Samsung is in the midst of a huge mess involving its latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy Note 7. After Samsung’s first run of Note 7 devices began exploding while in use, Samsung had no choice but to issue a global recall of the approximately 2.5 million devices that had been shipped to retailers. After identifying what it believed to be the problem, the company began replacing first-run phones with new Note 7 units that were believed to be safe. As we all now know, these new replacement Galaxy Note 7 phones were not safe in all cases, and more than a half-dozen replacement devices have reportedly exploded. On Tuesday, Samsung announced that the Note 7 would be discontinued and all phones should be powered down and returned immediately.
The Galaxy Note 7 is still the best smartphone Samsung has ever created — explosions aside, of course — and some diehard Samsung fans would rather take the risk of being burned than return their precious Note 7 phones.
DON’T MISS: This video might be our first look at a new Apple device no one even knew was in development
When we published our Galaxy Note 7 review back in August, we called it the best Android phone of all time. In fact, we also called it the best phablet ever, iPhones included. The housing design is absolutely spectacular, featuring curved edges on the front and back that make the phone very comfortable to hold despite its large 5.7-inch display. And that display, by the way, is the best smartphone screen the world has ever seen, hands down.
But that whole your phone might explode and burn you or even burn your house down thing is sort of a turnoff for us.
We’ve been recommending for weeks that users steer clear of the Galaxy Note 7, and now Samsung is saying the same thing. The phone has officially been discontinued, and Samsung has asked anyone currently in possession of a Note 7 to return it to the retailer where it was purchased immediately for a full refund. But some users just aren’t willing to part with their phones no matter what dangers they might face.
“All my friends, they make fun of me, they throw memes at me on Facebook,” one Note 7 lover told CNET. “It is what it is — I’m not worried.” Ironically, he’s an EMT based in Queens, New York.
Another user said he doesn’t want to be without the Note 7’s great stylus features, and he loves the phone’s design too much to part with it. “I’ve fallen in love with the curved, almost bezzle-less [sic] screen of the 7,” he told the site. “I simply can not downgrade from that.”
A quick search on Twitter or Facebook yields dozens more users who say that they have no plans to return their phones. While there’s no question that the Galaxy Note 7 is a gorgeous smartphone, please be safe and follow Samsung’s instructions, which clearly state that all Note 7 phones should be returned at once.
