It was a fine day at Los Angeles International Airport on Sept. 16 when a passenger's ThinkPad laptop, containing a Sony Corp. battery already recalled by other companies, was suddenly wreathed in smoke and started emitting sparks.
Lenovo Group Ltd., the world's third-largest PC manufacturer and the maker of the laptop, is still investigating the cause. The computer was doused with a fire extinguisher and no one was injured.
But playing it safe, Lenovo decided to recall 526,000 Sony-made lithium-ion batteries worldwide, saying they pose a "potential fire hazard."