Samsung defends Galaxy S10 5G model, claims damage caused by ‘external impact’

Samsung on Tuesday came forward to defend its new Galaxy S10 5G model after a South Korean smartphone owner posted pictures online of a charred handset claiming it had mysteriously “burnt”.

It is to be noted that earlier this week, a South Korean Galaxy S10 5G owner posted several photos of the smartphone scorched beyond recognition. The smartphone owner said that he hadn’t done anything that would cause the S10 5G to combust, claiming it burnt “without reason”.

“My phone was on the table when it started smelling burnt and smoke soon engulfed the phone,” the owner of Galaxy S10 5G named Lee told AFP. “I had to drop it to the ground when I touched it because it was so hot,” he added. Lee further stated that everything inside the phone was burnt. Samsung refused to reimburse for the $1,200 phone, Lee concluded.

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Issuing the clarification, Samsung told AFP that an external impact had caused the damage rather than an internal glitch. After retrieving the device from the customer, Samsung has closely inspected the device and concluded that the damage was caused by external impact," a company spokesperson said.

Samsung Galaxy S10 5G was launched on April 5 in South Korea. The electronics giant has touted its new Galaxy phones as the world’s first available smartphones with built-in 5G communications.

Last week, Samsung delayed the release of its $2,000 foldable phone - Galaxy Fold - over screen problems, saying it “needs further improvements”.

Importantly, Samsung is no stronger to battery controversy. Its Galaxy Note 7 phablet notably catching fire in 2016 led the company to recall millions of devices. This shattered Samsung’s global image.