Samsung just can’t seem catch a break.
As you should know by now, they have had to contend with one PR disaster (to put it lightly) after another, when their Galaxy Note 7 phones AND washing machines were reported to have been engulfed in flames in one way or another.
With their replacement programmes finally underway worldwide, it was hoped that the crisis was finally averted.
Not for long though, as news came in, from their home country South Korea no less, that even these ‘new’ phones are having overheating problems and losing their charge easily.
Smokes On A Plane
In the United States as well, there were similar reports of overheating and battery problems of replacements units, where users were saying that battery levels are dropping at a staggering 1% a second.
Well, one of them just caught fire… on a plane.
The Verge got the scoop on this one.
According to passenger and owner, Brian Green, he was not even using the phone while in the plane.
In accordance to an FAA advisory, all Note 7 must be not be turned on or placed in checked-in baggage. In the Southwest Airlines flight 994 that Brian was taking on 5th October, he was promptly advised by the flight crew to switch it off.
He did so, but after putting it into his pocket, realised that smoke was coming out from it! Fortunately, the plane was still at the gates and not in flight, and everyone was evacuated back into the terminal.
The phone was later found to have “burned through the carpet and scorched the subfloor of the plane.”
Brian also provided The Verge with a photo of his phone’s packaging to further prove that his set was indeed a replacement unit, and says that he got it from an AT&T store on September 21.
For those of you who want to check if you have got the ‘new’ Note 7, the process is simple – your box will have a black square beside the model number, and on your screen, you will see a green battery icon.
These two tell-tale signs are what Samsung has openly wrote about, and Brian checked both boxes.
The Verge also ran Brian’s IMEI number through a Samsung Note 7 checker available to US customers, and the phone also checks out there as well.
They have also reached out to Samsung for a comment, and have said that the company is currently conducting an investigation into the matter.
Let’s just hope this will not turn into another massive recall.
But what of Mr. Brian Green’s status? Well, the ending of The Verge article sums it up:
“He has already replaced it with an iPhone 7.”
Here Are All The Other Times It Caught Fire
The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 has had a tumultuous time ever since the first reports of it burning up sent shockwaves across the internet/
Let’s take a look at all the horrors it has caused.
Ariel Gonzalez posted this video of his Note 7 as a post-mortem look at what happened to his device.
Nathan Dornacher has been an ardent user of every Galaxy Note model – he found his Jeep in flames after leaving his Note 7 to charge in it.
Here’s everyone else who has not been so lucky with their Note 7, in pictures:
May this serve as a cautionary tale for future Samsung devices, as well as other manufacturers.
Featured Image Credits: The Verge