Stop Using Your Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Smartphone NOW, Watchdog Warns

If you have a Samsung Galaxy Note 7, turn it off. Do not use it.

Thus spake Samsung Electronics, the smartphone’s maker, in conjunction with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The warnings came on Friday (Sept. 9), just a few days after concerns surfaced regarding the batteries in the devices allegedly tied to fires being reported by several users. The newest warning also followed the global recall announced by the consumer electronics giant last week.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Samsung has advised users to trade in their Note 7 devices for other devices offered by the company, and Samsung also said that it had “identified the affected inventory and stopped sales and shipments of those devices.” Separately, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said that it “is working quickly to determine whether a replacement Galaxy Note 7 is an acceptable remedy for Samsung or their phone carriers to provide to consumers.”

WSJ noted that the “recall marks a rare instance of a company pulling its products without acting in conjunction with the U.S. safety watchdog.”

And, in addition, the Federal Aviation Administration cautioned that the devices should not be used on planes.

Investors continued to dump Samsung’s stock, and the shares were off nearly 4 percent to end Friday’s session.

The sell-off intensified incredibly over the weekend as Samsung began explicitly pulling the entire product line back. Investors had wiped 15.9 trillion won ($14.3 billion) off the South Korean firm’s market capitalization as of 03:03 GMT Monday.

“Some said initially the Galaxy Note 7 could be the best smartphone ever, but now it’s possible the phone will go down as the worst ever,” IBK Securities analyst Lee Seung-woo said, predicting weak sales in the fourth quarter.

Samsung Electronics’ common shares were down 6.3 percent to 1,476,000 won each after touching their lowest level since July 12, and were on track for their biggest daily percentage drop in more than four years.