Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Explodes In Southwest Flight, Carriers Stop Sales, Production Halted: Will Samsung Finally Pull Its Plug?

Samsung might finally pull the plug on the Galaxy Note 7 as reports of carriers halting sales and incidents with the same exploding issues continue to emerge even after it was relaunched.

AT&T, one of America’s top network carriers, is considering a stop on the sales of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 after cases of exploding devices emerged even after the company recalled and reintroduced the flagship device in September, Bloomberg reported last week.

In more recent news, Samsung reportedly decided to stop production of the controversial smartphone due to reports of the device burning up or exploding even after the company conducted additional security and safety measures on the replacement units.

Could all these be signs that the Korean company is finally pulling the plug on its increasingly disappointing smartphone?

Wireless Carriers Ditch Galaxy Note 7

According to the Bloomberg report published on October 7, AT&T is thinking about halting sales of the controversial Samsung smartphone.

Unsurprisingly, Bloomberg’s anonymous source, who reportedly has close ties with the American company, revealed that the reason behind this discussion is the exploding Galaxy Note 7 devices.

At the time, AT&T spokesman Fletcher Cook declined to comment, though another representative from the company has officially confirmed via CNN Money that the carrier will temporarily stop replacing exploding Note 7 devices.

“Based on recent reports, we’re no longer exchanging new Note 7s at this time, pending further investigation of these reported incidents.”

What is interesting is that AT&T is not the only U.S. wireless carrier to have the same decision as T-Mobile revealed via their official newsroom that it will no longer sell Note 7 devices—even the replacement ones—for the safety of their customers.

Out of an abundance of caution for our customers, @TMobile is halting sales & exchanges of the new Note7. Details: https://t.co/ct4WCbXC5z

— John Legere (@JohnLegere) October 9, 2016

According to the statement from T-Mobile updated on October 9, they are still willing to accept Note 7 devices—both recalled and replacement ones—that are purchased from the carrier.

In exchange, the company will issue refunds or replace it with “any device in T-Mobile’s inventory.”

“We’ll waive any restocking charges, and customers who purchased during pre-order can keep the free Netflix subscription and Gear Fit or SD card they received,” T-Mobile added.

The company even offers compensation for customers who return their Note 7 with a one-time $25 credit on their T-Mobile bill for two bill cycles to “offset any additional costs our customers may have incurred throughout this process.”

Samsung Suspends Galaxy Note 7 Production Due To More Exploding Cases

After two U.S. wireless network carriers ditched the Galaxy Note 7, could it be possible that Samsung is finally letting go of their 2016 flagship device? The Korean company’s actions appear to point in that direction.

Following yet another set of reports about exploding Note 7 units, Samsung decided to temporarily suspend production of the replacement devices.

According to a statement from Samsung cited by the Wall Street Journal, the company is “temporarily adjusting the Galaxy Note 7 production schedule in order to take further steps to ensure quality and safety matters.”

While the company did not elaborate on the matter, some are already speculating that the halting of Note 7 production is due to recent reports about the exploding device in last week’s Southwest Airlines incident.

Last week, The Verge reported about an incident that occurred during the Southwest Airlines flight 994 bound to Baltimore where a Samsung Galaxy Note 7 burned up.

Apparently, the device in question emitted smoke after its owner powered it down and put it in his pocket.

Brian Green, the owner of the device, immediately dropped the Note 7 after seeing the “thick grey-green angry smoke” coming out of it. The passengers and crew of the flight were evacuated quickly after seeing the situation.

Green said that when he returned to the scene to retrieve some personal belongings after the situation had been neutralized, he saw that his phone, which was a replacement from Verizon, had burned through the carpet of the plane.

Since then, Verizon has also issued a statement that tells customers to exchange their Note 7 with a different model if they do not feel safe with the replacement unit from Samsung.

Meanwhile, Samsung has suffered severely from the bad publicity, with some doubting that the company even knew what the problem with the Note 7 really was even after going through the entire recall and replacement process.

ok @samsung this is either a huge conspiracy against you (very unlikely) or you have no idea whats wrong with #Note7 https://t.co/zIrPk8AeXZ

— Erica Griffin (@iAm_erica) October 9, 2016

[Featured Image by Drew Angerer/Getty Images]