Samsung expected to recall Galaxy Note 7 over exploding battery

TECH giant Samsung is expected to announce a global recall of its latest phone after users reported an explosive malfunction.

SAMSUNG is expected to issue a global recall of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone in the coming days after its investigation on explosion claims found batteries in some devices were at fault.

On Thursday the company announced it would halt shipments of the new device after users reported the battery was exploding when being charged.

The Korean manufacturer stopped shipments in order to conduct further quality control testing but wouldn’t elaborate on what exactly was being tested.

“We will share the findings as soon as possible. Samsung is fully committed to providing the highest quality products to our consumers,” the company said in a statement.

According to a report in South Korean media, the tech giant plans on issuing a worldwide recall in “less than a week.”

Speaking to Yonhap News, an anonymous Samsung official said the problem appeared to be caused by faulty batteries installed in “less than 0.1 per cent of the entire volume sold.”

According to the report, about five or six explosions have been reported by customers.

The company is discussing how to resolve the issue with Verizon and its other partners, the official said.

Samsung declined to comment on the Yonhap News report but despite the investigation, it went ahead with its scheduled launch on Thursday of the Galaxy Note 7 in China.

“The problem can be simply resolved by changing the battery, but we’ll come up with convincing measures for our consumers,” the anonymous official told the Korean news agency. “The most important thing is the safety of our customers and we don’t want to disappoint our loyal customers.”

Samsung launched the latest version of the Note series just two weeks ago which is the latest iteration of the company’s Note series that feature a giant screen and a stylus.

The battery issue is a fresh blow to Samsung’s smartphone business that has been on a recovery track. Samsung reported stellar earnings that beat market expectations in the latest quarter and its stock price was at a record high before the Note 7’s battery problems dented investor sentiment.

-With AP