Samsung on Monday officially revealed the cause behind the Note 7’s tendency to overheat and explode: the first batch of the Note 7 battery made by Samsung SDI was too large for the phone casing; the second batch, from Chinese battery supplier ATL, also had a defect, and Samsung was in a rush to get the new phones out.
The announcement is a punch in the face for Samsung, which in September 2016 announced its plan to recall Note 7 smartphones in all major markets except China, the world’s largest smartphone market by shipment. The reason given was that it used a different supplier for phones in China.
In the same month, one “safe” Note7 exploded in China, but Samsung China and battery supplier ATL denied that the explosion was a result of a malfunctioning battery, and said it was caused by external heat.
Some internet users expressed their concerns about the company’s overlooking of quality. A user by the name “Bruce” commented on Weibo, China’s’ Twitter, that “I wouldn’t buy it anyway. It is stupid to compromise on smartphone quality.”
The official statement also stirred anger among Chinese Note 7 owners and internet users, who accuse the smartphone company of applying a double standard in China. They accused Samsung of dividing the world into two different markets – China and other regions.
Others pointed out that although Samsung met a major setback in the Note 7, the company will still see its profits grow, as the price for dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips has surged recently, and the company is a major worldwide supplier of DRAM chips.
(Top photo from Samsung)