Samsung really doesn’t need another line of its top-selling phones to start catching fire.
After a horrendous autumn dealing with the fallout of combusting batteries in the Galaxy Note 7, Samsung is now reassuring customers that its smaller-sized, S7 range is not affected by the same issue.
“Samsung stands behind the quality and safety of the Galaxy S7 family” the company said in an official statement released late on Friday. “There have been no confirmed cases of internal battery failures with these devices among the more than 10 million devices being used by consumers in the United States.”
Samsung’s third quarter profits dropped by 30% in part because of the effects of Samsung’s massive recall and eventual shelving of the Galaxy S7 Note.
There had been numerous reports from around the world of the Note 7 catching fire, and in mid-October the FAA, America’s civil aviation regulator, even banned the Note 7 from all U.S. airline flights. By Sept. 1st 2016, the company had already recorded 35 cases of Note 7’s around the world catching fire.
Samsung is still dealing with the fallout of the Note 7 and in the meantime has sought to draw attention to its forthcoming Galaxy S8 and its integrated digital assistant, powered by artificial intelligence.
Yet there have been a small sprinkling of reports of similar overheating problems occurring with Samsung’s Galaxy S7. Tech journalist Chris Mills at BGR, for instance, reported in early October that his S7 Active had swollen up and broken the phone while it was charging in his office.
Another S7 user in Canada claimed he suffered second and third-degree burns on his hands after his Samsung smartphone exploded while he was in his car. Daniel Ramirez in Ohio is also reportedly suing Samsung after saying that his Galaxy S7 Edge (a version of the same phone but with a curved screen) exploded in his trousers pocket in May 2016, leading to burns on his groin, leg and lower back.
Samsung’s statement will reassure some customers and investors, but if the reports of S7 fires continue, it may have a bigger problem on its hands.
