This time last week, Samsung was aware of thirty-five destroyed Galaxy Note 7 smartphones in the United States. Now, according to documentation posted on the Healthy Canadian website, that number has doubled to seventy units. The device has been officially recalled in Canada, where officials are aware of one overheating device. It seems probably that there could be more Galaxy Note 7 devices sold in Canada that could be, literally, ticking time bombs as almost 22,000 units have been sold. The Healthy Canadian’s official – and strongly recommended – advice is that “Consumers should immediately power down the recalled Samsung [Galaxy] Note 7 smartphone,” and after this they need to register for the Canadian Product Exchange recall. The document explains that under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act, recalled devices may not be sold, redistributed or even given away into the Canadian market.
The issue with the Galaxy Note 7 is because of a manufacturing defect within the battery, causing the cathode and anode to come into contact, which is essentially a short circuit. This causes the battery to rapidly overheat and even explode. Modern rechargeable batteries contain explosive chemicals – lithium being an explosive metal when handled in air – and the battery fault has caused the FAA (Federal Aviation Authority) and some airlines to ban the Galaxy Note 7 from being used or charged onboard. We’ve also received reports of the Galaxy Note 7 catching fire whilst on charge, or blowing up when being used, from all corners of the world.
As a business, Samsung is suffering from negative sentiment associated with the Galaxy Note 7 battery problem. Samsung faces the challenge of manufacturing replacement Galaxy Note 7s to fill existing orders, plus the risk that more customers will ask for a refund rather than a replacement device and with this in mind, the new Apple iPhone 7 models (especially the larger iPhone 7 Plus) may be looking more tempting. However, for some customers, because the Galaxy Note 7’s battery is integrated into the device and cannot be replaced, Samsung are unable to simply send out new batteries for customers. This is also not the first time that a Samsung flagship has experienced battery problems because some Galaxy S5 models had an issue of a swelling battery losing charge. Here, Samsung was able to send out replacement batteries as the Galaxy S5 is the last Samsung S-model to contain a replaceable battery.