Samsung recently reported that they might be releasing an update that will permanently disable the remaining units of the recalled device Samsung Galaxy Note 7 that are still in the wild and are still operating by Dec.19. According to Samsung, these are for units that are still being held by customers even at the risk of its battery exploding.
Samsung Galaxy Note 7 will soon roll out the update, the release date they projected will be on Dec. 19. According to a dedicated page for Galaxy Note 7 in Samsung's official website, there is over 93 percent of the recalled units being returned. Hinting that, there is overwhelming support for the program. Samsung Canada, in support of the new announcement, also stated that it will cut connectivity to all its Samsung Galaxy Note 7 devices that are still in operation.
Verizon Not Participating In The Update
Verizon announced that they will not be participating in the update even though Samsung already stated that the update is to disable all Galaxy Note 7 devices that are still in use. According to Verizon global corporate communications VP Jeffrey Nelson, "We will not push a software upgrade that will eliminate the ability for the Note 7 to work as a mobile device in the heart of the holiday travel season." This is quite a logical reason seeing as it is Christmas season, and many people would be traveling. They might not have another smartphone in hand that they could use in place of it while being in a foreign land.
However, there is no indication that Verizon will launch the new update at a later date but Nelson did call out for the owners of Samsung Galaxy Note 7 to return the devices or have them exchanged. Samsung engineers believed that even though the devices have not exploded, the battery will still experience massive swelling, which can be harmful not only to the device but to the user as well.