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US Warns Samsung Washing Machine Owners After Explosion Reports (cnn.com)

Samsung may have a new problem on its hands, and it feels too familiar. The U.S. regulators on Wednesday warned users of certain top-loading Samsung washing machines of safety issues following reports that "some have exploded." CNN reports: The warning, from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, covered machines made between March 2011 and April 2016. It did not specify a model. The commission suggested people use only the delicate cycle to wash bedding and water-resistant and bulky items because the lower spin speed "lessens the risk of impact injuries or property damage due to the washing machine becoming dislodged." The agency said it is working with Samsung on a remedy.

164 comments

  1. Samsung's business is Booming! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'll be here all week, folks!

    1. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      They made the mistake of partnering with space ex.

    2. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by tripleevenfall · · Score: 2

      Wait, I'm not supposed to wash my Galaxy Not-

    3. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by Daetrin · · Score: 1

      Now they're having issues with their home appliance line too? They really need to iron out the wrinkles in their build process!

      --
      This Space Intentionally Left Blank
    4. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Good ole Slashdot, where every energy releasing failure is called an explosion.

    5. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by Shortguy881 · · Score: 1, Funny

      Samsung is more successful at bombing people than any terrorist.

      --
      Brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.
    6. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by datavirtue · · Score: 1

      I actually had to look to make sure this was not April 1st.

      --
      I object to power without constructive purpose. --Spock
    7. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      I was going to buy one, but I think I will wait for the fire sale

    8. Re:Samsung's business is Booming! by Trax3001BBS · · Score: 1

      Good ole Slashdot, where every energy releasing failure is called an explosion.

      I was standing right next to it when it exploded, my first impulse was to protect my son who was near; if he had been standing closer to it... this morning on "Good Morning America".

      And from the debris it looks like it did.

    9. Re: Samsung's business is Booming! by mandy2tom · · Score: 1

      This is why we have to go back to the past to learn how they solved that problem a hundred years ago

  2. Red Stapler Logo by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Someone needs to replace the "IT" Red Stapler logo with an "IoT" Exploding Washing Machine logo.

  3. Samsung: Munitions-grade consumer electronics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is this another "undocumented feature": Being able to defend one's castle with leftover Samsung products?

  4. Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by 8127972 · · Score: 2

    ..... needs a complete overhaul as catching bugs are the least of their problems.

    --
    This is my opinion. To make sure you don't steal it, it's covered by the DMCA.
    1. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Obfuscant · · Score: 4, Informative
      This isn't a "bug". It's a case of an overloaded drum being spun at high speed creating forces that the drum cannot handle after some use.

      Anyone who has used a top loader knows that it needs to be at least somewhat balanced when it goes into spin mode. The problem is certain kinds of "washables" that aren't distributing themselves around the drum and instead stay lumped up and heavy.

      Try suing a centrifuge manufacturer when it self-destructs after you've put something in only one of the slots. That's that this is.

    2. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by cnaumann · · Score: 5, Informative

      So why doesn't it detect the imbalance and reduce speed or shut down? Pretty much every washing machine I have owned does this.

    3. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      wonder if samsungs QA can demand risk pay now...

    4. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by lgw · · Score: 4, Informative

      Any halfway-decent washing machine will detect such an extreme imbalance and shut down. Any washing machine that is so shoddily built that it can actually "explode" (not just damage itself) due to an unbalanced load shouldn't be legal for sale in the US.

      Exploding batteries. Exploding washing machines. I'm going to keep a safe distance from my Samsung TV.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    5. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Nunya666 · · Score: 1

      This isn't a "bug". It's a case of an overloaded drum being spun at high speed creating forces that the drum cannot handle after some use.

      Anyone who has used a top loader knows that it needs to be at least somewhat balanced when it goes into spin mode. The problem is certain kinds of "washables" that aren't distributing themselves around the drum and instead stay lumped up and heavy.

      Try suing a centrifuge manufacturer when it self-destructs after you've put something in only one of the slots. That's that this is.

      If it isn't a bug, as you claim, then it must be a mechanical limitation.

      If it's a mechanical limitation, then every washing machine on the planet would have this problem.

      Since that obviously is not the case, then your statement that it is not a bug is obviously wrong.

    6. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Jfetjunky · · Score: 1

      Mmmm, I disagree a little. A centrifuge does only one thing: spin something very fast. And it has no prior control over what you put into it, so the user must take on the responsibility of making sure the load is balanced. Of course, the maker of the centrifuge certainly could put some sort of out of balance detection. Who knows, some might already.

      With the washing machine, though, it does a bunch of other things first. You could try to balance the clothes out first (you should), but that doesn't mean they'll necessarily end up that way before it spins. I sloshes them around, it adds water, it removes water, it sloshes them some more. It actually wouldn't surprise me if this was an unfortunate corner case where the detection mechanism failed, and it just happen to be failed in a situation where it ended up severely unbalanced, leading to the thing basically trying to spontaneously disassemble.

      I suspect if the washing machine manual came with the warning "If you don't balance your clothes, this washer very well might sling itself apart, and cause personal injury or property damage" people would pay much more attention. But it probably doesn't because it's not supposed to happen.

    7. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Gr8Apes · · Score: 1

      Exploding batteries. Exploding washing machines. I'm going to keep a safe distance from my Samsung TV.

      My Samsung TV was on the wish list for replacement, but now I have a (semi) legitimate reason. Time to look at OLEDs!

      --
      The cesspool just got a check and balance.
    8. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by olsmeister · · Score: 2

      Hmmm. I don't know. Is this machine connected to the internet? Perhaps it became infected with Stuxnet.

    9. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by David_Hart · · Score: 1

      This isn't a "bug". It's a case of an overloaded drum being spun at high speed creating forces that the drum cannot handle after some use.

      Anyone who has used a top loader knows that it needs to be at least somewhat balanced when it goes into spin mode. The problem is certain kinds of "washables" that aren't distributing themselves around the drum and instead stay lumped up and heavy.

      Try suing a centrifuge manufacturer when it self-destructs after you've put something in only one of the slots. That's that this is.

      If it isn't a bug, as you claim, then it must be a mechanical limitation.

      If it's a mechanical limitation, then every washing machine on the planet would have this problem.

      Since that obviously is not the case, then your statement that it is not a bug is obviously wrong.

      Well... not every washing machine.... The front loading ones seem to be more robust.... It's probably because they are supported better and can't generate the type of wobble that affects the top loading models....

    10. Re: Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Who do you suppose chose the word explode to describe what happens. If a unit bounces around enough to punch a hole in drywall, is that an explosion now. A mechanical failure is not necessarily an explosion. Of course the batteries don't technically explode either. They spontaneously combust but do they really explode?

      English used to be so useful.

    11. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Obfuscant · · Score: 1

      If it isn't a bug, as you claim, then it must be a mechanical limitation.

      Name one device that doesn't have at least one mechanical limitation.

      If it's a mechanical limitation, then every washing machine on the planet would have this problem.

      Mine does. And there are many many stories of washing machines walking across the floor due to such an imbalanced spin.

      Since that obviously is not the case,

      When an argument requires the word "obviously", it has failed. It is not obvious that washing machines have no mechanical limitations. In fact, it seems to be exactly the opposite, at least to anyone who has actually used a washing machine.

      Were I to use a common /. meme, I'd say "go upstairs and ask your Mom who does your laundry", but that would be looking for "funny" mods.

    12. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Obfuscant · · Score: 3, Informative

      The front loading ones seem to be more robust....

      Front-loaders spin around a horizontal axis, which means that when they start to spin the load is subject to gravity to assist in distribution around that axis. As it rotates, some things fall to the bottom, some stick to the side. As the speed increases, more things stick.

      There is no similar distributive force in a top-loader. The lump at the bottom is pushed to the outside as soon as the tub spins and it sticks where it is.

    13. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Considering your UID, that's unlikely. Most if not all of the machines from the 80s and 90s were dumb. They'd walk across the floor if the load's unbalanced.

    14. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ..... needs a complete overhaul as catching bugs are the least of their problems.

      What are you talking about? The report said that the Q&A team was on fire!

    15. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Obfuscant · · Score: 0

      Any halfway-decent washing machine will detect such an extreme imbalance and shut down.

      Only after it happens. I don't know of any that have actual load sensors that will refuse to spin if the load is imbalanced. And mine is quite happy spinning with an unbalance.

      Any washing machine that is so shoddily built that it can actually "explode"

      It didn't explode. It broke apart from overload.

      due to an unbalanced load shouldn't be legal for sale in the US.

      Manufacturers cannot predict every use for their product. Such a prohibition on sale of anything that can be mechanically overloaded to the point of failure would mean you are stuck using a rock at the side of the river to wash your clothes -- as long as you promise not to hit the rock against another rock too hard.

    16. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Walk, certainly. But there were structures in there for more extreme cases even before the 80s.

      Actually, my extremely smart front-loader can walk a bit and it's not even running the load horizontally.

    17. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by bev_tech_rob · · Score: 5, Informative

      Considering your UID, that's unlikely. Most if not all of the machines from the 80s and 90s were dumb. They'd walk across the floor if the load's unbalanced.

      Uhhhh....my mother's Kenmore washing machine (bought back in the late 70s) had an out-of-balance detector on it that would stop the motor and sound a VERY loud buzz when the machine was out of balance and would not continue until the condition was resolved.

      I call bullshit or very shitty machine design...

      --
      You're messin' with my Zen Thing, man.....
    18. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by mysidia · · Score: 1

      as long as you promise not to hit the rock against another rock too hard.

      I did, and the results were horrible. My attorney is working on my lawsuit against the inventor of rocks for all the damages including my pain and suffering, and my dog's pain and suffering.

    19. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In a front loading machine, all the clothes have a tendency to lump together at the bottom. Once the machine speeds up they stay put resulting in a very unbalanced load. Additionally, the difference in stress on the spindle between the point where the lump is swinging around the bottom (increased by gravity) and the top (decreased by gravity) would result in additional fatigue stresses, shortening the life of the part.

    20. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by gnick · · Score: 1

      I suspect if the washing machine manual came with the warning "If you don't balance your clothes, this washer very well might sling itself apart, and cause personal injury or property damage" people would pay much more attention.

      What fraction of consumers would you guess RTFM for their washing machine? Or even have one - A great many of us inherited our washer with our residence with no manual.

      --
      He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
    21. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Obfuscant · · Score: 0

      In a front loading machine, all the clothes have a tendency to lump together at the bottom.

      Of course. When the drum is not moving, there is something called "gravity" that pulls things "down" towards the bottom of the drum.

      Once the machine speeds up they stay put resulting in a very unbalanced load.

      Fortunately, things that have mass also have something called "inertia". This property of inertia means that the drum cannot go from 0 rpm to maximum rpm instantaneously. While it is accelerating there will be a varying amount of force holding the clothes to the side of the drum. Some things will stick (those closest to the drum). Some will fall back to the bottom. As this acceleration continues, this process will cause the load to distribute around the drum, reducing the chances for unbalance.

    22. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by amiga3D · · Score: 1

      I remember that buzzer. My Mom had a Kenmore and when it was out of balance the neighbors across the road knew it.

    23. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by amiga3D · · Score: 2

      You can actually watch through the door and see this process in action. Sometimes I like to just sit and watch it go round and round and rou......

    24. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by acoustix · · Score: 1

      Considering your UID, that's unlikely. Most if not all of the machines from the 80s and 90s were dumb. They'd walk across the floor if the load's unbalanced.

      My parent's Kenmore from the mid-to-late 70s had this feature. It would shut down if the load was unbalanced.

      --
      "A plan fiendishly clever in its intricacies"- Homer Simpson
    25. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Have you ever actually watched a front-loader spin up?

      They start up slowly precisely so that the tumbling (before the centripetal acceleration exceeds gravity and glues everything down) gives the contents a chance to rearrange themselves for an even angular distribution.

    26. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by mrbester · · Score: 1

      The red one always falls the same...

      I remember seeing on some "science" show a front loader rip itself apart when a breeze block was put in it and the spin cycle started. Nice to know you can do this with a bedsheet in a top loader.

      --
      "Wait. Something's happening. It's opening up! My God, it's full of apricots!"
    27. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by sjames · · Score: 1

      How about if it jumps up and puts a hole in the wall? That's what the washer did.

      I have seen imbalanced centrifuges walk on the table before, but I've never seen one go airborne.

    28. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      All it takes is a horizontal mercury switch or equivalent that flips a toggle that requires the lid switch to toggle in the other direction. It's not high tech. Kids always imagine that only "modern" people have the good ideas.

    29. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Bullshit. Kenmore washing machines in the '80s and '90s had a safety mechanism that would be triggered by an unbalanced load. The cycle would stop and the machine would proceed to emit an annoyingly loud buzzing until someone turned it off. I doubt Kenmore was the only brand that had this.

    30. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by sjames · · Score: 1

      Walking across the floor is a lot different from jumping up and punching a hole in the wall and doing itself structural damage.

      The old washers had a 'tilt switch' that would stop them if the load wasn't well balanced. The '80s and '90s models had motors too wimpy to get dangerous. The newest ones spin much faster and must take imbalances into account.

    31. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by sjames · · Score: 1

      Not to mention that a centrifuge is not a household appliance and so can demand a bit more from the user.

    32. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      as long as you promise not to hit the rock against another rock too hard.

      That's animal cruelty. You should be banned from ever owning a pet rock.

    33. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Fly+Swatter · · Score: 1

      Had similar Kenmore washing machine with off-balance buzzer until only a few years ago, it lasted way past 30+ years, it finally started leaking somewhere inside. The sticker on the back said 'parts availability guaranteed for 30 years'. Yup they don't make em like that anymore.

      New top load whirlpool washer, will detect imbalance and actually try to redistribute the load itself before finally crying for help. Someone is always trying to reinvent the wheel, and hitting the same problems that have been solved long ago. Although I bet in this case Samsung just went too cheap on the drum material, it probably develops stress fatigue and eventually fails. These new washers spin really fast.

    34. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I remember seeing on some "science" show a front loader rip itself apart when a breeze block was put in it and the spin cycle started. Nice to know you can do this with a bedsheet in a top loader.

      If you're talking about those youtube videos the spin motor has usually been wired directly to the mains, otherwise the imbalance detector would stop the motor in short order.

    35. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This ^^^ is why I take heavy items such as bedding and other heavy items to the laundry where I can use a large capacity front loader.

      Yes, it costs a bit of change to do it that way, but my top loading clothes washing machine at home isn't going into convulsions.

    36. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can confirm.

      I inherited my first washing machine from my great grandmother. It was big, heavy, and yellow but it wouldn't stop working (Maytag, I don't know the manufacture date but the last service date was in the '70s). When it went off balance it would just shut itself down.

      One particularly severe winter the water line froze back into the pump and the belt burnt out (the pump wasn't damaged at all). I rigged a pair of the wife's pantyhose act as a make shift replacement. That is when I decided to bite the bullet and buy a new washing machine. Big mistake. The fucker would happily dance around the floor and beat itself (and the poor dryer) to death. When I complained to the store (Sears) they said that all washing machines are made that way now (this was in the late '90s).

    37. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Dr.Dubious+DDQ · · Score: 1
      Samsung's QA, in my experience, has been a major problem for many years. I don't think any of the Samsung gadgets I've bought have ever worked reliably.

      Samsung Fridge/Freezer: Seemed to work fine for a year or so, then we noticed that after any power outage, it would tend not to cool things when it turned back on. We'd notice that the temperature indicators on the front were happily announcing that the fridge was at 60F and the freezer at 40+. (Unplugging it and plugging it back in again would usually get it working again). Now it's even worse, the temperature indicators show things working just fine, but the actual temperature inside is either way too warm or way too cold and everything in the refrigerator is frozen. Unplugging and plugging back in will usually make the temperature sensors show the actual temperatures, but there seems to be no guarantee that the actual problem will be resolved and it may need to be unplugged and plugged back in a few times before it works correctly for a while. Getting rid of this awful thing very soon.

      Samsung "point-and-shoot" camera, seemed to work great when I picked it up and took it on vacation, but when I got back and downloaded the photos to look at them on a real screen, a circular area in the center of every picture was out of focus: Lens defect. Got it RMA'd right at the end of the warranty period, the third-party losers they outsource it to kept the camera for two weeks, then sent it right back with a note to "make sure the battery is charged when you use it.". WTF?

      Samsung "Mesmerize" phone (Galaxy S variant), cell/wifi/bluetooth would all just die and stop working until completely powered off (not just rebooted). To be fair, the one that I got as a replacement worked reasonably well.

      Samsung Galaxy S4: I actually mostly like it (still using it), but sometime in the six months after I got it, the USB data port stopped working. I'm not sure when it happened because I can still CHARGE over USB, and I usually do file transfers by SFTP rather than a cable so it was some time before I even noticed. Haven't bothered trying to get it replaced because it otherwise is working okay on "Optimized Cyanogenmod".

      Before anyone asks "If they suck so bad, why do you have so many Samsung devices", it was a few years between the fridge, camera, and Mesmerize phone before the pattern became obvious. I actually was reluctant to get the S4 but it was the only model my cell carrier had that was moddable.

      tl;dr:Samsung's hardware quality control sucks, and they plainly don't really care.

    38. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by lgw · · Score: 1

      Only after it happens.

      But before it causes any problems. Heck, I had a washer that would spin down, shake things up a bit in hopes of better distribution, and spin up again. Most just stop and alarm.

      Any washing machine that is so shoddily built that it can actually "explode"

      It didn't explode. It broke apart from overload.

      Thus "explode" in scare quotes. Totally unacceptable for a washing machine to conduct "unscheduled rapid disassembly" because of such a common problem.

      Manufacturers cannot predict every use for their product. Such a prohibition on sale of anything that can be mechanically overloade

      We're not talking hypotheticals here. We're talking about the single most common failure mode for a washing machine. It's not "fit for purpose". Selling it as a washing machine is, frankly, fraud.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    39. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's not so much about catching bugs than it is about catching fire.

    40. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Most if not all of the machines from the 80s and 90s were dumb. They'd walk across the floor if the load's unbalanced.

      What? I thought that was a feature. "Thank you, Mr. Machine, for bringing me my fresh laundry."

      Now I gotta get it myself.

    41. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by ctw181 · · Score: 2

      I have a Panasonic front loader washing machine that weighs the load before it starts to load water. Perhaps Samsung should build in the smarts needed to stop these things happening. In the early nineties Samsung television sets were going up in flames due to carbonisation of the adhesive used to hold components in place. ten years ago they were creating expensive two door fridges that just never worked properly due to half-arsed electronic control. LG is a good example of another useless company that only just saved itself by changing its name from Goldstar after creating junk electronics since it was incorporated.What this is is a washer that isn't smart enough to save itself from the tyranny of poorly loaded washing. It reminds me of their robot vacuum cleaner that, unlike the iRobot Roomba that has a flat top surface, has a "space-age" looking form with sloping top edges... that gets stuck under the first lounge chair it encounters. Time to stop apologising for pathetic product testing and call it what it really is... really poor product design and execution.

    42. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Trogre · · Score: 1

      Really?

      I have never seen a washing machine made after 1975 that *didn't* have an off-balance shutdown.

      In what part of the world do you live?

      --
      "Nine times out of ten, starting a fire is not the best way to solve the problem." - my wife
    43. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Kazakhstan. He loves his fermented, horse-urine wine.

    44. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by dcollins117 · · Score: 1

      Manufacturers cannot predict every use for their product.

      I think Samsung could reasonably expect people would put clothing in their washing machines. That's foreseeable, right? Now if people put hand grenades in there and then complained that their washing machines kept exploding, I'd blame the consumer. In this case I think Samsung has some culpability.

    45. Re: Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      Like what? Washing a fucking blanket

      As someone who has replaced every Samsung appliance that came with my house I assure you they gave zero thought out side of useless whiz-bang features and absolute shit quality

    46. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      This is exactly why the Samsung failure. Engineers to finite design to achieve warranty life. I year warranty they are designing the machine to last one year (they had to design to max load for that year otherwise too many warranty claims). That finite design for warranty period only, means pushing the envelope of system failure and hence, major screw up every now and again. From our perspective, the stuff we buy, basically breaks down at the end of warranty plus the safety period for harder use.

      Want change in this bullshit, than you are going to have to force politicians to legislate specific extended mandatory warranty periods, to save on resource waste and unnecessary pollution generation as well as wasted voter product investment. No warranty should be less than say three years and ten years would be preferable). This would save consumers a huge amount of money, reduce planetary resource consumption and hugely reduce pollution outputs. Want to preserve our human survivable environment than we have to cut the bullshit and start taking serious steps to preserve it in a human survivable condition.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    47. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Trax3001BBS · · Score: 2

      . Although I bet in this case Samsung just went too cheap on the drum material, it probably develops stress fatigue and eventually fails. These new washers spin really fast.

      There are four rods that attach to the bottom of the drum then to the top of the washer frame.
      Unbalanced one or more of the rods slip out of their top retainer.

    48. Re: Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 1

      I've replaced every Apple gadget or computer that's come into my house.

      Anecdotes are anecdotes.

    49. Re: Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by adolf · · Score: 1

      That would be Photonic Induction. His YouTube channel is better than his washing machine video.

    50. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by CrashNBrn · · Score: 1

      And you could almost always fix those beasts with a $5 belt too. Instead of "$450 + $250 labor (for a ~$1000 machine".

    51. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My mother's (and later my) Maytag from the late 1950s would shut down on unbalance beyond something reasonable. Simple microswitch would get hit by excessive horizontal movement in the drum assembly, dropping the main power relay. Is it so hard to program that into a modern washer?

    52. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by ArylAkamov · · Score: 1

      Because then we wouldn't have gems like this:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    53. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by William+Baric · · Score: 1

      I live in Canada. My washing machine (Whirlpool) bought in 96 or 97 obviously doesn't have an off-balance shutdown.

    54. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it used to be that simple in the good ol' days.

      These new washers are probably running Linux, and while they've managed to scrape together all the necessary drivers and libraries and make the whole thing compile without errors, they haven't figured out how to configure them to react to that condition without breaking other functions.

      (Oh, please tell me I'm just being cynical and this is not what actually happened...)

    55. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by mrbester · · Score: 1

      Youngsters these days. This was on the tellybox in the previous millennium...

      --
      "Wait. Something's happening. It's opening up! My God, it's full of apricots!"
    56. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by RevRagnarok · · Score: 1

      FYI - LG top-loaders had the same exact problem. Mine was re-flashed a few years ago. I thought it was Samsung and had a strange deja vu feeling about this whole post.

      --
      I should put something clever here. Maybe someday.
    57. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Are you my cat? Is this what you get up to all day, posting to Slashdot? And how the hell did you get a lower UID than me?!

      I'll trade you a kilo of catnip for it.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    58. Re: Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      I replaced them cause every single one broke, not because I wanted to waste a bunch of money

    59. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      Maybe it should detect the load imbalance and safely shut down, like every other washing machine ever?

      --
      Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
    60. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      and yet even with the abuse of tossing a cinderblock into a machine in full spin cycle, it only falls over and causes damage to the washing machine itself. The article talks about parts flying through walls.

      --
      Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
    61. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      I've been avoiding Samsung, just like I avoid Sony, due to their horrible practices towards customers. I don't support colluders and price fixers, just like I don't support companies that try to rootkit my PC.

      And LG got the sale for my recent washer / dryer purchase, and I couldn't be happier with the products.

      --
      Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
    62. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by lxs · · Score: 1

      As least link to the guy who made that video (a great channel BTW), not the repost.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    63. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by KingMotley · · Score: 1

      My Kenmore washing machine (bought 1969) has an out-of-balance detector. It stops and lets out a very loud buzz.

      Yes, it still works, 47 years later -- it has never had a single problem in all those years.

    64. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by danomac · · Score: 1

      A Samsung OLED?!

    65. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by ArylAkamov · · Score: 1

      I had no idea, neat channel, thanks. Must be a bit of an issue if he adds that into the intro.

    66. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by cwsumner · · Score: 1

      Considering your UID, that's unlikely. Most if not all of the machines from the 80s and 90s were dumb. They'd walk across the floor if the load's unbalanced.

      Wrong. Not every function in a machine requires a computer! 8-P

    67. Re:Clearly Samsung's QA department..... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So, it's the customers fault? Just hazarding a guess here, you work in marketing, right?

      'Cause if you were an engineer you would acknowledge that a severely out of balance load is not just a possibility, it is a surety. At some point in a washer's life it will be in this state, at least once, and you have to design for it. In the very least, you have to make sure the washer doesn't fly apart -- potentially injuring people and/or destroying property. But, you probably should do better than that and just put in a shutoff that kills the washer once it starts to spin out of balance.

  5. North Korea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If North Korea want's WMDs, I know who would be the perfect partner in this endeavor.

    1. Re:North Korea by unixisc · · Score: 2

      Actually, Samsung is now preparing to shift its headquarters from Seoul to Pyongyang, and change its identity from a South Korean company to North Korean. Its labor force will be a lot cheaper, being North Korean, and it will get to blow both LG and Hyundai out of the water. Kim Jong Un will be a new investor in the company, which will no longer be listed on the South Korean exchanges

    2. Re:North Korea by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

      and the un can't stop then from making rocket loaded with unsafe batterys.

  6. Has Samsung joined ISIS!? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Everything they touch explodes...getting a little suspicious now

    1. Re:Has Samsung joined ISIS!? by DickBreath · · Score: 3, Funny

      How BIG is Samsung? (They Have a Military Department!)

      Do their explosives explode?

      (Some world maps mistakenly mis-label Samsung as "South Korea")

      --

      I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
    2. Re:Has Samsung joined ISIS!? by dgatwood · · Score: 1

      Only when they aren't supposed to.

      --

      Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

    3. Re:Has Samsung joined ISIS!? by PRMan · · Score: 1

      In a fit of irony, they are the only Samsung product that doesn't... ;)

      --
      Peter predicted that you would "deliberately forget" creation 2000 years ago...
  7. What kind of engineering...? by 31415926535897 · · Score: 1

    Who the heck designs their washing machines to include Galaxy Note 7s inside?!?! Oh, Samsung, that's who. /s

  8. Did not read warning label by SuperKendall · · Score: 4, Funny

    Do not wash Samsung Note 7 phones in your new Samsung Washing Machine. They are not compatible.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:Did not read warning label by PRMan · · Score: 1

      Oh, you want a BIG explosion...

      --
      Peter predicted that you would "deliberately forget" creation 2000 years ago...
    2. Re:Did not read warning label by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 1

      I wanted to wash clothes in my Apple Washing Machine, but it required I use special soap only made by Apple. And it would only wash one shirt at a time because the machine was so thin. And it could only be a white shirt. There was only one button on the washing machine.

    3. Re:Did not read warning label by SuperKendall · · Score: 1

      But by god that shirt came out SPOTLESS and never lost a button. Also it dried clothes as well and put them away automatically... but sure go ahead and hate on progress.

      --
      "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  9. After the third time it's not longer a bug by thewolfkin · · Score: 1

    Hey guys good news is after their third one it's no longer a bug it's a feature. So we have that to look forward to.

    --
    Just another second banana
  10. What's the next lie going to be by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    claiming their SSD drives explode too? A few dozen batteries burst in flames - some of which are still unverified to be true - out of hundreds of millions sold over many years, and U.S. media starts trying to make it out like your life could be endangered by buying their products. It's like there's an agenda now to bury Samsung because they own a too big share in significant markets or something.

    1. Re:What's the next lie going to be by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it's so overblown that the company is voluntarily recalling every single one.

      Way to whitewash. Past model batteries and charging systems have jack shit to do with newly redesigned batteries and charging systems, except that they both have batteries and charging systems.

      --
      Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
  11. Top-loading washing machines? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Are they still being made? I thought they died out somewhere in the early 1970s.

    1. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by tsqr · · Score: 1

      Are they still being made? I thought they died out somewhere in the early 1970s.

      Of course they're still being made. They're popular with people who subscribe to the Netflix DVD service, buy their music on CDs, run Windows on their computers, and do their own driving.

      Seriously, though -- 75% of washing machines in use in the US are top loaders, though the trend is in favor of front loaders. They're cheaper (by a factor of approximately 2), more flexible (try adding clothes to a front-loader after the cycle has started), less mechanically complex, less prone to produce vibration, and more ergonomically friendly (no bending way down to put clothes in or take them out). Front loaders use less water and spin faster. And, apparently, are on rare occasions subject to rapid unplanned disassembly.

    2. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by Obfuscant · · Score: 0

      (try adding clothes to a front-loader after the cycle has started)

      There is currently an ad campaign in the US touting one brand's "feature" where you can add things to the wash after it starts. This is something "special" that differentiates them from all the other washing machines, worthy of a special ad campaign.

      Every time I see it, I say "just open the top and drop it in. What's the problem? Is there nothing more exciting in your life than adding stuff to an ongoing wash cycle"?

    3. Re: Top-loading washing machines? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This feature is standard on FL machines, I don't believe that in 2016 somebody would run ads touting it.

      My 10yo Maytag has it and it's just a decent washer, nothing special.

    4. Re: Top-loading washing machines? by tsqr · · Score: 1

      Maybe you should tell these people about it.

    5. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by quenda · · Score: 1

      I thought they died out somewhere in the early 1970s.

      I thought the same about vi.
      Its also like the cats vs dogs debate. We all know one is clearly better, but somehow people keep buying the other one.

      I'll wager that top-loader buyers use vi, and front-loaders are emacs people.

    6. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Seriously, though -- 75% of washing machines in use in the US are top loaders, though the trend is in favor of front loaders.

      Interesting, I didn't know they were still popular in some regions. They disappeared long ago in Europe, probably because of energy or water use restrictions. I have also heard people claim that top loaders were not very gentle to the laundry, which was likely also a motivation for the switch. I am in my early thirties and I don't think I have ever seen one in person.

      (try adding clothes to a front-loader after the cycle has started),

      That is very easy actually. Press the button, wait until it says you can open the door, open the door and add your laundry. It is not possible in all parts of the cycle, but I suppose there is not much point to adding new laundry late in the washing process.

    7. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I cannot imagine many people actually going to the trouble of importing an inferior type of washing machine that hasn't been sold in the civilised world for decades.

    8. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by RevRagnarok · · Score: 1

      Don't forget all the mold issues the front loaders had (still have?).

      --
      I should put something clever here. Maybe someday.
    9. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by dywolf · · Score: 1

      front loaders also have a problem with mold if the gasket isn't allowed to dry out sufficiently

      --
      The guy who said the election was rigged won the presidency with the second-most votes.
    10. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      I've had several garments ripped by the agitator in top-load washers.

      Apparently there are new agitator-less top loaders now - probably the same kind of mechanism you find in front-load machines, turned 90 degrees.

      --
      Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
    11. Re:Top-loading washing machines? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I live in a country where front loaders are used exclusively and I've never heard of those issues.

  12. This is the new strategy of ISIS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    1. Get a job at Samsung
    2. Make exploding appliances
    3. ?????
    4. Profit! /ducks
    Too soon?

  13. Samsung Washer musical melody by DickBreath · · Score: 1

    When the washer is finished it plays this interesting melody.

    It is Die Forelle written by Chopin.

    The title roughly translated to English would be: The Fish.

    I'm less certain, but I believe that the lyrics would translate into something like:

    I'm done, come get your clean clothes
    The cycle is complete
    The wash and rinse have finished
    The spin was fast and strong
    I'm ready now to be emptied
    Don't make me wait too long
    I'll be here patiently awaiting
    I'll soon repeat this song

    --

    I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
    1. Re:Samsung Washer musical melody by Bromrrrrr · · Score: 1

      First, need to get some pedantry out of the way

      It is Die Forelle written by Chopin.

      Schubert actually

      The title roughly translated to English would be: The Fish.

      The Trout to be a little more exact.

      Sorry about that, anyway I don't get these lyrics:

      I'm done, come get your clean clothes
      The cycle is complete
      The wash and rinse have finished
      The spin was fast and strong
      I'm ready now to be emptied
      Don't make me wait too long
      I'll be here patiently awaiting
      I'll soon repeat this song

      ...I mean, does your washing machine actually sing to you? Or do you get the lyrics in the manual and are you supposed to gather the family around for a nice sing-a-long around the washing machine...

      --

      What a rotten party, have we run out of beer or something?
    2. Re:Samsung Washer musical melody by Thud457 · · Score: 1

      Rachmaninoff. /Mrs. Teevee

      --

      the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

    3. Re:Samsung Washer musical melody by Solandri · · Score: 1

      What's even sadder is that a company has to resort to using a song 200 years old as a notification melody to avoid a copyright infringement lawsuits.

    4. Re:Samsung Washer musical melody by DickBreath · · Score: 1

      The washer does not sing. It only plays the amusing melody. And then again in a few minutes if you haven't removed the clothes. Manual? Was there a manual? And thank you for the corrections! An interesting research project would be to determine how many times the washer will play the melody if you don't remove the clothes. Hours? Days? Months?

      --

      I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
  14. I'm not saying this washer is a bomb... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...but ISIS tried strapping one of these to Air Force One last night.

  15. Samsung? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Does Samsung make any products that don't explode?

    1. Re:Samsung? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yessir! iPhones.
      Oh, wait, they only manufacture the components in one section of Foxcon and then shift them to another section where Apple 'manufactures' iPhones.

    2. Re:Samsung? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Their hand grenades.

    3. Re:Samsung? by DickBreath · · Score: 1

      Samsung makes military gear. Yes, really. I hope that answers your "exploding" question. (And shipyards, aerospace, heavy industry, etc)

      --

      I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
    4. Re:Samsung? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes. Mortar shells.

  16. Blame it on the translators by phorm · · Score: 5, Funny

    Samsung's management originally stated that they wanted their products "built to last"

    However, somebody typo'ed the translation as "built to blast"

    1. Re:Blame it on the translators by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      management wanted..."built to last" ... typo'ed as "built to blast"

      Be very afraid if they tell you you're "fired"

    2. Re:Blame it on the translators by dddux · · Score: 1

      I agree, their products are a blast! Love Samsung!

      --
      "It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." - Jiddu Krishnamurti
    3. Re:Blame it on the translators by phorm · · Score: 1

      Indeed. Business is booming from what I hear.

  17. Just one? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The story says it affects washers since 2011, that's 5 years of usage for some people. Out of all that time and there is only one explosion?

  18. Could be worse by ovoskeuiks · · Score: 1

    From the looks of the pictures it's simply shaken itself to pieces. Down here in Australia and New Zealand, Samsung top loaders have a bad reputation for catching fire and burning peoples houses down. Lastest Samsung Washing Machine Fires

    1. Re:Could be worse by PRMan · · Score: 1

      Good thing that won't happen to your Fisher Paykel brand. They don't even get hot enough to dry anything!

      --
      Peter predicted that you would "deliberately forget" creation 2000 years ago...
    2. Re: Could be worse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why would an Aussie care about the reputation of a Chinese appliance maker?

  19. What component of the machine "exploded"? by ffkom · · Score: 1

    TFA does not say much... as, for example, an "explosion" of what kind that was supposed to be. There aren't so many components usually built into washing machines that could "explode" on their own, with nobody adding highly energetic substances to the mix.

    1. Re:What component of the machine "exploded"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      TFA does not say much... as, for example, an "explosion" of what kind that was supposed to be. There aren't so many components usually built into washing machines that could "explode" on their own, with nobody adding highly energetic substances to the mix.

      Oops, I left a chuck of sodium in my pocket.

    2. Re:What component of the machine "exploded"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Looked more like a Rapid Unplanned Rearrangement of Components

    3. Re:What component of the machine "exploded"? by tsqr · · Score: 1

      TFA does not say much... as, for example, an "explosion" of what kind that was supposed to be. There aren't so many components usually built into washing machines that could "explode" on their own, with nobody adding highly energetic substances to the mix.

      That's what I was thinking. Most washing machine explosions are connected to an idiot washing rags soaked in something flammable.

  20. and in related news by rossdee · · Score: 5, Funny

    A number of airlines have announced they will ban passengers from having Samsung washing machines in their carry-ons

    1. Re:and in related news by sinij · · Score: 1

      A number of airlines have announced they will ban passengers from having Samsung washing machines in their carry-ons

      Now this! You know how hard it was to cram that thing into X-ray machine?! Plus I already paid for priority boarding so I would have space for all of my luggage.

    2. Re:and in related news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How hard would it be to sneak a Samsung Washing machine past the TSA?

      Captcha: crunchy

  21. Re:Samsung: Munitions-grade consumer electronics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Is this another "undocumented feature": Being able to defend one's castle with leftover Samsung products?

    Certainly. The Right to keep and bear Washing Machines shall not be infringed. It's right there in the Constitution (as amended).

  22. At Last by avandesande · · Score: 1

    A good excuse not to do laundry!

    --
    love is just extroverted narcissism
  23. Re:Samsung: Munitions-grade consumer electronics by aix+tom · · Score: 1

    Funny that just one year after they sold their "Samsung Techwin" subsidiary, where defending your castle *was* a well documented feature of their products like the K9 Thunder Motorized Howitzer, to the Hanwa group ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... ) their OTHER products start exploding.....

    Maybe some of the Samsung techs miss building weaponry?

  24. Typical USA by NotAPK · · Score: 1

    Expect to see even more of this corporate warfare from the USA.

    They dipped their toe in the water with the Toyota accelerator pedal scandal.

    They deployed a much improved process with the Volkswagen emissions scandal.

    The exploding Note 7 will be just the beginning of a corporate take-down against Samsung.

    I mean what did you expect? That the NSA would only use its slkilz for foreign security? The USA's foreign security is intimately linked to its economic dominance, so of course they will do all they can to crush foreign companies trading/selling on US soil.

    1. Re:Typical USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Surely you jest.

    2. Re:Typical USA by Desler · · Score: 2

      So true. Corporations should never be held accountable for their products. That's practically communism.

    3. Re:Typical USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The issue is not holding corporations accountable (which is good), but the fact that the US seems to hold foreign companies to very different standards than US companies.

    4. Re:Typical USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly, they bail out domestic failures

  25. That wooden dolphin was right by sethstorm · · Score: 1

    The Samsungs are definitely "multiporpoise machines" - they explode as well as wash.

    --
    Twitter supports and protects racists - by smearing their critics with the "Hate Speech" label.
  26. Maybe the washing machines are fine? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Maybe people are doing laundry and leaving their combustable phone in their jeans?

  27. As seen on youtube! by valinor89 · · Score: 1
  28. Damn Battery-Powered Washing Machines! by macs4all · · Score: 1

    This is what happens when you try to cost-reduce designs beyond all rational reason.

  29. government overreach by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I can already see SWAT busting down the door and shooting occupants because of potential "explosive device" in the residence.

  30. Reverse Competition [Re:Clearly Samsung's QA dep by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    When I complained to the store (Sears) they said that all washing machines are made that way now [90's]

    That's a really dumb justification for suckage. "Sure, we suck, but so do our competitors now." I see now it's not just limited to telecoms and presidential candidates.

    I suppose the appliance makers could argue that power-saving regulations limit their ability to make the "big iron" washers you talk about. Some of the older stuff from say the 50's were tough, stable, lasting, and easy to repair, but were also power-hogs.

    By the way, our semi-old washer only has that problem if you wash big items like winter blankets or jackets. One has to be home to monitor it during such, else it dances around the garage. Being in a warmer region, it's usually not a problem.

  31. Here's the video! by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

    We snuck out the video of the failure mode of the new Samsung Washing machines. https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    1. Re:Here's the video! by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      It's actually rather impressive how long that thing keeps running after it's unplanned rapid disassembly.

      --
      Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
    2. Re:Here's the video! by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      It's actually rather impressive how long that thing keeps running after it's unplanned rapid disassembly.

      It was a tough one. I figure at least 15 pounds of unbalance.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  32. Oops! by PPH · · Score: 1
    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
  33. Off Balance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I had a gut feeling that something was seriously wrong with my Top Load washer. I had it for a few years and now it's a headache to deal with. It literally take me hours to get the machine to complete one load of clothes and this is after switching to different settings. At first, I thought I was putting too many clothes in the washer but after putting in a small amount and getting the same vibration then the off balance code, I realized the machine just isn't working properly. Hopefully Samsung replaces these washers because truthfully, I don't trust it even if the cycle is on delicates.

  34. Isn't this years old? by RevRagnarok · · Score: 1

    I have a top loader, and there was some kind of recall already on it. They hooked up a handheld to it and queried some parameters to ensure it didn't need actual parts replaced. They flashed a ROM upgrade and put a sticker on the side saying it was updated and a sticker on the top warning you not to put things like raincoats in it (duh?).

    --
    I should put something clever here. Maybe someday.
    1. Re:Isn't this years old? by RevRagnarok · · Score: 1

      My wife just informed me that ours is an LG.
      So LG performed the recall for effectively the same thing a few years back.

      --
      I should put something clever here. Maybe someday.
  35. Why would you buy a Samsung Appliance? by gordguide · · Score: 1

    Samsung's home appliances (refrigerators, freezers, stoves, washing machines, dryers) have an absolutely horrible reputation for reliability and worse, for indifferent or non-existant service and repair. A few exploding washers is probably the least of the problems you could expect.

    1. Re:Why would you buy a Samsung Appliance? by moofo · · Score: 1

      I have a dishwasher from them and it's almost impossible to get clean glasses. There are spots in the top drawer that works better than the others. :-(

      --
      "I've heard nonsense, compared with which that would be as sensible as a dictionary." Through the looking glass and what
    2. Re:Why would you buy a Samsung Appliance? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Agree. When my 11 year old Whirlpool front load washer irreparably broke last October, I asked my trusty appliance repair service to recommend the brands they don't get many service call on. They told me that the Whirlpools were the best in that metric, and to stay away from Samsung and LG.

    3. Re:Why would you buy a Samsung Appliance? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't know about LG and Samsung, but from what I have been told, Whirlpool, Indesit and Zanussi have a reputation for not lasting very long. Miele are often considered to be the most durable, followed by the more expensive models from Bosch and Siemens.

  36. Re:What is it with Samsung by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Does Samsung make pressure cookers too?

  37. my diagnosis by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I suspect that this failure mode comes from the main shaft breaking during high speed spin, most likely due to defects in the steel from shoddy manufacturing. It might also involve faulty imbalance detection. There was no "explosion" despite idiot media outlets' parroting.

  38. The cycle of corporate life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And, with that, Samsung goes the way of Sony.

    Funny thing is, I'm sure plenty of high-end business schools study this phenomenon and have written great analyses, but the graduates of said institutions never seem to catch on.