Samsung has announced a global recall of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone after an internal investigation into reports of batteries catching fire, according to reports from several sources worldwide in the past 24 hours.
The company refused to comment on the claims made on Friday by South Korea’s Yonhap News and in the Korea Herald, but confirmed it was conducting inspections with its partners following videos being released online showing damage to the phones.
“We will share the findings as soon as possible. Samsung is fully committed to providing the highest quality products to our consumers,” the firm said on September 1.
Yonhap said Samsung will likely replace the batteries on Galaxy Note 7 smartphones through the recall, without citing a source. It was not clear how many phones would get a battery replacement, but reports from Australia said it will hold back the release of the phone in several markets.
Samsung launched Note 7 at the end of August in some markets, including South Korea and American.
Some shipments of the phones were abruptly halted following the release of the video showing the phone exploding, which could be a legal headache for the company stretching into the hundreds of millions.
Following the news, Samsung’s stocks plunged by about $7 billion over Wednesday and Thursday, barely a week after the phones launched to critical acclaim and the company’s market value reached a record high.
