Samsung delays Note 7 deliveries: ‘explosive’ battery issue?

Samsung India is informing customers who pre-booked a Galaxy Note 7 that shipments of the smartphone will be delayed. The development comes after Samsung was reported to be getting ready to announce a worldwide recall of Galaxy Note 7 handsets due to a few complaints of the smartphone exploding while being charged.

Gadgets 360 reports that Samsung India has sent a message to customers who booked a Note 7 informing them about the delay, though no reason was given. The message reads, "Thank you for pre-booking Galaxy Note 7. We regret to inform that delivery of your Galaxy Note 7 is being delayed. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience. You can be assured that we are working hard to deliver your Galaxy Note 7 to you as soon as possible. Thank you for your understanding."

The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 exploding issue has been traced back to a battery fault, and the problematic battery is apparently only in 0.1 per cent of the entire Note 7 units sold. Samsung claims that the safety of the customers is their top priority, and countermeasures will be announced sometime early next week.

Earlier this week, Samsung Global also announced delay in shipments as the firm needed to conduct additional quality control tests for the Galaxy Note 7.

Samsung launched the Galaxy Note 7 earlier than usual this year in a bid to fend off competition from Apple. This issue and the possible need to recall handsets could not have come at a worse time for Samsung as Apple's iPhone 7 launch event is just a few days away.

In India, Samsung launched the dual-SIM variant of Galaxy Note 7 at Rs59,900, and took pre-orders till 30 August.