It said Samsung estimates that the number of Galaxy Note 7 phones with the faulty battery accounts for “less than 0.1 percent” of the products in the market.
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“As of September 1, a total of 35 claims were registered with Samsung’s service centers at home and overseas”.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Samsung Electronics recalled all of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones on Friday after finding batteries of some of the flagship gadgets exploded or caught fire. Customers who already bought Note 7s will be able to swap them for new smartphones in about two weeks, said Koh Dong-jin, president of Samsung’s mobile business.
Citing an unnamed company official, Yonhap said Samsung’s investigation has found that faulty batteries have caused phones to catch fire.
The South Korean firm has pinned its hopes on the Note 7 to maintain strong sales momentum in the second half against stiffening competition from the likes of Apple Inc, which is expected to release its latest iPhone next week. “Only 24 units on a scale of 1 million were affected by the battery problem”, Koh said in the conference.
South Korean high school teacher Park Soo-Jung said she rushed to buy the Galaxy Note 7, pre-ordering and then activating it on August 19, its official launch date. He refused to name the battery supplier.
“In response to questions on Galaxy Note 7, we are conducting a thorough inspection with our partners”.
“There was a tiny problem in the manufacturing process, so it was very hard to figure out”, Koh told reporters at a news conference.
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Yonhap News said five or six explosions were reported by consumers, including Park’s case, citing pictures and reports of severely damaged phones shared in local online communities, social media and YouTube. It was not clear when new sales of the devices would begin. “If it continues for more than two weeks, the drop in demand for components for the Note 7 will be inevitable”, said Song Eun-jeong, an analyst from Hi Investment & Securities.
