The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced that the Acer America Corporation of San Jose, California, is launching a voluntary recall of more than 22,000 various models of Acer-Aspire series laptops and notebook computers. Both the CPSC and Acer urge consumers who have purchased an Acer notebook in the past year to cease using their laptops until they have determined that the specific model is safe from flaws or they have contacted Acer to have the free repair performed.
Models of the Acer notebooks are being recalled because a microphone wire beneath the palm rest could possibly short circuit and cause the unit to overheat. This potential defect poses a burn threat to consumers. Currently, Acer has not received any reports of physical harm caused by the internal wire, however there have been three reports of short circuiting laptops leading to melting of the notebook’s casing.
The models affected by the recall are Acer AS3410, AS3410T, AS3810T, AS3810TG, AS3810TZ and AS3810TZG, however not every unit produced under these model numbers is in danger. Consumers should contact Acer in order to verify if their unit should receive the free repair.
Manufactured in China, the Acer models affected by this recall were available between June and October of 2009 at retail outlets and Web sites including: ABS Computer Technologies, D&H Distributing, Fry’s Electronics, Ingram Micro, Radio Shack, SED/American Express, Synnex Corporation, SYX Distribution, Tech Data Corporation and other retailers nationwide and Amazon.com. The Acer notebooks and laptops range in price from $650 to $1,150.
Consumers can contact Acer customer service representatives for more information regarding the recall toll-free at (866) 695-2237 or on the company’s Web site at www.acer.com.