It’s safe to say that Samsung has had a difficult year, though perhaps not as difficult as those who have been injured by their defective products have had. The company has featured heavily in the news in recent months thanks to the seemingly-unending saga regarding exploding batteries. In September 2016, Samsung recalled 97% of their newly released Galaxy Note 7 phones due to overheating and exploding batteries; a few months later, in February 2017, a Samsung battery factory in China exploded due to similar faults with the battery technology. The text below talks more about the company's most recent mishap, however, the large Samsung battery recall. On the eve of the release of Samsung’s next-generation Galaxy Note 8 devices, a recall has been issued for 10,200 refurbished Galaxy Note 4 batteries. The refurbished phones, which were sold between December 2016 and April 2017 through AT&T’s insurance program, were retrofitted with batteries from FedEx Supply Chain, some of which turned out to be aftermarket (i.e. not distributed by Samsung). These aftermarket batteries were found to have anomalies which cause the overheating problem. Unlike the Galaxy Note 7, the Note 4 phones have replaceable batteries, which helps to mitigate the scope of the issue. FedEx Supply Chain is in the process of sending new batteries to affected consumers, as well as a box with pre-paid postage to return the faulty batteries. In the meantime, the Consumer Product Safety Commission urges those with Note 4 phones at risk of overheating to leave the phone powered off until the replacement arrives. Although Samsung was not responsible for manufacturing the malfunctioning batteries, this incident will surely not inspire consumer confidence in the safety of Samsung’s products. Any questions about the recall? Let us know at ConsiderTheConsumer@gmail.com.