Just two weeks after Samsung launched its new Galaxy Note 7 smartphone, the company issued a major recall following dozens of complaints the device caught on fire while charging.
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But a Chinese regulator last week announced the recall of more than 1,800 Note 7 phones with potentially problematic batteries that had been sold in China before the official release.
On Sunday, a Galaxy Note 7 user posted several photos on social media, saying his phone caught fire over the weekend.
Meanwhile, Samsung had previously said initial investigations showed faulty batteries as the cause of the fire hazard.
In a statement, the company stated that “since customers’ safety is top priority, all Galaxy Note7 purchased are eligible for replacement regardless of the original place of purchase”.
Samsung has yet to officially confirm when the Note 7 would be going back on sale, but for existing customers who have returned their phones, it seems that you guys will most likely be getting your replacement units before sales resume.
The company said the phones sold since the official launch used batteries different from those in reported fires.
The company said that it is going to roll out a software update for Note 7 phones that will stop the charging at 60 percent.
Finally, you can use Samsung’s dedicated Note 7 Recall webpage to enter your phone’s IMEI and find out if it’s safe.
This is the latest phase of its costly recall, said the largest maker of smartphones in the world, which stopped the rollout worldwide of its new flagship smartphone on September 2 after initial reports of the handset catching on fire. Samsung’s home country of South Korea is set to begin selling the device again starting next week on September 28th. A warning requesting Note 7 owners to immediately turn off their phones if they own an affected device is also up on the Samsung website. The mobile industry tycoon was looking into reports that two Galaxy Note 7 handsets exploded.
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McDonald reported from Beijing.
