We are bombarded with advertising proclaiming longer and longer battery life for our various gadgets and devices. Indeed, who hasn't had images of the Energizer Bunny burned into his or her mind? But seriously folks, battery life isn't a joking matter. When your cell phone or laptop dies on you for lack of battery power, you certainly don't feel like laughing. And this feeling of unhappiness can even lead to legal proceedings. Yes, a class action lawsuit was filed recently in federal court in San Jose against Intel. The lawsuit not only complains about the battery life of laptops powered by Intel chips, but also makes accusations of testing manipulation for purposes of exaggerated representations regarding battery life. Of course, at this point the allegations have not been proven in court, and Intel adamantly denies the allegations. Moreover, Intel asserts that the tests accurately related to how the subject laptops usually are handled by users. In addition, Intel notes that this lawsuit was filed by the same law firm that failed in a prior class action lawsuit against Intel.

To learn more, please see the most recent column for http://www.sinrodlaw.com and he can be reached at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com.

Eric Sinrod is a partner in the San Francisco office of Duane Morris LLP (http://www.duanemorris.com) where he focuses on litigation matters of various types, including information technology and intellectual property disputes. His Web site is http://www.sinrodlaw.com and he can be reached at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com.

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