The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is urging consumers who have Samsung Galaxy Note7 smartphones to “power them down and stop charging or using” them.
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Some other carriers around the world have already warned passengers not to bring the Galaxy Note 7 phones on board. Rather, this new lawsuit filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey is over a faulty Galaxy S7 Edge that exploded in the owner’s pocket. He tried to take it out but suffered second-degree burns on his hand. “We are expediting replacement devices so that they can be provided through the exchange program as conveniently as possible”.
The phone was launched last month and has been otherwise generally well-received by consumers and critics.
But in a statement Friday, Samsung Electronics America asked Note 7 owners to shut off their phones and exchange them now for another device. In a statement on its website, Samsung urges users around the world to return their Galaxy Note 7 and get a replacement. That move came after Samsung’s investigation into reports of fires found that rechargeable lithium batteries manufactured by one of its suppliers were at fault. So we reached out to the USA call center and a representative said Note 7 users should power off the phone and bring it back to the retail location where it was purchased. They are also prohibited from plugging their phones into the airlines’ in-flight entertainment system.
Following reports that the phones’ batteries have combusted during charging and normal use, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said it was working on an official recall of the devices and that users should turn them off in the meantime. The unsold devices will be replaced with new modified versions so that they will not be affected by the exploding battery problem, Samsung said.
Companies ranging from Singapore Airlines Ltd (SIAL.SI) and Qantas Airways Ltd (QAN.AX) to Air France KLM SA (AIRF.PA) have instituted similar bans on the device.
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Top airlines banned hoverboards during the Christmas holiday season in 2015. It is still unclear whether the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration will be implementing the ban as well.
