Apple has apparently added battery problems to the list of woes potentially affecting its MacBook Pro notebook family. Online reports allege a small number of early versions of the Intel-based machines may have shipped with troublesome batteries. Apple is said to be replacing the power units on a customer-by-customer basis.

According to a report on PowerPage.org, Apple's support team told MacBook Pro owner Christopher Price some early battery units are faulty. 'Early' in this case means fitted to notebooks manufactured in the first two weeks of production - anyone with a MacBook Pro with a serial number starting W8608 or less could be affected.

Apple's own support forums include comments from a small number of correspondents who have experienced battery problems with their MacBook Pros. Those who have raised the problem with Apple support staff have had the offending power units replaced. Equally, plenty of early MacBook Pro owners have not experienced battery problems, suggesting the issue may not be widespread.

Signs of trouble include a sudden, significant reduction in the battery's reported charge followed by a complete loss of power. ®