On January 23, Samsung is anticipated to disclose the findings of its investigation into the root cause of the Galaxy Note7’s propensity to catch fire. However, a new report from Reuters has revealed the reason in advance of the scheduled publication date.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Samsung was able to replicate the fires in its testing laboratories and concluded that the root cause of the Galaxy Note7’s malfunction was the batteries. The Korean technology company was unable to identify any additional hardware or software issues.
Earlier this month, a report from South Korea indicated that the forthcoming Galaxy S8 flagship device will be equipped with batteries manufactured by Samsung SDI, the same company that was initially implicated in the Galaxy Note7 incident.
However, the replacement units operating on Amperex batteries also exhibited the same issue, leading some experts to hypothesize that the Galaxy Note7’s malfunction did not originate from the batteries. It would appear, then, that this is not the case.
It is hoped that Samsung has eliminated all other potential causes. It is difficult to envisage the potential consequences of a similar scandal engulfing the Galaxy S8, were it to suffer from the same issues. Such an outcome would likely result in the demise of Samsung, at least in the smartphone market.
While the Reuters report does not provide further details regarding the methodology employed by Samsung in conducting the investigation and the steps taken to reach the conclusion, we will gain greater insight into this matter next week when the company releases the official statement, in advance of their upcoming earnings call.
