AT&T Inc said on Sunday it will stop exchanging Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Note 7 following reports of fires from the replacement devices.
Advertisement
It comes after another replacement Note 7 caught fire on a Southwest Airlines plane on Wednesday.
What makes these hardware problems even more annoying is that the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is an excellent phone. “Samsung needs to do something to get these off the market”, he concluded.
Last week, Verizon (VZ, Tech30) and Sprint (S) said that they will exchange new Note 7s for other smart phones in light of the troubling reports. According to Klering, he received a text message from a Samsung representative intended for another member of staff that read: “Just now got this”. Getting the Note 7 off of the streets was the single most important thing that needed to be done at the time and Samsung did it without being forced. It was reported just a few days ago that a replacement Note7 unit caught fire in an airplane in the U.S., even after powering down the device.
Happy Note 7 Awareness Month, readers! Daniel Franks was at lunch with his daughter and wife when their replacement caught fire while sitting on the table, he told The Verge in an interview. A Bloomberg report quoting personnel of the US Safety Commission hints at the probability of a second recall if the newly reported accident is as severe as it sounds. Among higher-priced models, Bajarin estimated Samsung sold well over 10 million Galaxy S7 phones, or four times as many as the Note 7, which has a digital stylus and other distinctive features.
At this stage, Samsung have not confirmed the devices are replacement Note 7’s, however each owner is on the record saying they are. The phone melted the cover and had significant smoke damage and burn marks, reports KSTP. Also, if you do own a replacement, you may want to consider returning the little guy for something else.
About half of all recalled phones in the USA had been exchanged by September 22, according to Samsung’s most recent recall update, released on that date. The cabin crew was quick enough to evacuate the aircraft, but when one passenger went to get his personal belongings, the device had burned into a crisp, damaging the floor carpet of the aircraft.
Samsung should take action to ensure consumers’ safety, the foundation said, adding that continuing to distribute the model would be like “sending bombs to consumers”.
Advertisement
Endgadget reported Sunday Samsung is working with third parties to investigate the reports, which it said are being taken “seriously”.
