Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Fans Dash For Updated Smartphone

The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 ran into some trouble. Things started well enough for the smartphone as it was released in August to outstanding reviews. CNET gave the device an excellent review.

“The Galaxy Note 7 is a beautiful, capable Android phone that showcases Samsung’s best in design, battery life, speed and features. The 64GB base model leaves you plenty of space for photos, videos and games, and it’s a real improvement over 2015’s Note 5.”

The only thing they didn’t seem to like was the price. However, this was before the exploding batteries became an issue, which caused Samsung to do a worldwide recall that has likely costed billions of dollars. Since then, the positive publicity surrounding the Note 7 has turned into stories about the Galaxy Note 7 causing exploding cars, burns on 6-year-old children, and other similar incidents. Samsung’s misfortune has largely been seen as Apple’s party as the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have sold very well despite the fact that they aren’t big upgrades from the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.

However, Samsung has made a dash to replace the defective Note 7 smartphones. In the United States, stores received more than 500,000 units. They were supposed to be used specifically for exchanges for the defective Note 7, but there have been many reports of consumers being able to purchase a brand new updated Note 7.

A check with the T-Mobile Store on San Fernando Rd. in Burbank Thursday evening revealed that the store received several units on Wednesday, but sold out. They expected to get more in on Friday morning, which didn’t happen. However, the T-Mobile Store on Alameda in Burbank received a new shipment and had people lining up in the store. A conversation with four different customers revealed that they had no desire to get a refund for the Note 7 or exchange it for a different smartphone. They, like many others, believe the Note 7 is the best smartphone ever made.

Just in case consumers are worried that their replaced Note 7 unit is defective, Tech Times reports that new phones by T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T have received a green battery indicator update.

“AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile have started rolling out a software update to the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 that will allow users to identify the potentially hazardous device from the safe ones.”

The article adds that after Samsung and the CPSC started working together to ensure faulty devices are exchanged for safer ones, three of the major carriers have begun sending an update that shows a green battery indicator for Note 7 units that are safe to use. According to most reports, all carriers have been more than helpful in making sure the transition from defective Galaxy Note 7 units to non-defective ones has been as smooth as possible for customers.

Despite all of the problems, the Galaxy Note 7 still has a lot of fans on Twitter.

@GasiaKTVU No iPhone for me. Note lover for life! Even with the recall still love my Note 7. Key benefit: it's not an iPhone.

— Tony Vargas (@TeDouble73) September 16, 2016

According to the Express, even though the situation is certainly improving with the Note 7, it’s quite likely that Samsung will release the Galaxy S8 early to help make people forget about the problems.

“Samsung is hard at work on its next flagship smartphone — Galaxy S8 — which is expected to ship sooner than expected, with an edge-to-edge display and no 3.5mm headphone port.”

The article adds that this time, Samsung will only release a curved device since that’s what most customers want. The S8 is expected to launch with two different models — one with a 5.1 dual-curved display and another with a 5.5-inch dual curved display. An exact release date hasn’t been set, but releasing it for the Christmas season would certainly help Samsung make up for the billions of dollars lost in the Note 7 recall.

[Featured Image by Daryl Deino]