The burning Galaxy Note 7 issue is now causing Samsung some issues with Chinese customers. South Korean firm Samsung has not yet recalled the smartphone in China, even though there have been reports of the device catching fire. The company put the Chinese issues down to “external heating” so refused the recall.
Most Galaxy Note 7 batteries sold in China are powered by batteries made in China, so Samsung does not believe the issue to be similar to those occurring elsewhere. The recalls outside of China had involved faulty batteries made in Samsung’s own factory. China is accusing the South Korean company to be biased against China.
Samsung has found itself in a row with Chinese consumers, with some accusing the firm of being biased against them. A recall of around 2.5 million Note 7 phones was ordered on September 2, but China was left out of this because, it claims, the batteries were made by a local Chinese supplier.
The original issue of phones catching fire was ascribed to errors during the manufacturing process in Samsungs own battery plant. Devices sold after September 1 are claimed by Samsung to be safe to use. However, photographs of two charred Note 7 models were recently posted online in China.
The Note 7 battery supplier concerned, Amperex International Ltd, is based in Hong Kong. A spokesperson stated that the fires seemed different to those previously reported outside of China. The company believes that the heat problem has nothing to do with their batteries. It claims they were due to other factors not connected with the battery. It did not comment on what these factors might be.
This could turn into a serious issue for Samsung. China is the largest smartphone market in the world, and of significant importance to any phone manufacturer. It may be that the company will ultimately be forced to make the recall at the expense of losing this lucrative market.
There were reports that Samsung had recalled 1,858 Galaxy Note 7 units on September 14, but this did nothing to satisfy the Chinese. The Chinese press claims Samsung to be ‘insincere’ to recall less than 2,000 phones in China but 1 million in the USA.
Samsung claimed these units had been in China prior to the September 1 remedial action, and had been used to test the market. They had been recalled as a ’preventative measure.’ However, this Galaxy Note 7 issue in China might not just ‘go away.’ It generally does not pay to upset the Chinese market and its consumers, and Samsung may decide to recall these phones as a marketing strategy.
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