Reports out of Korea say Samsung plans to temporarily halt production of the Galaxy Note 7, and it should.
Samsung needs to face reality: The Galaxy Note 7 is done for
The question now is whether the Korean electronics giant can salvage its reputation.
The Verge
The Note 7 isn’t going to get a third chance.
Customers and partners were willing to give the Korean electronics giant a second chance after the company recalled the original model. But, with multiple reports that the supposedly safe replacement models are also overheating, there would appear to no longer be a market for a phone that initially was seen as one of the best Android phones ever.
The clearest sign of this came Sunday as AT&T and T-Mobile announced they would no longer even give replacement models to those turning in the original, recalled models. Verizon hasn’t officially halted distribution of replacement models, but a representative said it currently has no inventory of the devices.
Samsung, meanwhile, has stayed largely quiet on the issues of the replacement models, saying it continues to investigate reported issues. It has not commented yet on whether it plans to halt production or shipments of the redesigned phones, and a representative was not immediately available for comment.
Samsung should shift its attention from saving the Note 7 to saving its reputation, and its mobile business.
The company needs to figure out what happened with both the original phones and the supposedly safe new models and make whole its customers and partners ASAP.
Although Samsung is the largest player in the Android universe, there are plenty of other hardware makers hungry to take its place. And they all get the same software from Google as Samsung does.
And, with its Pixel, even Google has its sights set on Samsung.
The Note 7 is over. Samsung’s work now is to try to ensure there is a market for a Note 8.
Update, 8:51 p.m. PT: Verizon says it is also suspending distribution of replacement Note 7 phones, pending the outcome of Samsung and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission investigations.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
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