Samsung Plans Small Scale Relaunch of Refurbished Note7 Phones Later This Year [Updated]

Samsung plans on selling modified versions of the troublesome Galaxy Note7 device in emerging markets later in 2017, according to Hankyung [Google Translate]. Samsung's reported intention is to minimize as much monetary loss as possible by "transforming" the returned products, refurbishing them, and reselling them in the Indian and Vietnamese markets.

The new Galaxy Note7 devices will include a low-capacity battery to get around the explosive troubles of the original devices, and could show up as soon as June 2017. The new battery capacity is said to be around 3000 to 3200 mAh, instead of the 3500 mAh of the first set of defective Note7 smartphones. In January, Samsung's official investigation concluded that the battery was the source of the Note7 fires.


Samsung claims to have recovered 98 percent of the 3.16 million Note7 units that were previously sold, and of those devices it got back, 200,000 were reportedly used in experiments that led to the identification of the battery as the source of the company's woes. Now Samsung has about 2.5 million Note7 devices left on its hands, leading to the smartphone maker's decision to modify, fix, and resell as many as possible.

Although the company hopes to further prevent loss following the Note7 recall, it has been estimated that the smartphone's recall cost Samsung $2.3 billion. To further make up for that disaster, the company has begun looking to the future and new reports suggest that the Samsung Galaxy S8, and perhaps a larger-screened Galaxy S8+, will officially be unveiled on March 29 at an event in New York City (via Ars Technica).

After that unveiling, the smartphone will go on sale on April 21. The Galaxy S8 will include a number of feature additions that are also rumored for the iPhone 8, like a bezel-free display and no home button. Following in the footsteps of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, the new Samsung smartphone will lack a headphone jack as well.

Update: Samsung has spoken to Gadgets 360 claiming that the report of a refurbished Galaxy Note7 relaunch in India is false: "The report on Samsung planning to sell refurbished Galaxy Note 7 smartphones in India is incorrect." The company specifically mentions only India in its statement, so it's unclear whether or not the modified Note7 devices might appear in other markets.