Samsung offers quick fix for Note 7

Samsung plans to issue a software update for its recalled Galaxy Note 7 smartphones that will prevent them from overheating by limiting battery recharges to under 60 per cent.

The front page of the Seoul Shinmun, a South Korean daily newspaper, carried a Samsung advertisement Tuesday announcing the software update plan for any users of the Note 7 who may be disregarding its recall notice and continuing to use the smartphone.

“It is a measure to put consumer safety first but we apologize for causing inconvenience,” Samsung Electronics said. The update for South Korean users will start at 2 a.m. on Sept. 20, it said.

South Korean media earlier reported the software upgrade plan, citing Samsung. It was not clear when the update may roll out overseas.

The Yonhap news agency reported that Samsung is in talks with mobile carriers to carry out the same update plan to keep battery power at 60 per cent or below at all times.

Samsung plans to begin issuing new Note 7s with batteries it says will not be prone to overheating beginning on Sept. 19. It has recalled 2.5 million of the devices after dozens of reports of them exploding or catching fire. Samsung says the problem stems from a manufacturing glitch in the batteries.

The company has urged consumers to immediately turn off the phones and get them replaced with the new Note 7. But implementing such a large-scale recall is a challenge. Consumers have to visit Samsung service centres or retailers twice — once to get a replacement phone — not a Note 7 — and have a safety check of their existing Galaxy Note 7, and a second time to get a new Note 7.

Analysts said the update appears to be a last-ditch effort to contain the crisis.