Nokia issues product advisory

Mobile handset manufacturer Nokia today issued a product advisory to recall close to 46 million Nokia-branded BL-5C batteries manufactured by Japan-based Matsushita Battery Industrial between December 2005 and November 2006.

The company stated that in rare cases, the batteries could potentially experience overheating initiated by a short circuit while charging causing the battery to dislodge. The company has received more than 100 complaints of overheating globally.

Nokia is working closely with Matsushita, and will be co-operating with relevant authorities to investigate the situation. Nokia has several suppliers for BL-5C batteries who have collectively produced more than 300 million BL-5C batteries.

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 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.

It is important to note that the BL-5C battery is not used in all Nokia products and that only a portion of the Nokia BL-5C batteries in use are subject to this advisory.

Nokia handset owners should visit http://www.nokia.com/batteryreplacement/en/ to verify if their batteries can be replaced free of charge.