After an internal investigation into the dozens of reported Galaxy Note 7 fires, Samsung Electronics issued a global recall for around 2.5 million of its ill-fated new phablets last month, blaming the batteries manufactured by its group company, Samsung SDI, for the fiasco. However, within days of the company starting to sell the ‘safe’ versions of the device with replacement batteries, reports started coming in from many part of the world about the replacement Galaxy Note 7 devices also allegedly being fire-prone. That prompted some consumer safety advocates and market analysts to speculate whether an unprecedented second recall is on the cards. A report out of South Korea earlier today claims that Samsung has already stopped production of the controversial smartphone pending further enquiries, but the company has neither confirmed nor denied the report officially.
Samsung US released a statement over the weekend saying that it is working with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to investigate the reported Galaxy Note 7 fire on Southwest Airlines flight 994 at the Louisville airport last week. However, more reports of the supposedly safe replacement Galaxy Note 7 units bursting into flames keep coming out. The latest incident is said to have happened in Houston, Texas, where a Galaxy Note 7 belonging to local resident, Mr. Daniel Franks, is said to have caught fire as he was having lunch with his family. Mr. Franks said that he had picked up the phablet at a local Best Buy store late last month as a replacement for his original Galaxy Note 7.
There have at least been four other reported cases of the new ‘safe’ Galaxy Note 7 units catching on fire in the U.S. alone, with more such reports coming in from South Korea and Taiwan over the weekend. The embattled South Korean company, on its part, says that it is “working diligently” with relevant authorities and third-party experts in order to get to the bottom of the situation. The company has also promised to share the findings of its investigation in the near future. Meanwhile, Samsung tried to play downplay the alleged incidents without denying outright that the devices in question are actually the new, replacement units marked as ‘safe’ by the company. Samsung also said that “Even though there are a limited number of reports, we want to reassure customers that we are taking every report seriously. If we determine a product safety issue exists, Samsung will take immediate steps approved by the CPSC to resolve the situation”.