It’s not a full on Nougat rollout, but it’s something. For a second year in a row, Samsung will be offering a select group of users early access to the latest version of Android through its Galaxy Beta Program.
Currently limited to Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge owners (no Note 7 for obvious reasons) in the US, UK, and Korea, the deal is first-come, first served, according to the company’s site, aimed at testing the stability of Android 7.0 on its flagship devices. The program will be arriving in China at some point in the near future, as well.
Participants will be asked to report bugs and other issues to help the company bring things up to speed for next year’s public roll out. Sadly, if you got your hands on the limited edition Olympics or Batman version of the phone, you can’t participate. Ditto for users in the UK who have devices locked by their carrier.
There’s a bunch more fine print on Samsung’s page, including the fact that “unexpected errors may occur,” because, well, that’s kind of the whole point of a beta program
Samsung really, really wants you to turn in your Galaxy Note 7.
The Korean electronics titan said it will give $100 in credit at
"carrier or retail outlets" to customers who turn in their Note 7 for
another Samsung phone, starting Thursday afternoon
"The Galaxy Note 7 recall has proven to be a real challenge for
Samsung. I am very concerned that consumers who exchanged their phones
for replacement Galaxy Note 7s are now at risk again," CPSC Chairman
Elliot Kaye said in a statement.
The extra financial
incentive serves three purposes: It's a token gesture meant to soften
the blow of the second recall for its most loyal customers. It's an
incentive to convince stubborn superfans who have opted to take the risk and keep them. It's also a way to keep people using a Samsung device.
The second recall marks the latest chapter in the nightmare saga that
is the exploding Galaxy Note 7. Samsung moved quickly to recall the
first batch of Note 7 phones, only to encounter incidents in which the
supposedly safer replacement phones began to catch fire as well. The
company has already warned that the debacle will cost $2.3 billion in
lost operating profits, but the bigger damage will be to its brand and credibility.
To date, according to the CPSC, Samsung has received 96 reports of
Galaxy Note 7 phones overheating in the US -- 23 more than it had since
the original recall on September 15 -- including 13 reports of burns and
47 reports of property damage.
"We appreciate the patience of our consumers, carrier and retail
partners for carrying the burden during these challenging times," said
Tim Baxter, chief operating officer of Samsung Electronics America. "We
are committed to doing everything we can to make this right."
Some carriers have already given out a $25 bill credit for switching
out their phone for another Samsung device, and customers who took
advantage of that offer can get another $75. Customers who opt for a
full refund will get $25. Likewise, customers who switch to another
brand will only get $25. All of the US carriers are offering customers
the choice to swap out the device for an entirely different phone.
Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Note 7
at a splashy event in early August in New York, and the critically
lauded handset was set to challenge the iPhone for phone supremacy this
holiday-shopping season. Some consumers, however, found that their
phones would overheat and even catch fire. The device was banned on
planes and trains.
This second recall follows the CPSC's
official recall last month, which is said to have involved 1 million of
the 2.5 million phones that were manufactured.
Most Galaxy Note 7 users in the US have returned their
devices. For those who haven't, Samsung will soon start limiting the
device's charging capabilities.
Samsung on Friday said 85 percent of all recalled Note 7 phones in the US have been replaced
through its refund and exchange program, "with the majority of the
participants opting to receive another Samsung smartphone." The company
didn't immediately provide information about how many phones had been
returned around the world.
For
the remaining holdouts in the US, Samsung said it will release a
software update in the coming days to limit the phone's ability to
charge beyond 60 percent. It also will issue a reminder pop-up
notification every time a consumer charges, reboots or turns on the
screen of their Note 7 device.
"We remain focused on
collecting the outstanding Galaxy Note 7 phones in the market," the
company said in a statement on its website.
Even though people have been warned to stop using their phones, some super fans have continued to hold on to their Note 7 devices.
Along with issuing the charging limitation software in other markets,
Samsung has taken more drastic measures to get people to turn in their
devices. Earlier Friday, the company said it had teamed up with carriers
in New Zealand to cut off access to wireless networks for customers still using their Note 7 devices.
Samsung aims to entice Note 7 owners, and iPhone 7 Plus gets an upgrade
Samsung hasn't yet gone that far in the US or other major markets.
The
Note 7, which hit the market in mid-August, was expected to solidify
Samsung's lead in the mobile market after a strong showing with its
Galaxy S7. The company had just begun to regain its swagger after
stumbling the previous year with lackluster products.
Then came the battery problems, which caused some units to overheat and catch fire. Samsung issued a global recall
of the popular device in September. But then some replacement units
started having the same problem. That caused Samsung to issue a second recall in mid-October and permanently stop production of the device. It's offering Note 7 owners $100 to exchange the device for another Samsung phone.
Samsung has said the Note 7 recall will cost it more than $5 billion over the next few quarters. The company on Friday also issued a recall for 2.8 million washing machines
due to injury risk. The two fiascos have raised questions about
Samsung's quality and assurance testing and have dealt a blow to its
reputation.
