Apple has issued a recall on 1.8 million batteries manufactured from 2003 to 2006 which may pose a hazard of overheating and possible ignition under certain rare circumstances.
Not all batteries produced during the time period in question are at risk. You will have to check your battery serial number to see if the battery is part of the recall program. Only batteries supplied with, or sold for use with 12" and 15" iBooks and PowerBooks are affected; 14" iBooks, 17" PowerBooks, MacBooks, and MacBooks Pro are NOT affected by this issue.
The chances of your battery actually catching fire are quite low; however, if you own one of the affected batteries, we recommend registering in the recall program as soon as possible.
Apple has set up a web page detailing the recall, where you will be able to put in your serial number to receive a replacement battery. The replacement battery will be shipped to your location. You can keep your old battery until the replacement arrives, at which time you will have to send the old battery back to Apple. Apple will provide the shipping box and a pre-paid return label for your convenience. Each recall case will take approximately 4-6 weeks to process.
Because Apple is dealing with customers directly on this issue, and because of the volume and time frame involved, Digital Society is not processing battery recall cases. Please go to http://support.apple.com/batteryprogram/ about the battery recall program for more information, and to participate in the program.
Please see http://www.dellbatteryprogram.com/ for more information. The lithhium-ion cells at risk of overheating were supplied by Sony to both Apple and Dell, and both companies are recalling batteries containing the cells.