Galaxy Note 7 battery supplier Samsung SDI factory in China catches fire

By tech2 News Staff /  09 Feb 2017 , 09:23

The factory of Samsung SDI, one of the battery suppliers for the dangerously explosive Samsung Galaxy Note 7, caught fire in China. Pictures of the fire were circulated on Weibo, a social networking and micro-blogging platform known as the Chinese alternative to Twitter. The fire was relatively minor, was at a waste disposal facility, and did not affect production, according to a report in Bloomberg.

Samsung SDI was responsible for providing about 60 percent of the batteries to the discontinued Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, the other supplier being Amperex Technology Ltd. Following the explosions of the smartphones, Samsung SDI investigated their batteries in other smartphones, and found them to be safe. Samsung SDI is expected to provide at least a portion of the batteries in future Samsung phones. An executive of the company said that the issue was restricted to just the batteries used in the Galaxy Note 7.

Samsung recently revealed the results of its investigation into the cause of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 fires. The company identified the battery as the problematic component that caused the fires. Independent investigations have showed that the body of the smartphone, and its curvature, left little space for natural expansion and contraction of the batteries, compressing them when charged and leading to the fires. South Korea also investigated the issue, and is fortifying the regulations for lithium-ion batteries, in the interest of consumer safety.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7: Are faulty batteries really to blame for this whole fiasco?

By Anirudh Regidi /  11 Oct 2016 , 17:38

The mysterious case of the exploding Galaxy Note 7 devices is yet to be fully resolved, but that doesn’t stop us from taking a shot at a solution ourselves. If you’re so inclined, here are the facts and pointers that you need to pass judgement on the situation.

The case of the explosive Note 7

The short version of the whole story is as follows:

• Samsung sold 3.5 million Galaxy Note 7 smartphones.
• 35 Note 7 phones explode over a period of 3 weeks.
• Samsung issues a worldwide recall of 2.5 million phones, excludes China from recall.
• Battery maker Samsung SDI is blamed for the explosion as Samsung alleges manufacturing defects.
• Samsung claims Chinese battery maker ATL is safe, points to 1 million perfectly functional Chinese Note 7 phones as proof.
• China’s ATL is now the primary supplier of Galaxy Note 7 batteries.
• Replacement Note 7 phones with ATL batteries start to spontaneously combust.
• Samsung kills the Note 7.

If you want a detailed timeline of the whole Note 7 fiasco, head here.

Pointing fingers

Image: Hui Renjie

Samsung conducted an investigation and concluded that Samsung SDI, a Samsung affiliate that made 65 percent of the batteries used in the Note 7, was at fault. Samsung SDI made batteries for all Note 7 phones sold outside China. Note 7 devices sold in China used batteries made by Amperex Technologies Limited (ATL).

Samsung claimed that there was a