IBM said Thursday it will recall about 553,000 AC power adapters worldwide for several models of its laptop computers because of potential fire and electrical shock hazards.
The 56-watt adapters can overheat, cause damage to the circuit board and melt through the case, the company and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.
The agency said it received six reports of incidents and some property damage but no injuries. About 225,000 of the adapters are being recalled in the United states.
The power adapters were shipped mostly with IBM ThinkPad i Series, ThinkPad 390 and 240 Series and a limited number of ThinkPad s Series laptop computers and have the part number 02K6549, the agency said.
The computers were sold between January 1999 and August 2000, and the adapters were also available as an accessory for $55. They were manufactured by Delta Electronics Inc. of Taipei, Taiwan.
The CPSC urged owners to immediately unplug the adapters and contact IBM for a free replacement at 1-800-410-5629 or via the Internet at www.adapterprogram.com.
