It seems like we can’t go a single day without new negative developments in Samsung’s ongoing Galaxy Note 7 saga, but Monday morning brings at least one positive tidbit along with all the negatives. To briefly recap the situation yet again, Samsung launched its best ever smartphone this past August, but a defect caused a small number of devices to explode without warning. Samsung recalled the phone and issued replacements that were believed to be safe, but then they began to explode without warning as well. The company was left with no choice but to discontinue the phone and recall all handsets, old and new.
On to the new developments on Monday morning. First, the bad news: Samsung still reportedly has absolutely no idea what caused the Galaxy Note 7 to explode. But the good news is that the company is planning to offer even more benefits to consumers who stay loyal to the brand next year.
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It has now been more than a month since Samsung first began investigating Galaxy Note 7 fires and according to The Wall Street Journal, the company still doesn’t know what caused the handsets to malfunction. “We recognized that we did not correctly identify the issue the first time and remain committed to finding the root cause,” a Samsung spokesperson told the paper. “Our top priority remains the safety of our customers and retrieving 100% of the Galaxy Note 7 devices in the market.”
The Journal also noted that Samsung’s decision not to work more closely with US and international regulators early on may have hindered regulators’ ability to help determine the cause of the fires. But there is some good news to be found this morning, as well.
Samsung announced on its site that consumers in its home country will be able to trade in their recalled Note 7 handset for a Galaxy S7 model, and they’ll be refunded the difference. That’s old news, of course. Next year, Note 7 buyers who swapped their phones for a Galaxy S7 will be able to trade in their S7 model for a 50% discount on the Galaxy Note 8 (or whatever Samsung ends up calling it). The company has run into problems convincing people in South Korea to turn in their recalled Note 7 phones, so this could be just the push they need.
This offer is only available in South Korea for the time being, and it’s unclear if Samsung plans to offer Galaxy Note 8 discounts to consumers in other markets.
