Samsung Elec says to halt Galaxy Note 7 sales on battery problem

SEOUL, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Tech giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said on Friday it will halt the sales of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones and will prepare replacement devices for phones already sold after finding problems with the battery cell used.

Samsung, in a statement, said it will take about two weeks to prepare replacement devices for the phones already sold. It was not clear when new sales of the devices would begin. (Reporting by Se Young Lee; Editing by Christopher Cushing) </s> SEOUL (dpa-AFX) - Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (SMSN.L, SSNNF.OB, SSNLF.OB) has temporarily halted production of its troubled Galaxy Note 7 following reports of fires in replacement devices, according to media reports, citing person familiar with the matter.



The decision may include Samsung's plant in Vietnam which is responsible for global supply of the device, Yonhap said. The decision was made considering global consumers' safety, the unidentified official said, according to Yonhap.



AT&T Inc. (T) and T-Mobile US Inc. (TMUS) have both halted sales of the devices following reports of fires from the replacement devices.



On Sept. 2, Smartphone producer confirmed that it has stopped the sales of Galaxy Note 7 due to a battery cell issue. The company said it plans to replace the devices with faulty batteries with new one over the coming weeks.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX </s> This Sunday, Oct. 9, 2016, photo shows a damaged Samsung Galaxy Note 7 on a table in Richmond, Va., after it caught fire earlier in the day. Samsung Electronics said Tuesday, Oct. 11, that it is discontinuing production of Galaxy Note 7 smartphones permanently, a day after stopping global sales of the ill-fated devices. (Shawn L. Minter via AP) </s> Technology giant Samsung Electronics says it is suspending the sales of its brand new Galaxy Note 7 smartphones over faulty batteries. Speaking on Friday, Koh Dong-jin, president of Samsung’s mobile business, adds that replacement devices for phones already sold will be made available to customers. The new Galaxy Note 7 was launched two week ago </s> SEOUL, South Korea – Samsung’s crisis with its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone deepened Monday as the company confirmed it has adjusted its production following reports that newly released versions offered as replacements for recalled fire-prone devices have also overheated or caught fire.

The company, however, did not confirm or deny a report by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency earlier Monday that it has suspended production of the phones.

In a statement and in a regulatory filing, Samsung Electronics said it is “temporarily” adjusting the Galaxy Note 7 production schedule and production volume to “ensure quality and safety matters.” The company added that it will issue an update when more details are available.

Before the reports of a production suspension emerged, U.S. phone retailers AT&T and T-Mobile had already opted to stop giving new Note 7 replacement smartphones to consumers.

Samsung and U.S. authorities are investigating multiple reports of new Note 7 replacement smartphones catching fire, including a Samsung phone that emitted smoke and forced a Southwest Airlines flight in Kentucky to evacuate passengers. The Consumer Product Safety Commission is investigating the incident.

The production change suggests fresh trouble for Samsung as it awaits the U.S. authorities’ investigation into the replacement phones. It had promised that its new Note 7 devices with a green battery icon were safe.

The reports of replacement phones catching fire raise doubts over whether the battery is the only problem as Samsung has said. When it issued a global recall on Sept. 2, Samsung blamed batteries provided by one of its two battery suppliers.

and assured consumers that other parts of the smartphones were fine. </s> SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Yonhap says Samsung has temporarily halted production of Galaxy Note 7 after replacement devices catch fire. </s> SEOUL, South Korea — Samsung Electronics has temporarily halted production of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported Monday, following reports that replacements for phone that had been catching fire were also overheating.

Citing an unnamed official at a Samsung supplier, Yonhap reported that the tech giant took the unprecedented measure for consumer safety.

The latest report shows that Samsung’s troubles with the Galaxy Note 7, which was recalled last month after reports of its batteries catching fire, may not be over.

Samsung Electronics did not respond to a request seeking confirmation.

The Note 7 recall, Samsung’s first smartphone recall, and its handling of the incidents have left the company facing its biggest crisis in years.

The premium phone was hailed by critics as one of the best Android phones when it made its debut in August. Two months later, some consumers called the expensive device “Death Note” after reports that dozens of the smartphones overheated or caught fire, in some cases damaging property or causing injuries.

Samsung seemed to have the trouble under control when it swiftly announced a global recall two weeks after the phone’s launch and promised consumers to replace their existing phone with a new Note 7 with a green battery icon that shows it is safe to use.

But consumers started to report that even the new Note 7 with the green battery icon were catching fire.

Last week, authorities had to evacuate a Southwest Airlines flight in Kentucky when a replacement phone began emitting smoke.

Passenger Brian Green, 43, said the device was a Galaxy Note 7 he had picked up from an authorized AT&T retailer Sept. 21 as a replacement for another Note 7 phone he returned when the global recall was announced. Samsung had promised that the replacement models were safe.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission is still investigating the incident and had no further information as of Friday.

Before the report of Samsung’s production suspension emerged, AT&T, one of the largest phone retailers in the U.S., stopped giving consumers replacement Note 7s and encouraged customers with Note 7 phones to exchange them for other devices. </s> Samsung has halted sales of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone and urged owners to switch them off following reports that handsets issued as replacements for faulty models had caught fire.

The Korean technology giant’s share price tumbled seven per cent yesterday, wiping billions of pounds off its value, as the future of the flagship handset was thrown into jeopardy.

The £740 smartphone was due to relaunch in the UK at the end of October after sales were delayed amid concerns that the mobiles were at risk of overheating or catching fire.

Samsung said it was confident it had overcome an issue with the devices’ battery after a reported 2.5 million handsets were recalled worldwide. The manufacturer said it is ‘working with relevant regulatory bodies to investigate the recently reported cases involving the Galaxy Note 7’.. “Because consumers’ safety remains our top priority, Samsung will ask all carrier and retail partners globally to stop sales and exchanges of the Galaxy Note 7 while the investigation is taking place,” the firm added in a statement.

US officials said they were probing at least five incidents of fire or overheating reported since Samsung first recalled the devices in September. Meanwhile authorities in South Korea said they had found a new product defect in the Note 7, but did not identify the issue.

Samsung said it remained ‘committed to working diligently with appropriate regulatory authorities to take all necessary steps to resolve the situation’.

“Consumers with either an original Galaxy Note 7 or replacement Galaxy Note 7 device should power down and stop using the device and take advantage of the remedies available,” the firm said.

The UK release date for the Note 7 had been moved to October 28 after Samsung ordered the recall following dozens of reports of devices overheating worldwide. The firm then began a programme offering replacement phones to consumers who had pre-ordered the device in the UK.

The company said 45,000 Note 7s had been sold in Europe through the pre-order campaign - the majority in the UK - and more than 75 per cent had since been replaced with either a Note 7 or another Samsung handset.

Samsung said in September that it was’confident’ it had completely overcome the problem and was ready to launch the device. However, concerns were raised over further defects beyond the battery cell, following several reports in the US of phones catching fire that showed the green battery icon Samsung added to replacement phones to mark them as safe. </s> Samsung has halted sales of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone and urged owners to switch them off following reports that handsets issued as replacements for faulty models had caught fire.

The Korean technology giant's share price tumbled seven per cent yesterday, wiping billions of pounds off its value, as the future of the flagship handset was thrown into jeopardy.

The £740 smartphone was due to relaunch in the UK at the end of October after sales were delayed amid concerns that the mobiles were at risk of overheating or catching fire.

Samsung said it was confident it had overcome an issue with the devices' battery after a reported 2.5 million handsets were recalled worldwide.

The manufacturer said it is 'working with relevant regulatory bodies to investigate the recently reported cases involving the Galaxy Note 7'..

"Because consumers' safety remains our top priority, Samsung will ask all carrier and retail partners globally to stop sales and exchanges of the Galaxy Note 7 while the investigation is taking place," the firm added in a statement.

US officials said they were probing at least five incidents of fire or overheating reported since Samsung first recalled the devices in September.

Meanwhile authorities in South Korea said they had found a new product defect in the Note 7, but did not identify the issue.

Samsung said it remained 'committed to working diligently with appropriate regulatory authorities to take all necessary steps to resolve the situation'.

"Consumers with either an original Galaxy Note 7 or replacement Galaxy Note 7 device should power down and stop using the device and take advantage of the remedies available," the firm said.

The UK release date for the Note 7 had been moved to October 28 after Samsung ordered the recall following dozens of reports of devices overheating worldwide.

The firm then began a programme offering replacement phones to consumers who had pre-ordered the device in the UK.

The company said 45,000 Note 7s had been sold in Europe through the pre-order campaign - the majority in the UK - and more than 75 per cent had since been replaced with either a Note 7 or another Samsung handset.

Samsung said in September that it was'confident' it had completely overcome the problem and was ready to launch the device.

However, concerns were raised over further defects beyond the battery cell, following several reports in the US of phones catching fire that showed the green battery icon Samsung added to replacement phones to mark them as safe.
Samsung announces an end of production of the Galaxy Note 7 after continued problems with its battery.