NOKIA Battery BL-5C; At Risk to Explode??

Nokia issued a product advisory on its BL-5C battery. The problem is: the battery could explode.

On the advisory given by Nokia, the battery was manufactured in Japan by Matsushita Battery Industrial Co. between December 2005 and November 2006. The BL-5C is one of the batteries used by Nokia.


Nokia said:

Nokia has identified that in very rare cases the Nokia-branded BL-5C batteries subject to the product advisory could potentially experience overheating initiated by a short circuit while charging, causing the battery to dislodge. Nokia is working closely with Matsushita and will be cooperating with relevant authorities to investigate this situation.

Nokia has several suppliers for BL-5C batteries who have collectively produced more than 300 million BL-5C batteries. This advisory applies only to the 46 million batteries manufactured by Matsushita between December 2005 and November 2006, from which there have been approximately 100 incidents of overheating reported globally. No serious injuries or property damage have been reported.

Consumers with a BL-5C battery subject to this advisory should note that all of the approximately 100 incidents have occurred while charging the battery. According to Nokia's knowledge this issue does not affect any other use of the mobile device.

While the occurrences in the BL-5C batteries produced by Matsushita in the time-period specified are very rare, concerned consumers can request a replacement for any BL-5C battery subject to this product advisory.

Nevertheless, a bevy of Nokia devices are affected. Here’s the list.

Nokia 1100, Nokia 1100c, Nokia 1101, Nokia 1108, Nokia 1110, Nokia 1112, Nokia 1255, Nokia 1315, Nokia 1600, Nokia 2112, Nokia 2118, Nokia 2255, Nokia 2272, Nokia 2275, Nokia 2300, Nokia 2300c, Nokia 2310, Nokia 2355, Nokia 2600, Nokia 2610, Nokia 2610b, Nokia 2626, Nokia 3100, Nokia 3105, Nokia 3120, Nokia 3125, Nokia 6030, Nokia 6085, Nokia 6086, Nokia 6108, Nokia 6175i, Nokia 6178i, Nokia 6230, Nokia 6230i, Nokia 6270, Nokia 6600, Nokia 6620, Nokia 6630, Nokia 6631, Nokia 6670, Nokia 6680, Nokia 6681, Nokia 6682, Nokia 6820, Nokia 6822, Nokia 7610, Nokia N70, Nokia N71, Nokia N72, Nokia N91, Nokia E50, Nokia E60

How to identify if your battery is among the batteries produced by Matsushita, Nokia said:

In order to determine if a battery is subject to this advisory, it is necessary to remove the battery from the device. A Nokia battery will have "Nokia" and "BL-5C" printed on the front of the battery. On the reverse, the Nokia mark appears at the top and the battery identification number (consisting of 26 characters) is found at the bottom. Consumers should refer to this identification number to determine if their battery is among the batteries manufactured by Matsushita between December 2005 and November 2006. A comparison of that number with those subject to this advisory will determine a consumer's ability to obtain a replacement free of charge.