The Galaxy Note 7 launch may not be the biggest catastrophe that ever occurred in the smartphone industry, but it sure seems like it at the moment. Due to a series of unfortunate circumstances that are yet to be officially explained, Samsung’s latest phablet shipped with some flaw due to which the device was prone to catching fire and exploding. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Samsung killed all hope of the phone ever succeeding on the market after it announced that a battery cell defect was responsible for initial fire reports, adding that the said flaw was eliminated and that Galaxy Note 7 replacement units were perfectly safe. As we all know by now, they weren’t.
Cue an unprecedented second recall and permanent discontinuation of the device which many hailed as the best Android flagship of the year. We’re still witnessing the aftermath of this fiasco so it’s probably too early to accurately predict what kind of long-term ramifications Samsung will suffer due to this entire ordeal. However, some short-term consequences are already coming to light. For starters, Samsung is currently under a lot of pressure from investors, consumers, and regulators regarding its business practices, transparency policies, and management structures. It’s widely believed that all of those things played a hand in the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco and the spotlight is now on Samsung to make some changes.
While we’re still waiting for news on major management alterations at Samsung, the South Korean tech giant is making moves on other fronts. Earlier today, the company announced that it’s planning to significantly change its quality assurance processes as a direct result of the second Galaxy Note 7 recall, Reuters reports. Unfortunately, Samsung’s representatives didn’t go into any specifics regarding this announcement but promised that more information would be announced shortly. This statement was made prior to an extraordinary shareholder meeting in Seoul during which the company’s investors will decide whether to go through with a $1.05 billion sale of the tech giant’s printing operations to HP. In addition to that, Samsung founder’s grandson Lee Jae-yong is expected to be appointed as the conglomerate’s board director during the gathering. All in all, major changes at Samsung are on the horizon, and we can only hope that they lead to better products in the future.