Samsung has been politely asking Note7 owners to return their phablets and take advantage of the available ailments for a quite a while now. But there are some Note7 users who are just too attached to their phablet to let them go.
But it seems that Samsung will be forcing their hand soon. Starting November 18, Note7 owners in New Zealand won’t be able to connect to mobile networks in the country. In a joint effort to keep consumers safe, Samsung and The New Zealand Telecommunications Forum (TCF) have decided to blacklist the device.
Users will still be able to access Wi-Fi, but there won’t be able to do any calling and texting anymore. Samsung New Zealand has stated it will contact Note7 owners twice before shutting down all the lights in the Note7 department.
It’s a drastic measure, but imagine the massive scandal Samsung would be faced with, if one of these remaining devices would end up exploding. Samsung is imagining it too and it knows it can’t let it happen.
The Korean tech giant has been sending updates to the phablet to limit battery charging up to 60% and notifying users via the phone that they need to return the potential dangerous phone. However some users don’t seem to be listening.
Samsung might extend the strategy to other countries as well–stay tuned.
[TCF]