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Florida man says his Apple AirPod exploded
A man in Florida claims that one of his Apple AirPods began smoking and later exploded. Florida's WFLA TV reports that the man, Jason Colon, was working out at a gym when he noticed smoke coming from the AirPod in his right ear. He immediately took both AirPods out and placed them on a piece of gym equipment while he sought help, but when he returned, the AirPod in question was charred and broken apart. "I didn't see it happen, but I mean, it was already fried. You can see flame damage," he told WFLA.
Samsung says Note 8 presales are the best in series history
The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is on fire. No, not in the the literal way that the Note 7 was. I should say its sales are on fire because those actual fires don't seem to have curtailed the demand for the Note 8. During the five days after presales for the phone began, the phone racked up 650,000 orders across 40 countries. According to Samsung, which announced the sales stats at a press conference today in South Korea, those preorder numbers are around 2.5 times higher than the Note 7 over the same time period.
Samsung is giving Note 7 owners a hefty discount on the Note 8
If you were one of the millions of people who had to give up the recalled Galaxy Note 7, fret not, because Samsung has your back. Today, as part of its Unpacked 2017 event in NYC, the company revealed that those of you who owned the previous model will get a hefty discount on the new Note 8. The only thing you have to do is trade in your current device and, depending on the brand and condition of it, you can get up to $425 off the latest Note smartphone. If you're interested in the juicy mea culpa offer from Samsung, you'll be able to take advantage of it on Aug. 24th, the day pre-orders go live on its website.
The Galaxy Note 8 vs. the Note 7: What's changed?
Last year the Galaxy Note 7 was actually one of our favorite phones until it started exploding, so we're happy to see Samsung's line of large-screen-with-stylus handsets make its return today with the Note 8. While it would have been easy enough to simply change out the battery and call it a new model, there are a few other changes worth noting. That includes the dual camera, which we've never seen in a Samsung phone before, and the Note now comes packed with AI assistant Bixby. While we certainly hope you turned in your Note 7 during the recall, check out our chart below to see what upgrades await if you pick up a Note 8 when it comes out, as well as if this new phone has the potential to become one of our faves of 2017.
US regulators recall refurbished Galaxy Note 4 batteries
The Galaxy Note line is having problems again. Don't worry, this is not a Note 7-level emergency. And the issues aren't Samsung's fault or even associated with the original phone model. However, batteries installed in refurbished Note 4 phones by FedEx Supply Chain and distributed through AT&T's insurance program could overheat and are now being recalled.
Samsung will mine scrapped Note 7s for parts and rare metals
Samsung will kick off its Galaxy Note 7 recycling efforts this month and expects to recover 157 tons of rare metals from the controversial device. The phone's fiery history is pretty hard to forget, but to refresh your memory, Samsung had to pull it from shelves and discontinue its production after numerous reports of the model catching fire came out. Samsung has recently released refurbished Note 7s in Korea, but it still has to deal with a mountain of phones it won't be able to sell anymore.
iFixit rips out the Galaxy Note Fan Edition's new battery
Now that Samsung has officially relaunched its troubled Galaxy Note 7 as a "Fan Edition," the folks at iFixit couldn't help but dive back in. As you'd guess, Samsung has chosen to deal with the Note 7's unfortunate tendency to explode by going to the root of the problem -- the battery. By swapping in a 12.32 Wh unit instead of the original 13.48Wh unit, it should have enough room to avoid either of the issues observed previously. The only problems now are that these are only available in South Korea, and the Galaxy Note 8 is right around the corner.
Samsung's resurrected Galaxy Note 7 launches on July 7th
If you've missed the Galaxy Note 7 ever since it was discontinued over chronic battery fires, you now have a second chance at ownership... if you're willing to book a flight to Seoul. Samsung has confirmed both recent rumors and its own teaser by announcing a refurbished version of the Note 7, the Galaxy Note Fan Edition, that will launch in South Korea on (appropriately enough) July 7th. As you might guess, it's largely the same phone hardware-wise -- the big difference is the use of safer, smaller-capacity batteries that have passed stricter testing standards. They'll also include the Bixby assistant software introduced with the Galaxy S8.
Samsung will reportedly release Note 7 ‘fandom’ edition soon
Samsung continues to deal with the fallout from its exploding Note 7 devices. The company has been sued for the problem, and has issued short-term fixes, apologies and a hurried recall to try and contain the damage to its brand. Apparently it's working, as the Galaxy S8 has gotten a record number of pre-orders despite the issues of its predecessor. Now Samsung is looking to sweeten Note 7 lovers up with the Galaxy Note 7 "Fandom Edition." According to the Wall Street Journal, this FE model will be a refurbished Note 7 with upgraded components.
Samsung will sell refurbished Galaxy Note 7s... somewhere
Last month, a report claiming that Samsung would refurbish and sell the many Galaxy Note 7 smartphones that were returned following a global recall. In case you forgot, the Galaxy Note 7 had a battery problem that was causing the device to overheat and catch on fire. Now that Samsung finished its investigation into the root cause of the problem, the company is detailing how it plans to deal with the millions of returned phones. Refurbishment and resale is at the top of that list: Samsung says it'll consider if devices are in suitable condition to be sold or used as rental devices.
The Engadget Podcast Ep 29: Re-Offender
Managing editor Dana Wollman and senior editor Nathan Ingraham join host Terrence O'Brien to talk about the biggest tech stories of the week. Of course, that means Uber and the growing controversy around its corporate culture -- including allegations of rampant sexism. They'll also address Samsung's plans to sell refurbished Note 7s, Bill Gate's endorsement of a robot tax and PewDiePie's most recent controversy. Then it's time to unwind a bit, and the group has some reading and listening suggestions. Plus, Dana wants your recipes.
Samsung will reportedly sell 'refurbished' Galaxy Note 7s
Even though Samsung has established a cause for those Galaxy Note 7 flare-ups, the device's story is not over. Korean outlet Hankyung reports that the company will sell the "refurbished" phones, but with smaller, less-explodey batteries inside. It doesn't sound like the devices will be returning to US or European markets (it's tough to imagine regulators reversing course on bans after the first recall and reissue), but they could be sold in India or Vietnam instead.
Samsung's US reputation plummets after Note 7 mess
In 2015, Harris Poll ranked Samsung third in its US Reputation Quotient report, ahead of Apple, and rated it number seven last year. Thanks to the recall and eventual withdrawal of its exploding Galaxy Note 7 smartphone and arrest of CEO-in-waiting Lee Jae-yong, however, the company has tumbled to number 49. The poll, conducted between November 28th and December 16th, 2016, queried 30,519 US adults on areas like social responsibility, products & services and workplace environment.
Korean watchdog backs Samsung's findings on faulty Note 7 batteries
Although Samsung has already revealed what caused its Note 7 smartphones to catch fire, an independent government firm is now confirming the tech giant's findings. The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards, which analyzes and enforces product safety, corroborated that Samsung's flagship device burst into flames because of two distinct battery flaws. One overheating issue was a result of small external casings putting too much pressure on the batteries, while the other happened due to the lack of insulation tape around the battery's structure.
The Engadget Podcast Ep 26: The Sounds of Science
Managing editor Dana Wollman and senior editor Nathan Ingraham join host Terrence O'Brien on the latest episode. First Dana and Nathan face off in the latest installment of Flame Wars, tackling the latest news around Google Voice, struggling streaming service Tidal and the Note 7. Then all three will try to unravel the first week of Donald Trump's presidency and what it means for science in particular.
Samsung will keep using the Galaxy Note brand
Now that Samsung has pinpointed the suspected causes of the Galaxy Note 7's battery fires, there's one question on many people's minds: will the Galaxy Note brand carry on, or is it tarnished forever? If you're a fan, you can relax. The company's DJ Koh tells CNET that the Note name is very much alive. There are "lots and lots of loyal customers," he says. And while there wasn't much doubt that there would be a Note successor this year, Koh isn't shy about hinting at a "better, safer and very innovative" Galaxy Note 8.
Samsung's Galaxy S8 won't appear at Mobile World Congress
Clearly, Samsung is still reeling from its Note 7 disaster. In an interview with Reuters, Samsung mobile chief Koh Dong-jin has confirmed that the Galaxy S8 won't be unveiled next month at Mobile World Congress. That's a big departure from the company's usual release schedule, which revolves around a big "S" launch in the Spring and a new "Note" in the fall. The delay isn't a shock, however. Back in November, the Wall Street Journal reported that Samsung's leadership team was considering a later reveal date. It could come "as late as April," the newspaper said at the time.
Samsung blames two different battery flaws for the Note 7 fires
Well, after months of speculation, Samsung has finally announced the results of its Galaxy Note 7 investigation. The official line: those fires were caused by two distinct battery flaws (just as a recent report suggested), not a hardware or software issue. The first flaw had to do with how the Note 7's original batteries were manufactured: their casings were too small to safely fit the electrode assembly inside, which led to short-circuiting.
Samsung will explain the Galaxy Note 7 explosions Sunday night
As Reuters had suggested, Samsung is close to holding a press conference where it will "announce the cause of the Galaxy Note 7 incidents and quality enhancement plan." The event is being held on Monday morning (local time) in Seoul, Korea, and will be livestreamed in English on Samsung.com. If you'd like to tune in, set your alarm for 8PM ET on January 22nd. It seems likely that the battery will take the blame, as customers and regulators alike are waiting to find out what Samsung has planned to make sure this never happens again.
Verizon prevents Galaxy Note 7 holdouts from making calls
When Verizon rolled out an update that disabled charging on remaining Galaxy Note 7 devices, that was all she wrote for the fire-prone smartphone, right? Apparently not. The carrier informs Fortune that there are still "thousands" of people still using the Note 7 on its network, and that it's taking some extreme measures to make those users reconsider their ways. Most notably, it's going to reroute their calls -- anything that isn't an emergency call will go straight to Verizon customer service. Big Red also says it may bill Note 7 owners for the price of the phone, which could cut especially deep when those who've already returned their phones actually received money back.
