Since the start of the year, more than 30 STA students have had their netbook batteries malfunction. This is due to the fact that the contacts connecting the battery to the netbook detach with movement, which causes the netbooks to shut down.

“We believe we got a bad batch of batteries,” technology support Jeff Zimmerman said in an email interview. “While the effects were still felt, it only affected a small number of students.”

Sophomore Hannah McCausland was one of the 30 cases of netbook problems reported. According to McCausland, she had a loaner computer before Thanksgiving because her netbook would constantly turn off.

“Sometimes [the netbook] would let me turn it on and work on it for a couple hours but then it would turn off,” McCausland said. “Other times it wouldn’t even let me work at all, and it would just turn off automatically.”

Students who have these problems are encouraged to report the problem to the Help Desk where it can be fixed, according to Stewart and Zimmerman. According to network administrator Matt Stewart, the test that students did during advisory allowed the Help Desk to separate the malfunctioning batteries from the working ones.

“Moving the netbook forwards and back again while on the flat surface tests the battery contacts,” Stewart said in an email interview. “If [the batteries] are from the possible bad batch, then they will separate and cause the netbook to shut down.”

When students submit their malfunctioning battery to the Help Desk, the turn around time is usually two to three days, according to Zimmerman. The battery will be replaced with a loaner battery while the problem is fixed. As long as the students report the malfunctioning netbook problems to the Help Desk, the problem is covered under warranty.

According to Zimmerman, the usual cost to replace a netbook battery is $120, since it is one of the most expensive parts of the netbook. According to McCausland, the Help Desk sent out for a completely new battery since they could not fix the original battery.

“When I got that new battery back, that same day I had to return [the battery] because it had the same problem,” McCausland said.

Problems are usually fixed by sending a request to Dell for a new battery as there is no current way to fix the type of battery on the netbook, according to Stewart.

McCausland said that she felt nervous because she never knew when she would stop having access to her work.

“I felt really overwhelmed and nervous I wouldn’t get stuff done,” McCausland said.