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US government officially recalls 1 million Samsung Galaxy Note 7 phones

Almost two weeks after Samsung recalled the smartphone for a battery defect, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall of its own.
Written by Jason Cipriani, Contributing Writer
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Image: ZDNet

Less than two weeks after Samsung asked Galaxy Note 7 users to immediately power off their new smartphones and return them, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a formal recall for the device.

The recall pertains to any Note 7 units sold before Sept. 15, 2016.

Samsung stopped selling and initiated a global recall of the Note 7 on Sept. 2 after discovering a battery defect caused the device to catch fire. As of Sept. 1, the company had acknowledged 35 incidents.

Note 7 owners were urged to return the device to the carrier or retail outlet where it was purchased, although many users have ignored the potential danger and continued to use their phones.

Replacement devices for the US are expected to arrive "at most retail locations no later than Sept. 21, 2016," said Samsung in a statement following the CPSC's recall.

Until now, questions remained concerning the number of units sold in the US as well as the number of incidents that have occurred.

According to the official CPSC recall page, there are "about" 1 million Note 7 units included in the recall in the US. Out of those units, there are 92 reported incidents of a phone catching fire or exploding, and 55 of those reports have included property damage, while 26 of the reports have included burns.

Samsung set up a webpage so you can check your phone's IMEI (a fancy acronym for its serial number) to see if it's included in the recall. But, again, any Note 7 sold before the middle of September has been recalled and should be immediately returned.

You can find instructions detailing how to check your Note 7 here. Alternatively, you can call Samsung directly at 844-365-6197 and ask to have your device checked.

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