The unprecedented just happened. A report coming from Bloomberg today announced that Samsung has officially pulled the plug off its controversial Galaxy Note 7 phablet.
The measure is a drastic one, but given the current situation, we don’t see how the Galaxy Note7 could ever bounce back. Samsung has taken a major hit in credibility and this desperate attempt at damage control proves in what precarious situation the phone maker finds itself in.
It’s a fiasco that will probably go down in history and won’t be easily forgotten. This news arrives shortly after Samsung released a statement where it explicitly asked users to “power down and stop using” the original Galaxy Note 7 or the replacement Galaxy Note 7 and “take advantage of the remedies available”. The Korean tech giant also requested that global partners stop sales of the phablets in question.
The Galaxy Note7 was supposed to be Samsung’s almighty weapon in battling Apple’s new iPhone host during the upcoming holiday season. Now all the effort that went into building this premium handset is going down the drain.
Considered one of the world’s top smartphone makers, Samsung has had a rough couple of months. Shortly after the Galaxy Note7 made its way onto the market, reports started flooding in that the phone’s battery was prone to overheating and catching fire.
Samsung quickly issued a global recall and offered replacement Galaxy Note7 phones, but the crisis was far from being over and forgotten.
In the last few weeks, we have been bombarded by news of smoking, exploding replacement Galaxy Note7 units. One phone almost blew up in the pocket of a passenger traveling onboard a Southwest Airlines flight from Louisville, KY. Another started smoking in the hand of a thirteen-year-old teenager, who luckily managed to drop it to the ground quickly enough.
In the wake of all unfortunate these events, Samsung found itself under immense pressure. Earlier this week it said it was working with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission to investigate the problem, but now it seems the Korean giant has decided a more drastic approach is called for.
The effects of the Galaxy Note7 fiasco are already visible, as Samsung shares fell 8% Tuesday thus shaving off approximately $17 billion market value.
While this news might come as a blow to Samsung enthusiasts and supporters, it seems inadmissible that a company of Samsung’s caliber and notoriety was careless enough to put a product so potentially dangerous as the Galaxy Note7, on the market. Are the days of good old fashion, strict quality control over and done? We certainly hope not.
EDIT: Samsung has issued an official statment for CNBC:
“For the benefit of consumers’ safety, we have stopped sales and exchanges of the Galaxy Note 7 and have consequently decided to stop production.”
Comments are closed.