By Dipo Olowookere
Barely two weeks after it released its flagship smartphone to the market, South Korean electronics giant, Samsung, has made a recall of its Galaxy Note 7.
There have been reports of the device exploding.
The company explained that it was aware of the problem, saying it was mainly “battery cell issue.”
Samsung said it has already confirmed 35 cases so far.
However, the company has promised to replace every unit already sold, while putting a halt on sale of the product already in the market worldwide.
Samsung addressed the media on Friday in Seoul, the South Korean capital, announcing the global recall of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone.
The company said it has already launched a thorough investigation into the problem and will now try to identify other affected batteries in the market.
“Samsung is committed to producing the highest quality products and we take every incident report from our valued customers very seriously. In response to recently reported cases of the new Galaxy Note7, we conducted a thorough investigation and found a battery cell issue.
“To date (as of September 1) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note7.
“For customers who already have Galaxy Note7 devices, we will voluntarily replace their current device with a new one over the coming weeks. Instructions on the replacement process will be shared next week.
“We acknowledge the inconvenience this may cause in the market but this is to ensure that Samsung continues to deliver the highest quality products to our customers. We are working closely with our partners to ensure the replacement experience is as convenient and efficient as possible,” Samsung said on Friday.
It is believed that about one million Galaxy Note 7 has been sold already.
The development comes at a time Samsung’s main competitor, Apple, is preparing to launch its latest iPhone next Wednesday.
There are speculations that this might pose a huge threat to Samsung’s share of the market because of this problem.
Samsung presently leads the smartphone market share with over 22%, while its main rival, Apple, follows with about 15% and Huawei in third. Other smartphone manufacturers share the remaining percentage.