U.S. Regulators: Official Recall of 1 Million Samsung Note 7 Phones

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd 005930.KS , which has urged users of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone to turn them in due to fire-prone batteries, said it will perform a software update in South Korea that limits the devices’ charge to 60 percent.

Al Jazeera reports that the fresh call from the South Korean company, the world’s largest smartphone maker, comes after USA authorities urged consumers to switch the Note 7 off and not to use or charge it during a flight.

Samsung said on Thursday that new Note 7 replacement devices will be available at most retail locations in the United States no later than September 21. Apple is expected to announce its new iPhone next week and Samsung’s mobile division was counting on momentum from the Note 7’s strong reviews and higher-than-expected demand.

In an effort to steal a march on Apple, the Note 7 was given an early launch in the key United States market, making that a priority for the recall effort.

Since then, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has not only stepped in, but USA aviation safety officials have also taken the unusual step of warning airline passengers not to turn on or charge the phone during flights, or put them in checked bags.

Samsung’s statements left many customers confused, said Tuong Nguyen, a tech industry analyst with Gartner, “and that might have an impact on overall consumer confidence, especially since we’re talking about a high-end device, their flagship phone”.

Samsung said it had confirmed 35 instances of Note 7s catching fire or exploding. Or customers can get a replacement Note 7 as early as next week.

“If the exploded phone had burned near my head, I would not have been able to write this post”, she said in a popular online forum Thursday, where she shared a photo of the scorched Note 7 and described dousing the flames. The 23-year-old said he’s now using an old phone borrowed from a friend, which he said was “really impractical”. About 97 percent of phones sold in the US are being recalled. The carrier said Thursday the Galaxy Note 7 devices need to be turned off during the entire flight, can not be charged on board and should not be put into checked luggage.

People who own the Note 7 should visit http://www.samsung.com/us/note7recall for carrier and retailer specific instructions on how and where to exchange their device.

“There was a tiny problem in the manufacturing process, so it was very hard to figure out”, Koh told reporters at a news conference. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.

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