In the United States, the voluntary recall for the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 has been going fairly well, in the wake of the revelation of the handset’s explosive tendencies due to faulty batteries in some units. While a software update is being pushed out to help identify bum units, those who have not yet exchanged their units have been officially urged by everybody from Samsung to local airlines to refrain from using the devices and to get them back to Samsung for exchange as soon as possible. An announcement from Samsung today highlights the fact that 500,000 new Galaxy Note 7 units, without the explosive battery flaw, have made their way to U.S. retailers. While this number is only a fraction of the total sold, it will go a long way toward making participating in the recall that much easier for owners of dangerous units.
As mentioned above, a software update is currently on its way out to all U.S. Galaxy Note 7 devices. When the update hits a good device, a green battery icon will show in the notification area, letting the user know that their device is safe and unaffected. For those who bought a Note 7 prior to September 15th, were unlucky enough to get one from one of the known bad batches, and have yet to exchange it, however, a warning screen awaits every time the phone is booted up and every time it finds its way to a charger. The warning screen tells users in no uncertain terms that the device is unsafe to use and should be powered down immediately, stopping short of actually disabling the device.
As with any such occasion, when somebody buys an expensive flagship electronic, their desire to use it may overcome other warnings. Such has been the case on some occasions, or some users didn’t quite get the memo in time. Samsung is already set to face down a number of such users in court, so between their official releases of recommendations to power off the device and this new update that a user literally cannot miss, Samsung may be able to claim the update as a disclaimer and catch a break legally. In any case, the voluntary recall is ongoing, and as of this writing, on September 20th, all of the Galaxy Note 7 units that Samsung has shipped out to retailers should be available tomorrow. This means that if you happen to be reading this on a bum Note 7 or have one in your drawer or next to the computer you’re reading this on, exchanging it should now be as easy as taking it to the place you got it and changing it out for a brand new, flaw-free unit on the spot.