A couple of days ago, there were a few reports stating that Samsung may be halting shipments of the Note 7 on account of several reports regarding “exploding batteries” in the device while it’s charging. As it turns out, 35 Galaxy Note 7 devices have been confirmed with this issue, which boils down to about 24 defective devices per 1 million; understandably, this was warrant enough for a worldwide recall in order to fix the issue. The issue, however, is apparently resolved by simply replacing the battery. Samsung has stated that the issue only affects about 0.1% of total Note 7 users.
First and foremost, I have to commend Samsung for stepping up and issuing the recall in a timely fashion. This isn’t the first time that Samsung has had the heat put on them, so to speak, regarding hot or exploding phones, and they haven’t always been so quick to own up to the issue (which was warranted in some cases, as sometimes the “explosions” were caused by using faulty third party chargers). However, it is unfortunate that this is happening right now (not that there’s ever a good time for this sort of thing to happen) considering that the Apple iPhone 7 is set to launch in just 5 days. The only thing worse than discovering your phones have exploding battery issues is having the issue discovered mere days before your biggest competitor releases their direct competition.
Samsung has already sold 2.5 million Note 7 devices, but many people were already holding off on buying the Note in anticipation of the iPhone 7 launch. With the Note 7’s battery issue now flooding the news, people are undoubtedly going to be put off from the idea of owning a phone that has already had such a dangerous issue, even if it doesn’t affect the vast majority of Note 7 users. Although it would appear that Samsung was quick to take to and solve the issue, it ultimately leaves a bad taste in people’s mouth. It’s particularly harmful to Samsung’s reputation because it isn’t something mundane like a headphone jack not working or a glitch in the screen; these phones have exploded, posing a potentially dangerous threat to users and people around them.
Personally, I find that I’m not too put off by the issue, and I’ve had heating issues with Samsung in the past. The biggest reason that I ended up exchanging my Galaxy S4 for the HTC One back in 2013 was due to the back of the device getting extremely hot, to the point where I would actually have to set it down. Even my Galaxy S7 was noticeably warm to the touch when I first got the device, although not nearly as severe. This subsided after a day or so. I attributed the heat to all of the updates and downloading I was doing. I felt more confident with Samsung this time around – confident enough not to jump to the HTC 10, anyway (which I sometimes regret for different, unrelated reasons).
It seems like an honest fluke with a few devices, albeit a pretty dangerous one. I wouldn’t blame anybody for letting the issue influence their purchasing decision, though. Just because it’s rare doesn’t mean it isn’t one to be taken seriously, hence the worldwide recall. It’s still nice that Samsung initiated an investigation and took affirmative action so quickly, though. At least they didn’t brush it off this time, or tell you that it was a result of users holding their phone the wrong way.
If you own a Note 7 on one of the big four carriers and wonder if you’re eligible for a refund, return, or exchange, you can click here to find out your options.
What have your thoughts been about this issue, readers? Has it affected your decision to purchase a Note 7, or are you satisfied with Samsung’s actions taken since the issue came to light?
