Updated: 05/09/2016
Consumers who have purchased a Note 7 in the UAE are advised not to use the smartphone until a safe replacement has been issued. Hashim Al Nuaimi, Director of Consumer Protection in the UAE Ministry of Economy said that Samsung Gulf has agreed to exchange or replace the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 devices sold in the UAE, which currently number around 19,000 units so far. However, the process of replacing the devices still hasn’t been worked out.
“For customers who already have Galaxy Note7 devices in the Gulf market, we will voluntarily replace their current device. To ensure a seamless replacement experience for our customers in the Gulf region, Samsung Gulf Electronics is currently reviewing the optimal process to perform the replacement.”
Original Article:
Waters may have been calm when Samsung unveiled their new flagship phone, the Galaxy Note 7, a month ago. However, the coming few weeks are going to be nothing short of tempestuous for the South Korean company as they begin recalling the smartphone due to reports that some of the devices were exploding, during or after charging.
Furthermore, Samsung has announced that they are halting sales of the smartphone, merely two weeks after the first was sold, due to the reports. Users who have already bought a Note 7 will get a replacement free of charge. However, Samsung has stated that it would take about a fortnight to prepare replacement devices for the Note 7. Moreover, Samsung has stated that it will be difficult to figure out which of the more than 2.5 million Note 7 smartphones sold are affected. More finite details about the recall process are as of yet, still unknown.
“There was a tiny problem in the manufacturing process, so it was very difficult to figure out. It will cost us so much it makes my heart ache. Nevertheless, the reason we made this decision is because what is most important is customer safety.”
Koh Dong-jin, president of Samsung’s mobile business.
According to Samsung, they have received 35 separate reports worldwide tied to what it described only as a “battery cell issue” affecting the Note 7. The company is working with suppliers to root out other “affected batteries” in the market. It should be noted that different companies supply batteries for the Note 7, so it is possible that it may be one bad batch of batteries from on supplier. Problems with the Note 7’s battery were brought to light due to a number of images and videos being posted on social media.
Unfortunately for Samsung, the recall hits at a critical moment; their foremost competitor, Apple, is set to unveil its latest smartphone next Wednesday. Its other products, such as the recently unveiled Gear 3 smartwatch may also have their sales affected.
