Samsung Galaxy Note 7 discontinues in the wake of fire reports

Samsung has permanently ended production of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone, following a number of phones catching on fire after the company reassured customers they were safe.

Following two rounds of product recalls, Samsung issued a regulatory filing to say it would no longer be producing the handset. Taking our customers safety as our highest priority, we have decided to halt sales and production of the Galaxy Note 7, the company said.

The company announced the first recall of the original Note 7 after dozens caught fire and exploded while charging. Some 2.5 million handsets were recalled.

Samsung blamed an issue with the batteries, stopped selling the phone, and shortly afterwards began selling a fixed replacement version. A different coloured battery indicator signalled this handset to be safe.

However, just days later reports began to surface of supposedly safe Note 7s also catching fire. In a statement published early on 11 October, Samsung said it had asked all global partners to stop selling the Note 7 while the investigation is taking place.

Hours later, Samsung confirmed it will no longer build or sell the Galaxy Note 7. It said the decision was made on the grounds of consumer safety.

The dramatic but unsurprising move is a major blow for the South Korean company, which had gathered strong momentum in recent years with its Galaxy smartphones, pulling away from other Android manufacturers and taking the fight to Apple and their iPhone.

The Note 7 launched in August and was received positively by the technology press, including IBTimes UK. The phone, a direct to Apples iPhone Plus range, was due to go on sale in the UK on 28 August, but on that same day the first recall was announced. Handsets sold in the US and China were replaced weeks later with an updated version.

Samsung finally launched the Note 7 in the UK a month later, but at around the same time the second batch of handsets also began to catch fire. At least five instances were reported in the US alone in less than a week, all involving the phone Samsung was was safe to own and use.

On the morning of 11 October, the company announced it would stop selling the Note 7 until it had completed an investigation into the problems, but just hours later it admitted defeat, permanently ending production and killing off the Note 7 for good.