New Samsung phone hits sour note with users
Some claim it randomly freezes and reboots
Some users are going mad over Samsung's new phone - and not in a good way.
Some people who bought the latest Samsung Galaxy Note7 after its launch here last week have had their new phones randomly freezing and rebooting at the opening screen.
On Aug 19, Ms Cindy Teng, 33, a product manager, spent three hours queueing for the Note7.
In the days that followed, Ms Teng's excitement grew to frustration and irritation. The phone that she bought for $1,168 would freeze as she was using it. Then it would shut down and reboot.
This would happen about once every five minutes.
Thinking that one of her apps was the problem, she performed a factory reset on the phone the day after she bought it.
But more problems cropped up. The phone would sometimes freeze as it boots up, before shutting down and rebooting.
"I was quite irritated to have this problem as the phone was just out of the box," she told The New Paper.
She is not the only customer who has experienced these problems.
More than 10 others have taken to Samsung Mobile Singapore's Facebook page to share similar grievances.
Some have also complained about Samsung's customer service staff not getting back to them as promised.
A Note7 user, who wanted to be known only as Ms Woo, experienced similar issues and contacted Samsung's customer service hotline.
She was told that Samsung could take in the phone for evaluation, but she would not know whether she would receive a replacement until after the evaluation was complete.
Ms Teng also contacted Samsung through its customer service hotline earlier this week and was told she could not perform a one-for-one exchange as there was "no stock left".
FAILED ATTEMPT
She posted her complaint on the page after her failed attempt to get a resolution from Samsung.
Earlier yesterday, Ms Teng finally received a call from Samsung's customer service personnel.
After some negotiation, it was agreed that she would have her phone replaced free of charge today.
Both Ms Woo and Ms Teng performed a software update immediately after receiving the phones.
When asked whether it knew of the cause of the issue, a Samsung spokesman said: "We are investigating the reported cases of Galaxy Note7 customers with encounters of auto-reboot on their devices.
"If customers require support on the performance of their devices and other customer service, they can contact us at 1800-SAMSUNG (726 7864)."
The Samsung spokeman did not respond to a query on whether the issue only affected Singaporeans.
The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) has handled one case regarding the Note7 since its launch on Aug 20, said executive director Seah Seng Choon.
In that case, the consumer had received a defective Note7 that kept rebooting. Samsung agreed to a one-for-one exchange of the defective mobile phone.
However, the consumer found that there was a dent on the new mobile phone and requested a second exchange.
Mr Seah said: "Consumers who purchased defective mobile phones should ask the business to repair or replace the phones first.
"Otherwise, they can ask to keep the phones for a reduction in price or return the phones for a refund.
"Consumers who are unable to resolve their disputes with the business on their own may approach Case for further assistance."
Consumer electronics analyst Karissa Chua of Euromonitor International thinks the issues surrounding the Note7 will not have a significant impact on Samsung's overall performance.
She said: "It had its fair share of problems in the past such as with its S Pen in the Galaxy Note5, but the company worked to resolve those issues."
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now