Samsung is going to kill all Galaxy Note 7’s in the US with a software update

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If you still have a Galaxy Note 7 in the US, Samsung is going to turn it off in an update released on December 19.

If you’re still holding on to your Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and live in the US, be prepared to say goodbye because the company is pushing out an update that will render the device useless.

Samsung announced today that an update will be rolled out on December 19 and will be distributed across all major carries within 30 days. This will “prevent US Galaxy Note 7 devices from charging and will eliminate their ability to work as mobile devices.”

Samsung has announced an expanded voluntary recall on all original and replacement Galaxy Note7 devices sold or exchanged in the United States in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and in partnership with carriers and retailers. Since the affected devices can overheat and pose a safety risk, we are asking consumers with a Galaxy Note7 to power it down and contact the carrier or retail outlet where they purchased their device.

If you still have a Galaxy Note 7, Samsung is offering an exchange program in which they’ll switch out your Note 7 for another Samsung device.

Update: It seems that Verizon isn’t intending in rolling out the update that would brick the Galaxy Note 7. Here’s what they said in a recent statement:

In October, Samsung announced a voluntary recall of the Samsung Galaxy Note7 when it was discovered that all available devices could overheat and pose a safety risk to customers. Since that time, a vast majority of Verizon customers who purchased the Note7 have replaced their phones with other models.

Verizon will not be taking part in this update because of the added risk this could pose to Galaxy Note 7 users that do not have another device to switch to,” the company’s statement reads. “We will not push a software upgrade that will eliminate the ability for the Note 7 to work as a mobile device in the heart of the holiday travel season. We do not want to make it impossible to contact family, first responders or medical professionals in an emergency situation.

Apparently, Verizon doesn’t think it’s fair to terminate a phones functionality. I can’t say I disagree with them.

Update: Verizon changed their mind. The company announced today that its pushing out the update on January 5.

Verizon will not be pushing this software update to your device until January 5, 2017. We want to make sure you can contact family, first responders, and emergency medical professionals during the holiday travel season.

At this point, let’s just write off this whole Galaxy Note 7 mess.

► Samsung

Kevin Raposo

Kevin is KnowTechie's founder and executive editor. With over 15 years of blogging experience in the tech industry, Kevin has transformed what was once a passion project into a full-blown tech news publication. Shoot him an email at kevin@knowtechie.com or find him on Mastodon or Post.