Sony will eventually recall 1.6 million of its Bravia brand LCD HDTVs worldwide after several serious malfunctions where found. The components in some Japanese sets started to melt and started to emit smoke. So far its been 11 incidents in total in Japan, but the faulty parts may also affect models sold all around the world. As an example 630,000 affected units have been sold in Europe.
Sony believes only certain 40″ LCD models manufactured during 2007 and 2008 are at risk. What to keep in mind is that these models could have been on sale for a while at your local retailer, so you check your model number if you are concerned. The affected models includes the following model numbers: KDL-40D3400, KDL-40D3500, KDL-40D3550, KDL-40D3660, KDL-40V3000, KDL-40W3000, KDL-40X3000 and KDL-40X3500. You’ll find the model on your warranty card, or the back of your HDTV.
The issue stems from a faulty backlight component that can overheat and potentially melt a hole in the cabinet ceiling or even ignite. Fortunately in none of the 11 known incidents has there been any injuries or major property damage, but Sony is still urging customers to unplug their TV and seek assistance if they notice anything unusual.
If you own any of the affected models, Sony have provided the option to get a Sony’s designated service technicians to look at your set and evaluate it for free. If the the service technicians finds an issue, your TV will be repaired at no charge. You can schedule a visit from this site.
A spokeswoman said to Bloomberg that the recall would not affect Sony’s earnings, but the company’s brand image and overall consumer satisfaction could affect the already low customer satisfaction. Last year the company announced a similar repair service for its Bravia TV stands because weak screws caused some models to collapse.
Shortly thereafter, Sony recalled 535,000 Viao notebooks with an overheating issue. Just last month, KDDI recalled two million cell phones because of defective lithium ion batteries produced by Sony. Also the Playstation division was recently affected concerning security and privacy issues with Sony’s online gaming network, that caused major controversy.
