Samsung halts Galaxy Note 7 production because of all those pesky fires

It looks like Samsung is finally coming to terms with the fact that there’s something wrong its Galaxy Note 7 flagship smartphone.

Following numerous reports of the handset bursting into flames, a recall of 2.5 million devices worldwide and three instances of replacement models catching fire, the company has reportedly halted production, reports South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency.

Samsung has declined to comment on the story so far – but it’ll have to be quick to address the situation publicly. Two major US carriers, AT&T and T-Mobile, have already announced their decision to stop issuing Note 7 devices to customers; they’ll accept returns but will offer alternatives in exchange.

For some reason, Sprint is still handing out replacements. If you’re eligible to receive a different device, or haven’t yet purchased a new phone, you’d do well to avoid the Note 7 entirely for the time being.

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In what has turned into one of the world’s largest consumer device recalls ever in history, Samsung hasn’t been quick enough to act responsibly to avoid putting customers’ lives at risk with faulty products.

The company first received reports of problematic Note 7s catching fire more than a month ago. Granted, it was indeed a small number of cases that were reported initially, but the fact that even replacement devices have been found to have the same problem indicates that the problem lies deeper than Samsung cared to dig, while it hurried to offer replacements.

We’ve contacted Samsung for comment and will update this post if there’s a response.

Update: According to the Associated Press, Samsung says it’s working to address quality issues with the Note 7:

BREAKING: Samsung says it is adjusting production output of Galaxy Note 7 to "ensure" quality following more reports of fires.

— The Associated Press (@AP) October 10, 2016

Via CNBC