Almost half of recalled phones returned — Samsung

Samsung says almost half of their recalled phones in the U.S. have been returned.

Samsung and CPSC have urged consumers of Note7 phones sold before September 15 to power down their device.

The exchange will last until March next year, and the company expects the recall will be almost completed by the end of the month.

The Galaxy Note 7 phone went on sale in August to glowing reviews but has now become Samsung’s biggest crisis in years. The lithium-ion batteries in some phones were faulty and could overheat or even catch fire while charging.

But with an official recall underway, Samsung has launched an outreach and exchange program that uses promoted tweets, newspaper ads, the Samsung+ app, emails to customers, a special website and 800 number, and search-engine marketing to prod owners to handing over possibly unsafe devices.

The company started offering replacements in South Korea and some European countries on Monday.

Samsung announced today that “about half” of the affected phones – they mean to say, the exploding ones – have been exchanged.

“We need more measures to actively inform consumers”, he said. “It appears that consumers are not active in seeking an exchange or a refund”.

The documents he copied contained data on Samsung’s latest 14-nanometer mobile application processor technology used for its Galaxy S6, S7 and Note 5 phones as well as the product information of the 10-nanometer application processor that will be embedded into the upcoming Galaxy S8.

Samsung Electronics did not answer emails seeking comment.

More and more Galaxy Note 7 owners in the USA are returning the fire-prone smartphones as Samsung’s massive recall unfolds.

“We are yet to record any incident of phone explosion here in this country, but we are advising the users of the product to quickly return it for safety goal”, he said. Others said they haven’t been able to get clarity on when new phones will be available. Samsung, which halted Note 7 sales in countries affected by the recall, plans to resume new sales of the Note 7 in South Korea on September 28.