Now that the Galaxy Note 7 is officially and permanently off the market, the general consensus says Samsung moved too fast in many aspects, which caused the ultimate demise of the device.
A new report from The Wall Street Journal not only doubles down on claims Samsung rushed through production of the Galaxy Note 7 to get it to market before the iPhone 7, but also alleges Samsung tried to rush the device’s recall without notifying the proper authorities.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is still investigating the cause root cause, which lead to several Galaxy Note 7 handsets smoking, exploding and causing damage around the world. According to the WSJ, Samsung’s initial recall announcement on Sept. 2 was too hasty, as the manufacturer had not yet contacted the CPSP.
An official recall of the Galaxy Note 7, in conjunction with the CPSP, did not come until Sept. 16. By that time, Samsung was already shipping new handsets with batteries from a third-party supplier, Chinese battery manufacturer ATL (Amperex Technology Limited) . The original Galaxy Note 7 handsets contained batteries from Samsung SDI, a subsidiary supplier.
However, the newer handsets quickly developed the same issues seen on the older models and Samsung decided to scrap its entire inventory and issue a permanent recall on Oct. 10. It is also now illegal to bring a Galaxy Note 7 handset on board an airplane.
In the aftermath, Samsung has halted development of its upcoming smartphone, the Galaxy S8 , by two weeks to cooperate with the CPSC in coming to the bottom of the Galaxy Note 7 defect, according to The WSJ . There is no word on whether the delay will push back the overall release of the device, which as originally expected in February.
A September report from Bloomberg suggested the Galaxy Note 7 battery was too large for its chassis, which lead to volatile conditions within the battery and device explosions. Tests have also determined Samsung SDI batteries were bulging inside the handset. However, neither of these claims have been been been definitively connected as the main cause of the Galaxy Note 7 defect.
Though the manufacturer’s outlook remains uncertain, Samsung has stated it’s working to uncover what caused the Galaxy Note 7 defects.
“We recognized that we did not correctly identify the issue the first time and remain committed to finding the root cause,” a Samsung spokeswoman told The WSJ. “Our top priority remains the safety of our customers and retrieving 100% of the Galaxy Note 7 devices in the market.”
Amid the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco, there have also been several reports of iPhone 7 handsets exploding . The CPSC has also stated it is investigating the safety of lithium ion batteries as a whole.
