Bulging battery issue

Wow, still zero response to my case # on mysupport.razer.com Issues happen, maybe this is not a fault of Razer, maybe it is, maybe I'm out of luck due to this computer being two years old and out of warranty ... BUT - (and I don't need to tell anyone this ...) good customer service goes a long way. A simple response would be nice, even to say "sorry, we can't help", or maybe a suggestion where I can get a new battery Is this really typical of Razer customer service now? So, as others have said, this will be my last Razer product, and no recommendations to friends from me. Very disappointing.

Support has now reached out to me asking for further details. So that at least is some good news. I will update as the case progresses.

Reply from support was the photos I sent do indicate a bulging battery issue and they suggest I send the laptop in for repairs. They also state there may be charges but do not say what the charges are estimated to be. They asked if I wanted to have it sent in for repairs to respond back to them (I assume s they can provide details in next steps) Firstly, disappointing that what appears to be a Razer flaw with either battery quality, or the charging system over charging, would not be covered or be part of a recall.

Second, frustrating that their email communication is vague - what does "charged may apply" mean. What is the cost of a new battery? What is the labor cost for installation? Do I pay for shipping both ways? Where does it need to be shipped to? I understand there may be extra costs if they get the laptop and realize the battery has damaged something else, but can they not be clear up front on the base estimates? When support replies are 12 days to get a response, sensing an extra email to confirm I *may* want to proceed with repairs but having to ask questions and wait for them to tell me how t proceed is a crazy waste of time and stupidly inefficient.

Also, does anyone know if this was an issue with the original battery (if so, are they using new batteries now?), or was it a bad design in the charging? I'd like to make sure this issue won't happen again if I pay to get this sent in and fixed. If it will happen again in 18 months I'd prefer to just buy a battery online and fix it myself for cheap

*Apologies for the 3 consecutive posts and typos - I kept getting "you don't have permission..." server errors when posting the full text, and am getting server errors when trying to edit for some odd reason

Update - It has been 7 days since I sent a reply to Support asking for more information on getting the laptop repaired and still no reply back from them. It has now been 37 days since I first contacted Razer about this issue (a bulging, potentially dangerous, battery that renders the laptop unsafe to use - which as far as I can tell is a result of either a bad battery supplied by Razer, or a bad charging system designed by Razer) and I am still no closer to getting the issue resolved. Disappointed that this issue happened at all in a premium priced laptop, frustrated in the lack of timely responses from a company that is trying to position themselves as a premium company, and incredibly frustrated that there seems to be a lack of concern for them to take proper care of their customers by fixing this issue quickly, and at no/minimal cost to the customer (I still actually have no firm idea of the cost since their reply only said charges "may apply" but from other forum posts it seems that it will be in the $100-$150 cdn range plus shipping) I have now also sent a DM through the @RazerSupport twitter account Will continue to wait for a reply from support and update here once I get it.

The twitter DM initiated a proxy post on the support case and they got back to me with further details. Looks like it will be a $99US diagnostic/shipping/labor fee to get the laptop to them, then they will quote on the parts needed to repair (estimated at $30-$50US for a battery.) They mentioned that this type of issue can happen with lithium batteries, and I am outside the 1 year warranty period. While I do understand that lithium batteries can be damaged through over charging and heat build up, I have never experienced this issue with any previous laptop. (I currently am still using a two Samsung laptops from 2013 with no issues – one is permanently on charging as a media server (although it still has a good 4 hour battery lifer) and the other is used on and off charging daily and the battery still lasts 4-5 hours with no gas issues. My MacBook Pro was still running good after 4 years. I had to replace the battery cell for my Dell XPS m13 after 5 years as it no longer held a good charge, but that was an easy purchase without diagnostic fees and shipping. I also had a bulging battery in my 6 year old Samsung S4 after 2years permanently plugged in to a stand, but hat was also easily fixed with a battery purchase. I am unsure if this issue is caused by cheap/poorly QA’d batteries, or a badly designed charging or cooling system, but from reading through forum posts, this appears to be a fairly common reported issue with Razer Laptops … the fact this happens is disappointing, but he fact that it is so costly and inconvenient for the customer in order to have it fixed is really unacceptable for a company that is trying to position itself as a premium product. Overall, this has left a bad impression with me. I will get the RMA started to at least try and get a few more years out of this laptop, but unfortunately, if this is the cost of fixing a quality issue, I believe this will be my last Razer product.

I also have the same problem with the battery. I'm still trying to contact support, because in addition to the battery problem, I also have the camera / microphone and power adapter that are all known issues. So frustrated...if razer charge me for all of this, it is just better to buy a new laptop.

Same issue here. Swelling battery on the Razer Blade 2018 Advanced Model. I purchased the laptop for my work less than 2 years ago. I don't know of a way to contact Razer Support. My thread is here: /swelling-battery.61074/ It looks like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAVRE6_2OWI

A final update - after some communication, I am happy to post that Razer and I have reached a favorable solution to have my battery issue fixed. It took a while, but in the end they have stood by their product, and have shown a genuine concern to make things right, which makes me very happy, because I honestly love the look and feel of their stuff, and I wasn't that thrilled on having to find a new company based on a simple to resolve customer care issue. Looking forward to getting the laptop fixed and returned. I hope anyone else with this issue gets it sorted out.

Thanks for this thread Feasty, it gives me hope. I have the same issue with a budging battery in my 2016 Blade Stealth.It's bee a few weeks so I was wondering if you heard back yet, or have the device back?

Their RMA team have sent me a shipping label, and have been keeping in touch regularly - pretty impressed with how they are handling things so far. I have not sent the laptop to them in yet - I was travelling for the last few weeks, and now I need to back up everything first (they wipe your hard drive and reset the computer during the RMA process) but will be packing it up and shipping it off this week. I'll update on how things progress with the fix, but overall, things are being handled pretty well now. Good luck in your situation - I found their CS team is pretty busy right now, and initial communication was a bit slow, but keeping calm and reasonable and persistent got me to a good solution with them.

Glad to hear you were able to get a hold of them. I'm in the same situation right now... What did they end up saying the problem was? What was the favorable solution?

Yikes, mine didn't seem quite as bad as that ... (although I had a Samsung phone that bulged enough to separate the back from the body) They didn't say what the problem was other than bulging *can* and *does* happen with lithium batteries - which is not *untrue*. I still think there is an underlying issue with the batteries they are using, or the way they are charging them, which causes this to happen too often, but ... My biggest complaint was not being able to just purchase a battery and replace it myself without having to pay to have it shipped to them (since I was 1 yr out of warranty) so they have offered to waive the $99 US shipping + diagnostic fee and have sent me a RMA label so they can replace the battery for me.

Ya, i'd bet it is caused by high temperatures sustained for long periods of time. These lap tops get hot. Thanks for getting back to me. Its really frustrating that they wont just send the battery and keep you from being without a computer. Hopefully they have a decent turn around time right now.... but i'm not hopeful with the covid stuff going on.

The battery for my 2018 Razer Blade base model has a suspected bloat issue due to the responses I found regarding touchpad mouse/key issues. Instead of dealing with BestBuy GeekSquad (the extended warranty carrier of my 2018 Blade) I did some research and purchased a battery. After removing the original battery there are definite signs of battery bloat beginning. Fortunately I found this issue early and have absolutely no damage to my Blade. This is the first laptop I have ever experienced battery bloat ...... ever. I cannot say that I am pleased with this and the source Razer uses for their batteries.

Just a final update from me on this for anyone still following the thread ... My RMA is now complete - unfortunately (or rather, fortunately, for me) they did not have the needed battery for my laptop in stock and were unsure when they would get them in, so I was offered a nice new RBS as a replacement rather than have me wait longer for my laptop to be fixed. It arrived to my door in less than 2 days of me approving the replacement. I couldn't be more pleasantly surprised. All-in-all, the process took a while (perhaps due to Covid) but their team (especially Clint, who I was mainly dealing with) were excellent and kept me informed along the way with regular updates. I'm definitely impressed with how they turned this situation around for me, and made me a very loyal Razer supporter. I hope anyone else who is having an issue gets it sorted out with some satisfaction.