Samsung’s announcement that defective batteries caused its Note 7 phones to explode has led a U.S. consumer-safety regulator to call voluntary industry standards into question.
Samsung’s announcement that defective batteries caused its Note 7 phones to explode has led a U.S. consumer-safety regulator to call voluntary industry standards into question.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission held a press conference in which they pointed out that standards for lithium-ion batteries in phones have not been updated since 2011. Therefore, they announced that they are working with Samsung and other companies to review the current standards to reduce future risks. More safeguards could be put in place during the design and manufacturing stages.
Talking openly about improvements is difficult in an industry that is as competitive as the smartphone industry. A battery consultant, Dan Doughty, said that Samsung sharing its investigation results is quite rare.
Read more about the need for improved standards here.
