Samsung announced a software update that will limit battery recharges to 60 per cent of capacity in a half-page advert carried by major South Korean newspapers. The company issued a recall for about 2.5 million units that have been sold to date and made a decision to offer compensation to those who ordered the Galaxy Note 7 in some countries.
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Samsung Electronics on Tuesday said it will launch media advertisements to apologise for the “discomfort and concern” caused due to the ongoing global recall of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, Yonhap news agency reported.
There’s no clear indication yet whether Samsung plans to extend this upgrade to other markets as well.
Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration warned consumers not to charge or turn on their Galaxy Note 7 phones while flying.
South Korea’s markets were closed on Wednesday for a public holiday. This lead to Samsung recalling over 300,000 units worldwide, costing them an effective $7 billion. “More than 50 per cent of Note7 owners in Singapore have already registered for our Note7 exchange programme … so the software update will not be rolled out in Singapore”, the spokesperson said.
“We are expediting replacement devices so that they can be provided through the exchange program as conveniently as possible and in compliance with related regulations”, DJ Koh, president of Samsung Electronic’s mobile communications business, said in a statement.
The recent ban imposed on the use of Note 7 by several commercial and domestic airlines, has prompted Samsung to take necessary steps for consumer safety with the strategy of recalling all Note 7s that use faulty batteries.
A report on Monday claimed that a Galaxy Note 7 exploded in the hands of a six-year-old boy in Brooklyn, leaving him burned and traumatized.
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Samsung has not confirmed anything from the report or the recent rumors about the deactivation of the unreturned devices.
