I applaud Dell for being the first to step up and take care of thier customers. Now, just keep it up.

I may sound dumb, but I have read both CPSC announcements. Apple states incidents of overheating and Dell states incidents of actual fires. So my question is, when are you required to report to the CPSC? Additionally, I read the piece in the NYTimes where you did not address the number of systems returned for melting and overheating. Does each manufacturer have its own reporting standards?

Did Sony & Dell not know about these issues for almost a year? http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;150435315;fp;2;fpid;1 How can you possibly say that you're taking a "proactive action" when it is clearly in reaction to public outcry?

I am not sure what there is to applaud since they ( Dell and Sony) appear to have been aware of this issue for some time now. It was a forced hand, not by choice. Thank you.

I applaud Dell for trying to minimize as best as it can its negative PR and liability caused from this issue. Dell recalled after numerous reports of fire and likely lawsuits following, they made the move. They now attempt to throw out other names of companies doing this. Apple appears to be the second one, but did so not because of fires, but because of potential risks. In my opinion Dell ranks very low in customer care, considering their company was interested in saving face, where other companies who impose a recall after are going to do so to prevent potential issues and harm. For that I frown on Dell for their alternative motives for commending Apple, and applaud Apple and any other companies willing to step up and eat the expense of a recall without being "persuaded" by bad PR and lawsuits.

Please. Dell knew aout these batteries for over a year. Yetit wasn't untill the numerous explosions and fires that Dell decided a recall was necessary. More Pure Junk from Dell.

The headline is a bit misleading. You make two statements about Apple's recall, and spend a further two paragraphs talking about how well the Dell recall is going.... I find this apalling. As a buyer for a larger California Medical Insurance company, we are deeply affected by the recall and for us, it is not proceeding smoothly. Just my $ 0.02

Apple and Dell are only replacing the batteries. What about the other problems that might have happened due to the hot battery. We all know that computer components, especially hard-disks are damaged by heat. Will the companies pay for the damage that might have already been caused by these hot batteries? They are only trying to play safe by changing the batteries to avoid lawsuits.

Dell once again stepping up to the plate. Thanks Dell for keeping the customer in mind. You continue to get better and better at what you do.

Ok, now tell me how these two moves are the same. Apple is not recalling out of many of their laptops bursting into flame, burning down even households. Apple is recalling *just in case* BEFORE trouble shows up. Dell moved after many reports of actual fire. As we say here, on a first look both patients suffer from broken bones. In detail Dell has exposed fractures all over the body and an exploded spine. Apple has a broken pinkie. Yeah, technically they both suffer bone injuries.

Many of you have probably already seen that Dell no longer sells the Dell DJ Ditty. I wanted to take a moment to commend Dell for taking this action to protect customers. I also hope that Michael Dell will soon close up shop and give the shareholders their money back (while there is still something to give back).

I think its time Dell stopped trying to put a spin on things. Basically you are saying "see even Apple can mess up". It just sounds very Juvenile of you bringing this to our attention. You could have put a different slant if you must use every oportunity to point out your competitors fault, just so you can look good. Like saying, how Apple's actions help make the the entire industry look like its taking responsibility and has the customers interest at hand. At least it will sound genuine. What would have been really appreciated is no mention at all of the Apple recall. This is a Dell to customers blog, absolutely nothing to do with competitors actions. If we want to know about Apple we can read the news, don't need to hear it from a company that has ZERO brand credibility with customers at this point You must understand that the customers you are dealing with today are way smarter than you had ever imagined. We know PR talk, we understand business tactics, we are very knowledgeable about the BS that goes on around us. And are our standards are very high and so are our expectations. Start talking to us like how you would talk to you CEO and then we might actually begin to trust you and respect like an adult. Hell, we might even take you seriously.

Seahawk....the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recall for the Apple batteries states "Apple has received nine reports of batteries overheating, including two reports of minor burns from handling overheated computers and other reports of minor property damage. No serious injuries were reported." Photo's of burnt powerbooks have been floating around the net for several weeks. Same batteries, same problems. http://blog.wired.com/cultofmac/index.blog?entry_id=1533636 So trouble has already shown up....Apple's being reactive, not proactive. Dell's no doubt sold more notebooks than Apple, so it makes sense statistically that you'll hear more about problems with the batteries in the Dell's. Also of interest is this article on MSNBC.com http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14500443/ "But the newest recall is much more far-reaching. The Dell recall affects less than 20 percent of the Dell laptops sold at the time, whereas the Apple recall affects more than 30 percent of the total number of laptops Apple sold in the period affected by the recall, according to IDC analyst Richard Shim."

To Shawn, and others who say Dell knew about the battery problem for almost a year: did you actually read the article you referenced? From the article, it appears that Dell was being proactive well before the recall was announced: from the article you referenced: "the companies had conversations in October 2005 and again in February 2006. Discussions were about the problem of small metal particles that had contaminated Lithium-Ion battery cells manufactured by Sony, causing batteries to fail and, in some cases, overheat. As a result of those conversations, Sony made changes to its manufacturing process..." It was batteries overheating - not burning up - it isn't surprising that a recall wasn't done just for overheating; the extent of the issue wasn't known - no one knew. Batteries that fail are covered under a warranty - and if they are overheating you can get them replaced for that reason alone - always have! Moreover, it was because of those talks that Sony didn't continue to make faulty batteries. I think that shows a lot of forethought. And here: "Based on its conversations with Dell, Sony strengthened and reinforced the protective barriers and lining of their battery cells to address the danger of metal particles piercing the lining of the cell, Clancy said." This was done without people getting hurt first, it didn't make news, and Dell didn't parade it around that they talked to Sony about it. They just did it. Seems awfully selfless for a corporation. Again, you all miss the point. Dell has recalled batteries before, just not this many. Dell has been right on top of it, and despite the very low possibility of fire (6 melting or burning batteries out of 4.1 million, that's 0,0000014% probability of having a defective battery!). Sony is taking the biggest hit, but according to the article has changed its manufacturing process. TO: ganesh kumar I say Dell replaces batteries, hard drives, motherboards, plastics, whatever, if it's due to a manufacturing defect, including overheating from a battery. Am I the only one that actually reads the service contract? Why is it that you assume that Dell is "only" trying to avoid lawsuits? You can't know that. Don't you think that Dell might just NOT want people to get burned or otherwise injured, if they can avoid it? I'm fairly sure the peoples whose computers have been damaged are getting a replacement computer; it's everyone else that gets a possibly defective battery replaced. Makes perfect sense.

It is very important to note Apple's recall, even on Dell's blog. This is not an Apple or Dell or HP or even a Sony issue, it is a computer industry issue. Everyone uses Li-ion batteries and everyone has exposure to this issue, if not now, then possibly in the future. Manufacturing defects happen, the key is to understand the risks and manage them.

I see that Dell have stated that the batteries will go out first come first to get a battery. Great what about us mugs who have been waiting over 2 weeks for their new battery, do Dell intend to compensate or fully refund if a customer wishes to return the laptop. After all you now have a product that you can not use. Some of us have had to go out and buy a replacement to use for work. A customer may have lost all faith in their laptop and are not willing to take the risk of something happening to their new battery. Would you leave you battery charging over night whilst your kids slept upstairs. Can your insurance company can refuse to pay out because of the battery issue? There are a lot of questions that Dell need to answer and it is very easy to shift the blame.

A defective battery burns this guys truck. Why didn't Dell replace this guys truck? http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?g=eb57c354-9d1a-4efb-997d-b2377f37022e&f=00&fg=email Another example of poor customer service from Dell ...

I think many of you bashing Dell so badly are forgetting one thing, yes there were reports of fires, but how can you justify a battery recall that could cost a company billions of dollars for an incident that COULD VERY WELL be an isolated event? Or even user-error? You also forget how many people out there that think they know a thing or two about computers but end up causing a situation even worse. You also forget that these are not LAPTOPS t hey are NOTEBOOKS. A laptop sits on your lap. Put a computer on your lap where the fan vents out from the bottom and your system will over heat because your leg is blocking the port. Dell recalled after very thorough research and if they did not research it they would have continued on as normal, after the research sony and apply then discovered the problem, and then did the recall, you also forget that the main manufacture of the batteries was sony and it is their poor manufacturing technique that caused the problem in the first place.

whether they did it proactively or not...i really cant say. But the real point is that they had the courage to take the lead on this and annouce the recall in the face of all this criticism which scores with me. Apple or the rest of them ( panasonic and toshiba, http://www.smh.com.au/news/Technology/Toshiba-to-recall-340000-notebook-computer-batteries-report-says/2006/09/19/1158431692397.htmlthe last one to annouce this) took their own sweet time waiting for someone else to bite the bullet. I cant seem to believe that only Dell had access to info that suggested that these batteries were a potential hazard..lets get real. Apple & toshiba are not gullible...they only diff is that they decided to keep their mouth shut for longer and agreed to recall only after the US consumer satefy council dug deeper to find dirt on all of them...Lenovo had one of their thinkpads catchin fire, not sure how far they are from owning up.