Galaxy Note 7 Results

Nicholas Headley

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Samsung has revealed what caused the Galaxy Note 7 smartphones to catch fire. After extensive testing, it was have concluded that bad batteries and rushed manufacturing doomed the highly ranked smartphone.

They say there are two separate flaws with the Galaxy Note 7’s batteries. The first battery had a design flaw in the upper right corner that could cause a short circuit, according to Recode.  The second battery, used for replacement units, had a manufacturing issue that could lead to fires because of a welding defect. Some units of the second battery were also missing insulation tape.

Samsung conducted an investigation with 700 dedicated staff testing 200,000 phones and 30,000 extra batteries, also commissioning three outside firms (UL, Exponent, and TUV Rheinland). Those firms found the same results.

So, now that we know exactly what happened with Samsung’s fiery batteries, will it happen again?

Samsung said that it has implemented a new eight-step testing process for its lithium ion batteries, and that it is forming a battery advisory board as well, comprised of academics from Cambridge, Berkeley, and Stanford. Note, this is for all lithium ion batteries in Samsung products, not just Note phablets or the anticipated Galaxy S8 phone.

Samsung’s new eight-step battery safety check includes: durability testing, visual inspection, X-rays, charge and discharge tests, tests of total volatile organic compounds (TVOC), disassembling tests, accelerated usage tests, and open circuit voltage tests.

Many of these steps, including the first three listed above as well as open circuit voltage tests, were conducted on earlier devices; but Samsung says the testing is now enhanced, and will be conducted with increasing frequency. For example, it says it has raised its internal standards for the visual inspection phase.

Samsung first announced the Galaxy Note 7, its flagship phablet , in early August 2016, and began shipping the phone a couple of weeks later. Initial reviews of the device were largely positive, but then reports of faulty batteries began to emerge, with some of the phone units generating excessive heat and catching fire. Samsung first suspended sales of the phone, then began replacing defective phones with new units; only after some of the replacement units began exploding did Samsung issue a worldwide recall, on October 10th.

The press conference was a long-awaited dose of information and offered a level of transparency that the company, quite critically, hadn’t offered before. Still, Samsung’s efforts to win back the trust of consumers will likely continue to be an uphill battle. The next Galaxy S flagship phone, coming this spring, will be the biggest test Samsung has faced since its ascent to the position of world’s biggest smartphone manufacturer.