Samsung might not be ready to give up on selling the Galaxy Note 7, a new report says. That’s not necessarily exciting news. Sure, Samsung may finally fix the manufacturing issues that turned the phablet into Samsung’s biggest PR disaster. But customers may have a tougher time trusting Samsung a third time.
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According to The Investor, Samsung is expected to sell refurbished Galaxy Note 7 versions at some point next year. “Samsung has not made a final decision yet, but it will likely sell the refurbished Note 7 units next year,” an unidentified industry source told the site.
Samsung is yet to explain why the first-gen Galaxy Note 7 exploded, and why the “fixed” units were still fire-prone. So it’s likely the company won’t sell any Galaxy Note 7 units, refurbished or not until that happens.
The report goes on to say that the refurbished Galaxy Note 7 units will hit emerging markets including India and Vietnam where low-end and mid-range handsets are popular. This seems to indicate Samsung is considering selling the phone for a lot less than its initial iPhone-grade price.
The Investor also notes one other plausible scenario for the Galaxy Note 7. The existing stock could be destroyed to set another example. The site reminds us that in 1995, Samsung Electronics Chairman had 150,000 Anycall mobile phones destroyed to emphasize product quality to Samsung executives and employees.
Samsung has a few million Galaxy Note 7 units on its hands, as many buyers returned the faulty units. Some diehard fans decided against ditching the phone in spite of Samsung’s requests, but it’s likely that Samsung still has a few million Galaxy Note 7 units on hand, phones whose fate is yet to be determined.
