Can Bad Batteries Overheat Cell Phones?

Jan. 30 -- The federal government has launched an investigation into cell phone batteries that can overheat or even explode, potentially injuring phone users.

Good Morning America reported Jan. 23 that the phone manufacturer Kyocera was voluntarily recalling batteries for one of its phones, the first-ever recall of cell phone batteries. About 140,000 batteries custom made for the Kyocera 7135 Smartphone were recalled.

Though unrelated, the Kyocera recall came amid an investigation by the Consumer Product Safety Commission into cell phone batteries in phones made by various manufacturers.

"We have an ongoing investigation regarding certain cell phone batteries that may rupture or may overheat and cause injury to consumers,"said Hal Stratton, chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. "One of the other things we're concerned about is counterfeit batteries."

The recall and presumed danger involve the cell phone batteries, not the phones themselves. Many phone companies do not make the phones, nor the batteries that bear their names. Cell phone maker Nokia blames improper replacement batteries or cheap knockoff counterfeits for causing at least 30 to 40 of its phones to overheat.

Second-Degree Burns

Robert Clifford, a 17-year-old from Davie, Fla., knows the dangers of cell phone batteries firsthand. Last month, as he arrived for class and took out his Sprint cell phone to call his girlfriend, he got a nasty surprise.

"I went to pull the phone out of my pocket and I went to put it up to my ear and it burned me," Clifford said. He was treated by a doctor for second-degree burns.

After the phone overheated and cooled off, the battery swelled up, and no longer fit well inside the cell phone, Clifford said. Good Morning America examined the phone and found that the battery could not be placed into it as intended.