Android Circuit: Samsung's Note 7 Nightmare, How Apple Squashed Xiaomi, Galaxy S8's Killer Feature

Taking a look back at seven days of news across the Android world, this week’s Android Circuit includes Samsung’s global recall of the Galaxy Note 7, the good and bad points of the phablet, details of a killer feature on the Galaxy S8, Sony’s newest Xperia flagship, the updated Pebble Watch software, Huawei’s new Nova smartphones, the fate of Xiaomi, and Google wanting your help for free.

Android Circuit is here to remind you of a few of the many things that have happened around Android in the last week (and you can find the weekly Apple news digest here).


Samsung Starts Global Recall Of Galaxy Note 7
Earlier this week Reuters reported that Samsung had delayed shipments of the Galaxy Note 7 phablet because of a production fault that was causing batteries to catch fire. Following intense speculation online, the South Korean company has confirmed that it has halted distribution:

 In response to recently reported cases of the new Galaxy Note7, we conducted a thorough investigation and found a battery cell issue.

To date (as of September 1) there have been 35 cases that have been reported globally and we are currently conducting a thorough inspection with our suppliers to identify possible affected batteries in the market. However, because our customers’ safety is an absolute priority at Samsung, we have stopped sales of the Galaxy Note7.

For customers who already have Galaxy Note7 devices, we will voluntarily replace their current device with a new one over the coming weeks.

Let ‘s be clear this is a huge public embarrassment for the manufacturer. Almost two million handsets have already been sold, and there was a huge demand for the phablet. Sales of the device were expected to make a significant contribution to Q3 2106′s profit and revenue numbers, and it was the next step in turning around the Mobile Division. All of that is likely lost.