Galaxy Note 7's unfortunate demise reportedly caused by new battery flaw

Samsung confirmed yesterday that it will no longer produce or sell the Galaxy Note 7 merely two months after releasing what could have been its best performing Galaxy Note handset. Samsung announced the first recall last month when reports started coming in that units were catching fire for no apparent reason. It confirmed that there was a battery cell defect which was causing this problem and that it will replace each and every unit with a safe one. Earlier this week reports started coming in about replacement units catching fire as well and that inevitably led to the Galaxy Note 7's unfortunate demise.

According to a report, investigators are of the view that the recent reports of the Galaxy Note 7 catching fire might be due to a second battery flaw different from the one which forced the initial recall. Preliminary examination of the evidence shows that there's also an issue with batteries supplied by China's Amperex Technology even though they were considered to be the safe alternative to Samsung SDI's faulty batteries.

The issue is believed to have spread into the supply line once Samsung started replacing the Galaxy Note 7 that had batteries sourced from Samsung SDI. A US consumer safety agency cited in the report claims the batteries from Samsung's own affiliate were slightly too large for the device. Since they were a bit too large for the compartment, installing them would crimp the corner which would cause the batteries to short circuit and overheat.

Samsung is yet to officially explain why replacement Galaxy Note 7 units which were meant to be safe in the first place started facing the same issue as recalled units.

Adnan Farooqui - Executive Editor

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First Samsung device: SGH-E900

Adnan Farooqui is a long-term writer at SamMobile. Based in Pakistan, his interests include technology, finance, Swiss watches and Formula 1. His tendency to write long posts betrays his inclination to being a man of few words.

Source Phone Galaxy Note 7 Samsung SDI