Samsung recalls Galaxy Note 7 due to battery flaws

Samsung is recalling the recently introduced Galaxy Note 7 due to explosive batteries. There has been reports from the US and South Korea of the phone “exploding” during or after charging. However models in China feature a different battery and are not being recalled by South Korean smartphone manufacturer.

“There was a tiny problem in the manufacturing process, so it was very difficult to figure out,” the president of Samsung’s mobile business Koh Dong-jin told reporters.

“It will cost us so much it makes my heart ache. Nevertheless, the reason we made this decision is because what is most important is customer safety,” he said.

The recall comes just over two weeks after the company launched this  latest smartphone

Koh, who declined to comment on how many phones needed to be replaced, said Samsung had sold 2.5 million of the premium devices so far. The manufacturer plans to replace not only phones with faulty batteries sold to consumers, but also retailer inventories and units in transit. 

“I can’t comment on exactly how much the cost will be, but it pains my heart that it will be such a big number,” Koh said.

This recall is a huge blow to Samsung’s reputation which prides on its manufacturing prowess; especially with the upcoming September 7 Apple event where the Cupertino-based company is expected to launch new smartphones.

See Press statement from Samsung

Samsung is committed to producing the highest quality products and we take every incident report from our valued customers very seriously. In response to recently reported cases of the new Galaxy Note7, we conducted a thorough investigation and found a battery cell issue.

To date (as of September 1) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note7.

For customers who already have Galaxy Note7 devices, we will voluntarily replace their current device with a new one over the coming weeks.

We acknowledge the inconvenience this may cause in the market but this is to ensure that Samsung continues to deliver the highest quality products to our customers. We are working closely with our partners to ensure the replacement experience is as convenient and efficient as possible.