At this point, Samsung has no choice but to look forward.
2016 started strong for the smartphone maker, with the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge receiving rave reviews for their impressive power and bold, attractive designs. Months later, the Galaxy Note 7 should have kept that ball rolling, but instead, batteries started exploding and the company was forced to issue a recall.
So with the controversy (mostly) behind it, Samsung is doing everything in its power to bring back customers and restore confidence in its brand in 2017.
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“We are 80 percent (of the way through the recall),” Samsung Electronics’ North America CEO Gregory Lee told AT&T Mobility CEO Glenn Lurie at the GSMA Mobility Live conference in Atlanta. “Our employees have been working 24/7 for the last 50 days to try to make this happen.”
After the initial recall, Samsung began issuing replacement Note 7 devices to customers. But even the replacements were afflicted with the battery issue.
“We are looking at every aspect of the product, the process, to make sure that we can say with total confidence we know exactly what the problems are, and how to prevent the problems going forward,” Lee said. “We are going to work very hard to regain consumer, customer, carrier and government trust to rebuild our brand.”
There’s no question that Samsung still makes quality products. Its TVs are often the highest rated, its Gear VR headset is one of the best on the market and its phone (aside from the explosions) are arguably the best Android phones on the market.
Samsung’s road to recovery has begun.
