Not an official explanation of what happened to the Note 7 but it is a start.

[allen476]

http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/instrumental-galaxy-note-7-teardown-news/

It basically says that Samsung didn't leave enough space around the battery for normal expansion and contraction.

 

[donm527]

Report claims Galaxy Note 7 batteries exploded because they were too big | Android Central

 

[trucksmoveamerica#AC]

We've been saying that since the beginning, specially after reports of the ones that caught fire some were dropped.

 

[rushmore]

Case pressure makes the most sense. Just half a millimeter more case size, probably no issues and N7 would be huge in a good way.

 

[w7sg]

Report: Samsung Galaxy Note 7′s aggressive internal design led to explosions - SamMobile

LOL

 

[corvette72778]

We've been saying that since the beginning, specially after reports of the ones that caught fire some were dropped.

I've dropped my N7 a lot. In fact I've really put my phone through the ringer. Best phone I've ever owned and it's still going strong and running very cool. I just believe that a higher number of N7 are defective than other brand/model phones. But it's still a very low % of phones.

 

[Mdm23]

I don't buy that. There should've been more failures if it was a chassis design issue.

 

[brau0303]

I don't buy that. There should've been more failures if it was a chassis design issue.

Perhaps , but everyone uses/carries their device differently (I always had both of my N7's in a good case and carried it on a belt clip - Low Stress) Some people carried this way while others carried in a pocket with or without a case. I have noticed that it's very normal for folks to carry their phone in a back pocket, this places a massive amount of stress on the device (In the old PDA days this was called "Back Pocket Stress" and there were many screens damaged as a result.)

Cheers,
BR
RIP N7

 

[Gary02468]

I just believe that a higher number of N7 are defective than other brand/model phones. But it's still a very low % of phones.

It's conceivable that just a small fraction of the phones are defective. Alternatively, it's conceivable that most or all are defective, but they catch fire under combinations of circumstances that arise infrequently, so only a small fraction catch fire per week.

Do you have any evidence to support your belief in the first explanation rather than the second? Or is it just wishful thinking?

 

[recDNA]

My guess is some batteries swell more than others.

 

[Gary02468]

My guess is some batteries swell more than others.

Guesses are abundant. Evidence is scarce.

 

[justin1578]

So we could have had a perfect phone that was 0.00001 % thicker


Greeeeeaaaaaaat

 

[Gary02468]

So we could have had a perfect phone that was 0.00001 % thicker.

No, it would've needed to be longer and wider as well, and by more than ten thousand times as much as you stated.

 

[eshropshire]

My guess is some batteries swell more than others.

Along with manufacturing variances. Bottom line is Samsung found something that scared them enough that they decided to recall the phones. I am sure the majority of the Note7s are safe. A very small minority have some issue with the battery and/or manufacturing process that in the right situation can cause the phone to catch fire. Maybe a bad connector, or just laziness in manufacturing. May just be a combination of issues. If they had not rushed after the first recall to get new phones out, and taken time to ensure they had the correct fix everything would have worked out.

I am fully convinced that Samsung by now knows the problem or problems that lead to some phones catching fire. Outside of a lawsuit from one of the victims and I sure Samsung will make sure these never happen. We will never know what Samsung knows about the issue with the Note 7. Samsung would not eat billions in actual losses and multi billions in share value over just bad PR. Samsung has a team of PR experts and many contractors they can use to combat bad PR.

 

[justin1578]

No, it would've needed to be longer and wider as well, and by more than ten thousand times as much as you stated.

eyeroll.jpg

Bottom line, the demand, real or fake, for thinner phones and "premium feel" tanked the best phone ever made.

 

[Gary02468]

Bottom line, the demand, real or fake, for thinner phones and "premium feel" tanked the best phone ever made.

That was just one of many factors. There was also demand for battery capacity, for s-pen, for headphone jack, for iris scanner, and for every other space-consuming piece of hardware in the phone.

But all of that could have worked out, had it not been for a bad engineering decision about how to reconcile all the competing demands. That was what tanked the phone.

 

[Almeuit]

That was just one of many factors. There was also demand for battery capacity, for s-pen, for headphone jack, for iris scanner, and for every other space-consuming piece of hardware in the phone.

But all of that could have worked out, had it not been for a bad engineering decision about how to reconcile all the competing demands. That was what tanked the phone.

I don't think there was demand for an iris scanner. I least I never saw anyone demand for that.

 

[Gary02468]

I don't think there was demand for an iris scanner. I least I never saw anyone demand for that.

I'm pretty sure Samsung would have done market research to gauge the demand. Demand, in the economic sense, doesn't necessarily mean that anyone is loudly clamoring for it.

 

[Almeuit]

I'm pretty sure Samsung would have done market research to gauge the demand. Demand, in the economic sense, doesn't necessarily mean that anyone is loudly clamoring for it.

Possibly .. But I think it was more of Samsung wanting something to "stand out" from FP readers so they went with that. I think it was more so that than actual demand.

 

[Gary02468]

Possibly .. But I think it was more of Samsung wanting something to "stand out" from FP readers so they went with that. I think it was more so that than actual demand.

But if "standing out" makes people more likely to buy the product, then that's an aspect of demand.