteries produced by Sony due to overheating of notebook batteries; in 2009-2010, HP recalled 124,000 batteries due to similar problems; in June 2011, HP recalled 162,600 notebook batteries worldwide, of which 78,000 were recalled in China, accounting for half of the number. In 2014 and 2016, HP recalled about 6 million computer power cords and some laptop battery devices, respectively.
For the frequently announced battery recalls, HP mentioned to the “Business School” reporter, “Because the battery produced by a supplier of HP failed to meet HP’s safety standards, HP decided to take the initiative to recall and replace the battery.” ”
Liang Zhenpeng, a senior industrial economic observer, believes that HP, as a world-renowned PC brand, has frequent problems in the quality and process quality of notebook-related products, which has greatly reduced its influence and product quality standards need to be further improved.
Black screens, bulging kits were complained
In addition to frequent battery problems, HP’s black screen failure problem has also been “named”.
In the 2010 CCTV 3·15 party, HP V3000 and DV2000 notebooks were named and exposed because of the frequent “black screen failure” problem, and HP was also pointed out by consumers that there was no qualified warranty service on these two products.
During this year’s “3·15”, HP’s other OMEN 4 Pro notebook was also exposed to black screen problems, which were listed for less than two months, and were constantly complained by relevant users due to the sudden black screen during use. According to HP after-sales, this phenomenon is mainly caused by firmware incompatibility, and the relevant problems have been solved by updating the firmware.
The same gamebook, HP’s OMEN 2 and OMEN 2 Pro notebooks launched in 2016 and 2017 have recently had a large number of battery bulges. The reporter found on the Sina Black Cat complaint platform that the battery bulge complaint problem with the keyword “HP OMEN 2” had 204 results.
Some users have also complained on the black cat complaint platform recently, “I didn’t care too much about the slight bulge of the battery after nearly one year, and now (nearly two years of use) the battery has been seriously bulged and unusable.” Online inquiry of this problem found that the battery bulging problem of HP’s model of computer is very common and serious, indicating that there are serious problems with the quality control and standards of HP’s model of computer products, infringing on the rights and interests of consumers. ”
It is worth mentioning that the battery bulge problem of these notebooks is basically a problem shortly after the product is out of warranty. HP after-sales responded that the battery bulge is not a safety hazard, and users can repair it for free during the warranty period, and once the warranty is over, they can only purchase a new battery for repair.
For the battery bulging phenomenon, HP has given its own solution. However, judging from the complaints, consumers do not agree with this. They believe that the notebook battery has a serious bulge after two years of normal use, which is obviously inconsistent with the design life of the computer.
Lv Lishun said, “At present, most notebooks use lithium-ion batteries, long-term low voltage, exposure to high temperature and battery cell imbalance and other conditions will cause battery swelling. Thin batteries often in order to maximize the volume pull utilization rate, the energy density of the battery must also be pushed to the limit, and the way the battery is used is also related to the service life. ”
Deng Bo, a lawyer from the Guangdong Station Advisory Group and a lawyer at Guangdong Hesong Law Firm, believes that the bulging problem of notebook batteries is a product quality problem, and consumers can request the operator to repair, replace or return it in accordance with national regulations or sales contracts, and bear the relevant costs.
Although HP insists that this phenomenon does not pose a security risk, there is still a steady stream of complaints online. As this problem continues to ferment, HP’s reputation in the minds of consumers is being tested.
Business School will continue to pay attention.
