If reports out of Korea are to be believed, Samsung's mobile business might be about to take a big hit. The company has already confirmed that it has delayed Galaxy Note 7 shipments to perform additional quality tests on the device following reports of the Galaxy Note 7's battery exploding while being charged. It's now being said that Samsung is going to announce an unprecedented recall of the Galaxy Note 7 in less than a week.
Yonhap News Agency quotes a Samsung official who spoke on the condition of anonymity that the cause of these explosions has been traced to the battery of the Galaxy Note 7. “The most important thing is the safety of our customers and we don't want to disappoint our loyal customers,” the official is quoted as saying. The report mentions that Samsung is going to announce the result of its additional tests as well as provide details on comprehensive countermeasures either this weekend or early next week.
However, it doesn't appear to be a widespread issue. The official says that “Products installed with the problematic battery account for less than 0.1 percent of the entire volume sold. The problem can be simply resolved by changing the battery, but we'll come up with convincing measures for our consumers,”
The report raises the possibility that Samsung might recall all Galaxy Note 7 units sold in South Korea and abroad. With sales expected to be north of 500,000 units the company is going to have a lot of angry customers on its hands. It does not mention what countermeasures the company might propose to customers who already own a Galaxy Note 7.
Update:
Sasmsung provided us the following statement on the matter:
In response to questions on Galaxy Note7, we are conducting a thorough inspection with our partners. We will share the findings as soon as possible. Samsung is fully committed to providing the highest quality products to our consumers.
Additional reporting by Josh L.
