Galaxy Note 7 Could Return Next Year As Refurbished Units

Despite the major setback it experienced this year with the Galaxy Note 7, Samsung seems not too averse at taking huge risks with still uncertain payoffs. It just recently allotted no less than $8 billion to acquire car tech company Harman. And now there are rumors that, next year, Samsung might try to resurrect a fallen product. In what could be called a case of beating a dead horse, sources claim that Samsung could sell the Galaxy Note 7 again next year, but as refurbished models.

To be fair, not all Galaxy Note 7's became fire hazards. Or to be more precise, not all exhibited the problematic behaviors that led to the smartphone's untimely demise. It was the irregular situation that complicated matters and led some users to believe theirs were "safe", sometimes resulting in undesirable circumstances.

To be on the safe side, or rather after an utterly failed "selective" recall, Samsung finally decided to just axe the device and recall all units, defective or not. But that hardly seems to be the end of it, as Samsung is said to be mulling over selling refurbished models, with supposedly "fixed" or safe batteries. It won't be selling those everywhere, though, but only in emerging markets. Which could give the impression that Samsung might be dumping its trash on said markets.

The move, nay the very idea, will undoubtedly be met with criticism. Samsung already failed once to assure customers that the Galaxy Note 7 was already fixed. What's to say that these refurbished (read: slightly used and returned) units won't end up with the same fate.

Of course, nothing's official yet but such a move could be seen almost like career suicide. And while the Galaxy Note brand itself might remain safe in the future, the particular Galaxy Note 7 model should, perhaps, remain dead.

VIA: The Investor