Samsung take action to improve safety of fire-risk smartphones

Samsung's crisis with its new smartphone hit a new low as the company confirmed it has made changes to ensure safety following reports that even replacements for the fire-prone handsets were overheating.
By The Newsroom
Published 11th Oct 2016, 09:54 BST
Updated 25th Oct 2016, 20:04 BST

In a statement, Samsung Electronics said it is “temporarily” adjusting the Galaxy Note 7 production schedule to “ensure quality and safety matters”.

In a separate regulatory filing, Samsung said it was adjusting the Note 7’s production volumes. The company added in the filing that it will issue an update when more details are available.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But Samsung fell short of confirming or denying earlier media reports that it had halted production following multiple reports that newly released Galaxy Note 7 phones after its global recall emitted smoke or caught fire.

Earlier in the day, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency was first to report that Note 7 production had been suspended. The move came after decisions by US phone retailers AT&T and T-Mobile to stop giving new Note 7 replacement smartphones to consumers.

Samsung and the US authorities are investigating reports of the new Note 7 replacement smartphone catching fire but the move poses fresh problems for Samsung because it had promised that its new Note 7 with a green battery icon is safe.

The reports of replacement phones catching fire raise doubts whether the battery is the only problem in the fire-prone smartphone as Samsung initially said.

When it issued a global recall on September 2, Samsung blamed the batteries supplied by one of its two battery suppliers and assured consumers that other parts of the smartphones were fine.

Related topics:SamsungSouth Korea