I just got my MacBookPro back from service yesterday. I took it in on Saturday, the 17th, to have the display swapped out (under warranty), and they replaced my battery (also under warranty), due to the issues I was experiencing.
I calibrated my replacement battery last night, following the special instructions for Intel portables, and ran it today on line power and on battery power, and it is behaving normally so far. Power levels are descending normally, as opposed to a free fall. It was strange though, and I am curious as to why everyone's batteries started to fail at once, given that they were put into service over a broad period of time last year.
The service people in my local Apple Store are really great.