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Thousands of Note 7 Phones Still in Use On Verizon, All Non-911 Calls To Be Rerouted To Customer Service (cnet.com)

Thousands of Verizon customers continue to use the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone, the carrier said. This despite the widely publicized recalls spurred by battery fire concerns and a software upgrade designed to kill the phone by preventing it from recharging. From a report: "In spite of our best efforts, there are still customers using the recalled phones who have not returned or exchanged their Note 7 to the point of purchase," a Verizon spokeswoman said. "The recalled Note 7s pose a safety risk to our customers and those around them." So now Verizon is fighting fire with fire, so to speak. The carrier plans to reroute all non-911 outgoing calls to its customer service line, and it might bill the holdouts for the full retail cost of the phone.

139 comments

  1. Phone Calls? by ranton · · Score: 1

    Who uses their cell phones for phone calls anyway?

    --
    -- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
    1. Re:Phone Calls? by lbmouse · · Score: 5, Funny

      I use my Note 7 to call my wife at work. She's a 911 operator so it's all good.

    2. Re: Phone Calls? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's all my cellphone does.

      Well, I guess it does t9 texting, but that is a pain in the ass.

    3. Re:Phone Calls? by b783719 · · Score: 1

      I also use my Note 7 to call my wife at work. Since she works in Verizon customer service, now I never need to remember the hotline number!

    4. Re:Phone Calls? by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Considering the number of Verizon haters on /., I'm surprised no one has (yet) suggested that your wife is fast heading for unemployment.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
  2. If you work at Verizon customer service by Jawnn · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...sucks to be you. I can feel the waves of hate already. It's as if millions of voices suddenly dialed out, and were silenced.

    1. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by SuperKendall · · Score: 0

      On hold, no-one can hear you scream.

      --
      "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    2. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Meh. If you are a Verizon Customer, you *know* they have you by your balls, so dont complain if they squeeze. Switch to an open network with SIM's, there a provider does not have unlimited possibilities...

    3. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You are not on hold, they just muted their mic, are listening to you scream, and laughing at you. Verizon uses your screams to power their 4G LTE.

    4. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But what happens if you like that sort of thing?

    5. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Verizon definitely doesn't use SIM cards. That's why they don't sell SIM card activation kits.

    6. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by FatdogHaiku · · Score: 1

      But what happens if you like that sort of thing?

      Hardware store - >Hose Clamps...
      Large zip ties if you're really ballsy...
      and don't care if you stay that way...

      --
      You have the right to remain sentient. If you give up the right to remain sentient, you will be elected to public office
    7. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So you're saying the SIM card in my Verizon phone isn't real? And the replacement Net10 SIM that I bought and put in my other Verizon phone and now use also isn't real? It may not be a GSM SIM, but it's a SIM.

    8. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So Verizon is actually Monsters, Inc? Explains a lot...

    9. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Meh. If you are a Verizon Customer... Switch to an open network with SIM's, there a provider does not have unlimited possibilities...

      Clearly you are not a Verizon customer, your ignorance is evident.

    10. Re: If you work at Verizon customer service by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Verizon does indeed use SIMs. I just had to replace mine.

    11. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by omnichad · · Score: 2

      They use them for LTE. All 3G/CDMA traffic is identified by hardware EMEI.

    12. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by Falos · · Score: 1

      They must have a machine on the front line. As ghastly as the idea of an army of proles in the trenches may be for first contact, the real reason they'll (probably) be shielded is that automation is cheaper. They'll put a message up front meant to hopefully process generic scenarios fully or partially.

      The work is dead. The automation is the work. Long live the work.

    13. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by demonlapin · · Score: 1

      Still tied to the SIM somehow. When I bought a Nexus 6P from Google, I didn't tell Verizon anything. I dropped in my existing SIM and started using it - and yes, it works just fine on CDMA and 3G.

    14. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by omnichad · · Score: 1

      There must be some sort of data protocol where the phone sends the info over LTE to register it. This is news to me, but that definitely simplifies things. CDMA still has no way of using SIM cards as far as I'm aware.

    15. Re:If you work at Verizon customer service by demonlapin · · Score: 1

      That was my thought. Or perhaps there's a pseudo-EMEI built into the SIM that the phone uses to identify itself.

  3. Customers already refunded... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Where customers have already been refunded in the recall despite not returning the devices, it makes sense why Verizon would elect to do something like this...

    1. Re:Customers already refunded... by Overzeetop · · Score: 1

      If you didn't turn it in, you didn't get a refund. Those that have them have paid for them (though some may have been at subsidized prices).

      --
      Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
    2. Re:Customers already refunded... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I didn't receive a refund until a few weeks after Verizon received my phone in the mail (based on tracking information), which was mailed by a check. The claim that the consumer was somehow using a free device is false.

      Removing service for these paid devices should be (by applying equal responsibility between consumer and provider) considered a breach of contract, though legally, I'm sure there's a clause in all contracts where Verizon can disconnect devices for any reason they desire--which you have to sign because it's probably in all provider contracts and consumers don't care until it directly effects them. Welcome to the erosion of consumer rights in areas that are considered essential (phone companies have traditionally been considered utilities).

    3. Re:Customers already refunded... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Good luck getting any judge to uphold a breach of contract claim when a federally mandated recall was issued.

    4. Re:Customers already refunded... by sabri · · Score: 1

      federally mandated recall

      The recall notice says clearly that consumers should stop using and power down.

      The device related problems are an issue between the end-user and Samsung, not Verizon. Verizon has no business interfering in the legal use of a legally purchased device. To Verizon's network, it is irrelevant what device I would use, and therefore Verizon would be in breach of contract for turning of services I am paying for. Unless of course, Verizon can demonstrate how the use of a Samsung Note 7 device is interfering with the integrity of their network. This is a class action lawsuit coming.

      Don't forget that the issue is battery related. So take out the battery, and you have a perfectly functioning computing device.

      --
      I'm not a complete idiot... Some parts are missing.
    5. Re: Customers already refunded... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That refund claim is BS. If they offered a refund they wouldn't have to resort to these strong-arm tactics in order to take our property.

    6. Re:Customers already refunded... by anegg · · Score: 1

      Just wondering... what happens to Verizon if, despite all of the notices, someone continues to use the device that they obtained through Verizon, and... the device explodes, causing loss of property or life? Is it possible that that someone could/would sue Verizon for damages?

    7. Re:Customers already refunded... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm a proponent of being able to keep the device and use it how you see fit. Even as such, no sane person could blame the carrier. I find it hard to believe a court would side with the consumer here unless of course Verizon's contract had some flaw regarding the issue which required returning the phone to void some liability stated in the contract. If that's the case, I'm sure their contract is fixed now.

      At best, you could have a case against Samsung. If that situation actually occurred, you should be liable for your own damages after such an extensive consumer information campaign. Major carriers and Samsung went above and beyond to inform consumers of the issue and that is admirable. Now, IMO, it's squarely up to the consumer to make a decision since it really poses no realistic public risk. This isn't like, "whoops, your phone was prepacked with a deadly drug resistant super bacteria that'll kill all of humanity" -- it's more like a "whoops, we had a failure rate higher than normal that the media is blowing out of proportion, our image is tarnished, and now we have to recover the brand."

    8. Re:Customers already refunded... by Miamicanes · · Score: 1

      Verizon's lawyers would cross-claim Samsung's, and besides having to pay their own attorneys to make required court appearances and monitor the case, that would pretty much be the limit of Verizon's liability. Sure, in theory, Verizon could be held liable for the full amount under the doctrine of joint & several liability... but that really only matters when the company with primary responsibility is judgment-proof (bankrupt, out of business, etc). Samsung is one of the largest conglomerates on Earth, and SamsungUSA is pretty huge, too... they aren't going anywhere, and their checks won't be bouncing anytime soon.

    9. Re:Customers already refunded... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It wasn't just a higher failure rate, it was about a 100x above normal failure rate with a bias nearly pathological. There is a good chance that the failure rate would have kept climbing with the engineering defect correlated with time used. The issue just required the correct circumstances, and while the circumstances were not common at any given point in time, were common to have occurred at least once over the lifetime of the device. As far as we know it could have approached 100%.

  4. Verizon is going to get in trouble by Scarred+Intellect · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I have a coworker who's holding on to his Note 7. He's been staying on top of all of this. It appears that after a recall, a company cannot require nor continue requiring payment for a recalled device. Some may argue that he has a loan he still owes Verizon, but it appears also that Samsung bought out all those loans.

    There has been no word from Verizon that they will prorate service contracts since they are effectively disabling service...that's gotta be some kind of illegal.

    I haven't confirmed any of the above, as I don't care, but I do find it interesting.

    I think Verizon and the other carriers have done all they should do for the recall; my coworker even got the fire-proof box shipped to his house for the return. He likes the phone, he knows about the (extremely minor) risk, and wants to keep the phone. All Verizon is doing with this is pissing off those few thousand customers.

    1. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      And when your coworker's house burns down, and his insurance company refuses to pay because he knowingly kept using a device that was a fire risk, maybe he'll grow up and decide that "I know better than the engineers at the manufacturer" is a stupid fucking game to play.

    2. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would understand perfectly if this was the kind of choice that would only endanger your friend.

      But his choice endangers others as well. Your friend and others like him are being EXTREMELY unreasonable and selfish by keeping the phone. Are they willing to accept the responsibility in case their decision results in injuries and death to others? Just to avoid a MINOR inconvenience?

      Samsung is being very fair about this. They will refund the full price of the phone or allow exchanging it for another Samsung model (if you choose the latter, they'll even throw in a $100 credit in future purchases).

      We can argue about the relative danger of any device (even a teaspoon can kill you if you aren't careful), but when a company goes though all this trouble, you have to start considering that MAYBE they know something you don't. MAYBE the danger isn't so remote. If the dangers of the Note 7 fell into the statistical failure probability of any other device, would Samsung sink an entire product line and lose millions of dollars?

      Think about that.

    3. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In a free country, it it, nevertheless, a game he should be able to play. Personal Responsibility means the freedom to choose what you disagree with, and accepting the potential consequences of their actions.
      This "you must do" nonsense has got to stop.

    4. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      what if said coworker lives in an apartment building and the whole building burns down making a bunch of people homeless because he's a selfish twat asshole motherfucker that no one likes and is never invited to office happy hours? what a cunt, I hate the guy already.

    5. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      OK, so he takes in on an airplane and it ignites. Now he's personally responsible for the consequences of that.

    6. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Verizon, as a service provider who approves every device the allow on their network, presumably reserves the right to revoke that approval and ban the device from their network. Unlike GSM providers, Verizon retains an iron grip on what gets on their network. I imagine they've considered the option of blacklisting the IMEIs and MEIDs of the Note 7s and decided this soft ban is the way to go for now. I'd bet they're counting on that thousands of customers who are knowingly using a recalled, potentially unsafe device aren't going to garner a hugely sympathetic public response from being railroaded into returning their phone.

      As for proration and all that - you'd think that this would be a conversation the customer service reps would be having with those customers get routed to them, wouldn't you?

    7. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by MightyYar · · Score: 2

      So many issues to take a stand on, and he picks this? Man, pick your battles. His time, his money - just don't look for sympathy or understanding as this wound is self-inflicted.

      --
      W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
    8. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Because if you were to list likely significant fire hazards in your friends house in order of highest to lowest based on the common amount of damage caused (let's say, measure it by recovery cost from associated damages or death), your friends Note 7 would be in the top 5 hazards above: space heaters, candles, stoves, fireplaces, smoking devices, old/faulty wiring, ...

    9. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by tlhIngan · · Score: 2

      I have a coworker who's holding on to his Note 7. He's been staying on top of all of this. It appears that after a recall, a company cannot require nor continue requiring payment for a recalled device. Some may argue that he has a loan he still owes Verizon, but it appears also that Samsung bought out all those loans.

      There has been no word from Verizon that they will prorate service contracts since they are effectively disabling service...that's gotta be some kind of illegal.

      I haven't confirmed any of the above, as I don't care, but I do find it interesting.

      I think Verizon and the other carriers have done all they should do for the recall; my coworker even got the fire-proof box shipped to his house for the return. He likes the phone, he knows about the (extremely minor) risk, and wants to keep the phone. All Verizon is doing with this is pissing off those few thousand customers.

      True. However, Samsung is offering a full refund, and I'm sure Verizon will cancel his contract if he tuns in his phone.

      Samsung only "bought out" everyone who returned their phone. If you still have it, it hasn't been bought out yet. And technically, you can restore full functionality by moving the SIM to a new phone.

      And he'd better hurry. Recalled products stay recalled, but recall offers can be time-limited after a reasonable amount of time. After which the company is no longer obligated to fix/repair/replace the recalled product. This is usually around 6 months to a year.

    10. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by houghi · · Score: 1

      I am sitting next to him at the bar. His phone explodes, I have burns now. Does he have enough to cover all that? He is aware that now he is liable for everything, right?
      He forgot it at a friends house. The house burns down. They find the phone and it looks as if that might have been the cause. Paytime.
      He is alone in his car. It burst into flames. He pulls at the steering wheel and drives over a kid. Nice one.

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    11. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The phone is banned from airplanes. Perhaps other places that are worried about the risk of ignition will ban this phone as well. If an individual chooses not to ban it from their own home, that is their choice and personal responsibility because it's their own place, much like airlines choose not to allow the phone on their own airplanes.

    12. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In that same "free country", a corporation should be able to refuse to provide service to a device that is known to cause harm to its users. All things being equal and all. Don't return it, fine. But don't expect it to continue to function.

    13. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Then the apartment building was not built to code and the engineer should be in jail. Have a look at the Ronan Point explosion to see how this works. The gas company and the company making the gas appliances were not at fault, the engineers were for making an unsafe building.

      The size of fire a phone battery explosion can create should not be able to do more than inconvenience other apartment dewellers into exiting the building for a day. Otherwise we would have entire apartment buildings burning down every time some dumbass forgot to turn off the stove.

    14. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by cyn1c77 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I have a coworker who's holding on to his Note 7. He's been staying on top of all of this. It appears that after a recall, a company cannot require nor continue requiring payment for a recalled device. Some may argue that he has a loan he still owes Verizon, but it appears also that Samsung bought out all those loans.

      Verizon doesn't want the liability of your coworker suing them after his house burns down. Or to be sued by someone else after he burns someone elses house down, or a bus, or a plane.

      If they completely discontinue service to the phones, they have a justifiable legal basis for saying that they did all that they could to prevent the phone fmor being used. They have likely decided that alienating a small portion of their customer base is worth avoiding such liability.

      Also, your colleague sounds a bit daft.

    15. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by sjames · · Score: 2

      IF he keeps the phone at home, AND he can guarantee that any fire damage will be confined to his own property AND he doesn't have guests come over without warning them of the risk, then yes.

      He will also need to be prepared to continue making his mortgage payments on the burned out shell.

    16. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by FudRucker · · Score: 1

      The Note 7 might be a collectors item someday like rare coins or rare postage stamps

      --
      Politics is Treachery, Religion is Brainwashing
    17. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So he is willing to take what he knows is basically a potential bomb in his pocket into a place of work, endangering other people and property. He's risking more than just himself. This guy should be arrested.

    18. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, there you go. It's been banned. Nobody would ever break a ban. We're perfectly safe. In your fantasy world.

    19. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      your desperate attempts to justify selfishness make you a bigger twat than the alleged coworker. I hate you too

    20. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I am sitting next to him at the bar. His phone explodes, I have burns now. Does he have enough to cover all that? He is aware that now he is liable for everything, right?
      He forgot it at a friends house. The house burns down. They find the phone and it looks as if that might have been the cause. Paytime.
      He is alone in his car. It burst into flames. He pulls at the steering wheel and drives over a kid. Nice one.

      He's at the gas station filling his tank texting on his Note 7 and you're at the pump adjacent in your brand new Rolls-Royce Phantom... a large yet currently unknown NEO (Near Earth Object) impacts in the South China Sea killing millions instantly and throwing earth into another global extinction event. Meanwhile, he rushes over wearing his new wool sweater to inform you, trips, and in the process and discharges static that ignites the fumes nearby, causing a massive fire and destroying both your vehicles and his Note 7. Is he ready to cover your expenses? Cha-ching, money in your pocket!

      I can peddle fiction surrounding extremely low and even unknown risk associated to activities as well (I like my strawman arguments to be far more entertaining though).

    21. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And it might (or most likely), be near worthless like most out of date electronics.

    22. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 3, Funny

      You never look at the bright side. That device could fry his nuts and he will not have any children, thus improving the quality of the gene pool for the next generation for millenia to come...

      --
      sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
    23. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by adolf · · Score: 1

      Meh. Anything can be insured, including a dwelling with a closet full of firey hoverboards and a Note 7 with the factory-standard autoignition feature.

      It's just an additional risk that needs to be accounted for.

    24. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 1

      As long as it does not undergo spontaneous combustion.

      --
      sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
    25. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      A second impact!? Let's rename NEO to Angel. It is falling from heaven, after all. If Angels are falling to earth (Adam, Eve, Lilith, et al), I'm going to be less concerned with exploding phones and more concerned with giant mecha, Seele and the human instrumentality project.

    26. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by pla · · Score: 2

      Do you have your clothes dryer vent professionally cleaned every six months?

      Did you know that, in the US alone, 2,900 home clothes dryer fires are reported each year and cause an estimated 5 deaths, 100 injuries, and $35 million in property loss?

      By comparison, only 96 credible reports of Note 7 fires exist, causing 13 burns and damaging property 47 times, making the known-defective Note 7 roughly 30 times safer than a non-defective clothes dryer.

      Are you willing to accept the responsibility in case your clothes dryer results in injuries and death to others? Just to avoid a MINOR inconvenience?

    27. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Lets put some things into perspective.

      Your chances of getting struck by lightning once in your lifetime are 1/12,000 or 0.008333%

      Now lets assume that 100 of the phones caught on fire (we are assuming because Samsung has only confirmed about half these cases). Out of the 2.5 million phones, you get a risk of 0.004%

      So literally twice as likely to get struck by lightning

    28. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      " They have likely decided that alienating a small portion of their customer base is worth avoiding such liability."

      I have never seen evidence that Verizon cares about alienating all it customer base.

    29. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      By you logic anything in a bottle over 3oz should result in a police raid on your house and thrown away.. I mean they're banned on airplanes...

    30. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      People do that with grills, cigarettes, oil on a stove, etc...
      Your point fails

    31. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It appears that after a recall, a company cannot require nor continue requiring payment for a recalled device.

      BS. If there's a recall on you car and you have a loan, you still owe money.
      Just because it's a phone vs a car doesn't change the debt.
      The recall requires the manufacturer to "make you whole again" either by fixing the problem or refunding the money already spent, but if you ignore the recall, you're financially liable.

      There has been no word from Verizon that they will prorate service contracts since they are effectively disabling service...that's gotta be some kind of illegal.

      LOL .. have you read the terms of service on a cell phone contract recently?

    32. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You can't just directly compare those numbers. What percentage of dryer vents catch fire every year? And keep in mind the Note 7 hasn't been out for a year, so you need to account for that as well as what percentage of them caught fire. To be really complete, the percentage that catch fire needs to also take into account how many are in the wild at any given point, because two catching fire today is a much higher percentage than two catching fire the day before the recall

    33. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Do you have your clothes dryer vent professionally cleaned every six months? Did you know that, in the US alone, 2,900 home clothes dryer fires are reported each year and cause an estimated 5 deaths, 100 injuries, and $35 million in property loss? By comparison, only 96 credible reports of Note 7 fires exist, causing 13 burns and damaging property 47 times, making the known-defective Note 7 roughly 30 times safer than a non-defective clothes dryer. Are you willing to accept the responsibility in case your clothes dryer results in injuries and death to others? Just to avoid a MINOR inconvenience?

      Oh, I should stop taking my clothes dryer on planes?

    34. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      but man, do I love those Twinkies!

    35. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You think the recall decision was made by engineers in a large company like Samsung? You've seriously got to be kidding me.

    36. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, they should, but they sure as hell better stop accepting payment for services the failed to provide.

    37. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't find the colleague very daft. I can think of quite a few reasons/situations where I would keep the device. I fly quite often, however, so keeping my Note 7 wasn't really an option due to silly policy fueled by paranoia that surrounds the airline industry all under the guise of false security (e.g., TSA, countless other nonsensical restrictions). We don't like objective rational/logical thinking here in 'murica--it's all about feelings and who can project the best story.

    38. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by AndyMoney · · Score: 4, Informative

      A single unit in my condo complex had a major fire due to a faulty fan. The complex was built to code and fire damage was limited to the source unit, and a little to the unit above (vinyl flooring got too hot). However, our WHOLE complex had to move out for 2 months while they repaired all of the smoke damage done to many units in the building. Burning rugs and mattresses release a lot of toxic soot, and firefighters opening the fire proof doors to ensure everyone was out allowed enough smoke to travel and stick to everything.

    39. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Your generation taught them this. "Fuck you I got mine!" was the battlecry of the late 90s and the 2000s.

    40. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, because an uncontrolled lithium fire could never ignite other flammable fuel around it, like curtains, bed sheets, etc.

      You charge your phone on your nightstand like everyone else?

    41. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's fine as long as you keep the vent clean

    42. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by edtice1559 · · Score: 2

      The problem is that his stupid risk will harm and possibly kill others. A free society does not allow reckless endangerment of others.

    43. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by edtice1559 · · Score: 1

      They will give him a comparable, alternate device!

    44. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by edtice1559 · · Score: 1

      I'm pretty sure that his mortgage contract would forbid this. So he should call his bank and ask them to initiate the foreclosure procedure right away before the house burns down.

    45. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by lgw · · Score: 1

      So, what you're saying is: you'd like him to give up liberty so that you can have the illusion of security?

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
    46. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Until he's actually done something that harms anyone and then shirks his accountability then no one has been fucked and your argument is moot.

    47. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It cannot be termed an angel unless the impact site is Cupertino during the work day when it incinerates the entire Apple headquarters and R&D facility with everybody in it.

    48. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My Kim 1 single board computer is somewhat obsolete, but it's fairly valuable as a collector's item. Not worth as much as it's contemporary, an Apple 1.

    49. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by GrandCow · · Score: 2

      Do you think the guy is actually going to call his insurance company and tell them that he has that phone and to please raise his rates?

      --
      "Well kids, you tried your best, and you failed. The lesson is, never try." -Homer Simpson
    50. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is very true. So have you seen any reports regarding fires in the now much smaller sample set? I sure haven't either, and I even actively searched to find incidents.

      In fact, Samsung has had absurd difficulty even replicating the issue to investigate the cause.

    51. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Only if you're completely retarded and can find other completely retarded people who consider a standard off the shelf device with a random design defect "collectors" item.

    52. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Because apartments apparently do not exist...

      Goit.

    53. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by SeaFox · · Score: 1

      The phone is banned from airplanes.

      If he's willing to ignore a recall order from the manufacturer, and proactively block an update that would disable the device he has, how likely do you think he is to heed a sign hanging in an airport?

    54. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I have to wonder, what's the half life on Note 7's before they catch fire and burn? A surviving note 7 might be rare indeed.

    55. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't think you understand how this works. ALL DEVICES CAN EXPLODE THE SAME WAY THAT THE NOTE 7 CAN! It's just that they packed it "slightly more" inside the case. If you smash an iPhone, you'll get the same results. It's as if somehow this dangerous technology called "batteries" was developed unnoticed by regulators and unknown to most as being half as much energy as explosives. (Read wikipedia. MJ/kg.)

    56. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think you misspelled Baby Boomer, they were the "me Generation"

    57. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by LinuxIsGarbage · · Score: 1

      Then the apartment building was not built to code and the engineer should be in jail. Have a look at the Ronan Point explosion to see how this works. The gas company and the company making the gas appliances were not at fault, the engineers were for making an unsafe building.

      The size of fire a phone battery explosion can create should not be able to do more than inconvenience other apartment dewellers into exiting the building for a day. Otherwise we would have entire apartment buildings burning down every time some dumbass forgot to turn off the stove.

      Some low rise (3 level) apartment buildings are made of wood construction. There's enough potential there for a fire in one unit to burn the place down. Everyone should make it out alive, but at great inconvenience.

      I've also seen a 12 story building where a sprinkler line went off on the 12th floor. The residents of that entire wing of that building was removed for 6 months to rebuild after the water damage.

    58. Re:Verizon is going to get in trouble by jeepies · · Score: 1

      Silly policy? A fire on a plane in the air is usually fatal to everyone on board. A Galaxy Note 7 did catch on fire on a plane, but fortunately it was on the ground and they could evacuate. In the air, there's no where to go. That's why they banned them.

    59. Re: Verizon is going to get in trouble by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Before or after the TSA refuses to let him take it through the checkpoint?

  5. no... by bobmajdakjr · · Score: 0

    i am like 110% this is illegal... same reason cell phones that dont even have active plans can still call 911...

    1. Re:no... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      In other words, you didn't read the post at all...
      Calls to 911 are still allowed, all OTHERS will be directed to Veri$on customer service.

    2. Re:no... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Forget the post, did they even read the title??

    3. Re:no... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      hello? 911? verizon is not allowing my phone to make calls, fix it

    4. Re:no... by halivar · · Score: 1

      Then they get a fine, or a visit from the cops. Their problem.

  6. So what's your coworkers angle? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So what's your coworkers angle? Is he planning to use it as an incendiary device? Or keep it as a collector's item?

    1. Re:So what's your coworkers angle? by Actually,+I+do+RTFA · · Score: 1

      As a collector's item, it might eventually be worth something. But probably never more than it is now.

      --
      Your ad here. Ask me how!
    2. Re:So what's your coworkers angle? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Since they are American I assume that there will be a flurry of social media posts and then following a lawsuit.

  7. OMG, WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE! by Kludge · · Score: 1

    OMG! I hope the government and corporations can save us all from the threat that is exploding cell phones!

    Seriously though, we are all going to die. But none of us from a cell phone exploding.

  8. Another opportunity to rape customers - sweet! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    " and it might bill the holdouts for the full retail cost of the phone."
    Which Samsung I'm pretty sure already technically paid them off for.

    Verizon never misses a chance to rape it's customers some more, even if it's probably illegal.

    1. Re:Another opportunity to rape customers - sweet! by danomac · · Score: 1

      " and it might bill the holdouts for the full retail cost of the phone."
      Which Samsung I'm pretty sure already technically paid them off for.

      How can you be so sure? I am thinking based on such actions that Samsung will not reimburse Verizon at all until the phones are retrieved from their customers.

  9. HYPER BOWL much?! by Thud457 · · Score: 1

    protip: thousands < millions
    yeah, I know that wrecks your quote. This is slashdot, where technically correct is the best kind of correct.

    --

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

    1. Re:HYPER BOWL much?! by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      Depends on which part of the world you live.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    2. Re:HYPER BOWL much?! by Jawnn · · Score: 1

      protip: thousands < millions yeah, I know that wrecks your quote. This is slashdot, where technically correct is the best kind of correct.

      What part of "as if" escaped your attention, young padawan? You see, the phrase "as if" implies an hypothetical scenario and should not be confused with a declarative statement like, "Millions of voices dialed out...". I know that wrecks your attempt at pendantry. Maybe you should stick with the blaster.

  10. HA HA HA HA HA! by Zurkeyon3733 · · Score: 1

    This will go over like a pay toilet in a Diarrhea ward! :-D

  11. Yes, but the headline lends itself to misreading by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Calls to 911 are still allowed, all OTHERS will be directed to Veri$on customer service.

    True, but the first time I read the headline I misread it too. It should probably have been worded all calls NOT to 911, rather than "all non-911 calls" which may people's eyes truncate to "all 911 calls." This has less to do with reading comprehension and more to do with how our eyes parse words and sentences while we're reading (and some of the gotchas inherent in the way our visual and post-processing biology works).

  12. They need to do more. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Since most people nowadays phone much on their phones, they really need to route all internet traffic to a page that explains how and why customers should and must stop using the devices. And stop every other function from working they can, and turn on the emergency alert functions to annoy people who still have these devices into NOT using them anymore.

    Or they can send someone out to find them all. These things DO agave radios in them, right?

    1. Re:They need to do more. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or they can send someone out to find them all. These things DO agave radios in them, right?

      Shirley not men in black!

    2. Re: They need to do more. by Zebaulon · · Score: 1

      Don't call me Shirley.

  13. If these phones are dangerous... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Surely there should have been some news lately of explosions.

    1. Re:If these phones are dangerous... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      there have been, and don't call me Shirley.

  14. Re:Yes, but the headline lends itself to misreadin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    True, but the first time I read the headline I misread it too. It should probably have been worded all calls NOT to 911, rather than "all non-911 calls" which may people's eyes truncate to "all 911 calls." This has less to do with reading comprehension

    Actually it has much to do with reading comprehension which is why I didn't misread this, nor any previous title/summary people like you have complained about. It's also about not being so damned careless. The nice advantage text has (compared to the spoken word) is that you can re-read a line if you didn't fully understand it. It's on your screen and it's not going anywhere until you direct it to. It takes much less time and effort than writing posts about your confusion, so "that's too difficult" seems off the table as an excuse.

    People with poor reading comprehension have much in common with people who have terrible listening skills. Neither realizes that what they're failing to do is actually very easy to get right. These are everyday skills you've used all of your life. Neither seems interested in putting even the slightest effort into improvement even when this effort would be trivial. In fact by suggesting that an easy-to-understand sentence should be re-worded to better suit your lack of reading comprehension implies a viewpoint that the rest of the world should be made to suit you, a classic sign of entitlement.

  15. I've altered the deal by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Pray I don't alter it further.

  16. What's the big deal? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Pry open the phone, remove battery, replace with a smaller, non-exploding battery, close up phone, done.

    1. Re:What's the big deal? by halivar · · Score: 1

      You don't understand the problem. The battery isn't too big, it's too thin. The protective sheath between the layers is too easily punctured. And no, you can't replace it with a thicker battery.

  17. Re:Verizon.. who the *&$^ are you.. by wbr1 · · Score: 0

    Whoops, I read this as all 911 calls. Ignore me please!

    --
    Silence is a state of mime.
  18. People at the customer service are bored... by LordHighExecutioner · · Score: 1

    ...because they get no call at all. 911 operators instead are raising complains: due to Verizon decision they are now very busy!

  19. Re:Yes, but the headline lends itself to misreadin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It should probably have been worded all calls NOT to 911, rather than "all non-911 calls" which may people's eyes truncate to "all 911 calls."

    Then you same idiots would have truncated your suggestion to "all calls to 911" and we'd be in the same boat.

    How about you just read things properly

  20. Repeal and replace by OneHundredAndTen · · Score: 1

    With Samsung's forthcoming hot handsets. They will redefine what an explosive device is all about.

  21. Best efforts my ass by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They demanded my phone without offering anything for it, and also said I would have to continue making monthly payments on it. They don't want the damn phones or else they would offer at least a partial refund. They want the phones to burn us because they hate us so much.

    Samsung should offer a damn refund. The idea that we can just have our property taken without compensation is ridiculous. The FTC should do something.

  22. Republicans stand up for your rights! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Those God Damn Liberals forcing us to to turn in our phones. It's our first amendment right to carry the phone of our choice. Stop trying to censor our speech!

    No, it's the the second amendment. Since the phones can explode would this be restricting our right to bare arms.

    1. Re:Republicans stand up for your rights! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nobody has ever said you can't wear a short-sleeved shirt. Many businesses require you to have some kind of shirt on, but they don't care of your arms are bare or not.

    2. Re: Republicans stand up for your rights! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I am going to arm bears. They probably aren't dexterous enough to utilize a handgun, but a nosebump interface can surely be fitted to the trigger mechanism of a bazooka.

  23. Hello 911? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    My Note 7 is on fire!!

  24. Re:Verizon.. who the *&$^ are you.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Whoops, I read this as all 911 calls. Ignore me please!

    I believe the FCC would slap them silly with heavy fines if they even tried redirecting emergency calls..

  25. Your Samsung Product Isn't Really Yours. by Pauldow · · Score: 1

    I learned back with my Galaxy S4 that no one owns any Samsung product. Samsung really retains control. The so-called customer just has a license to use it for a while.
    I wanted to put on a different version of Android, and Samsung's Knox software prevents modifying the bootloader, so I'm stuck with all the Verizon bloatware and limited functions from their stock software, such as no tethering.

    That's why I went with the more open ZTE as my current phone since it's made by the more open Communist Chinese.

    1. Re:Your Samsung Product Isn't Really Yours. by Miamicanes · · Score: 2

      Knox doesn't prevent you from modifying the bootloader... Verizon had Samsung protect the bootloader in ways that are totally independent of Knox.

      Knox will REFUSE TO RUN if the bootloader has ever been modified, but even THAT was a policy decision forced on Samsung by customers (like large banks) who refused to license Knox unless Samsung did their bidding. Knox was ACTUALLY designed with the assumption that the phone would have two bootloaders... an immutable stage-1 bootloader, and a modifiable stage-2 bootloader. The idea was that Knox would refuse to run if the stage 2 bootloader was modified, but users could still root and use the phone without Knox, then later reflash the phone to an approved/stock ROM using the immutable stage-1 bootloader. Since the stage-1 bootloader is immutable, and by design can never be changed, it can always be used to securely reflash the stage-2 bootloader, which can then reflash the rest of the phone.

      It was actually VERIZON that went a step farther & forced Samsung to screw with the stage 1 bootloader to make it harder for end users to get at the stage 2 bootloader. Samsung itself really, truly, genuinely, doesn't give a shit if you reflash the phone to a new ROM. They won't provide tech support for alternate ROMs (some of which are, in fact, quite dysfunctional), but when they get a phone sent in for warranty repairs, the literal FIRST THING THEY DO is connect it to a JTAG programmer, wipe it completely, and reflash it to stock.

      On SOME Samsung phones, there's also a partial loophole... if you can find a way to reflash the stage-2 bootloader to TWRP or Clockworkmod AND ensure that the phone never boots into a ROM with Knox while the bootloader is modified, the "Knox Warranty Bit" will never be touched, and you can later reflash it back to a stock rom with stock stage-2 bootloader & Knox will never know the difference.

      Knox itself is annoying, but not particularly evil(*). Once you get TWRP or Clockworkmod onto the phone and reflash it to a custom ROM, you'll never see or have to deal with Knox ever again. And just for the record, the infamous "Knox Warranty Fuse" isn't a flag that negates the warranty on the phone ITSELF... it only negates the warranty on the phone's future ability to run Knox. So if you install Cyanogen on your Note 4, then later go to work for a company that requires Knox if you want to use company email from your phone, you can't file a warranty claim for a replacement on the grounds that the phone can no longer run Knox... but you most certainly CAN still file warranty claims on things like a defective USB jack, the touchscreen, etc. That's not to say some low-level CSR might not tell you otherwise, but once you escalate it to a higher-level CSR and say the magic phrase "Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act", they'll give in quickly.

      (*)Compared to most mobile device managers used by Enterprise customers, Knox is actually pretty tame... it allows management to blow away the encryption key needed to access company data on the phone if you quit/get fired/etc, but does nothing to screw with other files on the device. Other MDMs are WAY nastier, and give managers the ability to remotely-wipe your ENTIRE PHONE (including YOUR OWN PERSONAL DATA, like photos). Knox isn't *quite* perfect (it limits your ability to access "Secure" data, but does nothing to prevent your company from pushing OTHER apps to your phone that in any other context would be classified as 'malware'), but Knox itself is probably the least-evil MDM out there.

    2. Re:Your Samsung Product Isn't Really Yours. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Bullshit. It's not about Samsung, but the American company offering the plans. Did you buy your phone through an American retailer? Then you certainly don't own it.

  26. Is that constitutional? by damn_registrars · · Score: 1

    This sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to me.

    --
    Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
    1. Re:Is that constitutional? by SeaFox · · Score: 1

      This sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to me.

      I think those people have already proven their masochistic side by signing up for Verizon.

    2. Re:Is that constitutional? by damn_registrars · · Score: 1

      This sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to me.

      I think those people have already proven their masochistic side by signing up for Verizon.

      I'll play devil's advocate on this part and say that I have lived in places where there were dead spots that were only penetrated by Verizon. T-mobile, AT&T, and Sprint all failed where Verizon did not. You pay for that additional coverage, but it is available.

      --
      Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
  27. Heh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apparently they have never heard of changing the battery. Even if it isn't "removeable" it can be removed and changed, problem solved.

  28. Re:Verizon.. who the *&$^ are you.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    and Verizon would slap the FCC in Trump's 'murica.

  29. There is none. by sethstorm · · Score: 1

    Right now, the closest device is a downgrade.

    --
    Twitter supports and protects racists - by smearing their critics with the "Hate Speech" label.
    1. Re:There is none. by edtice1559 · · Score: 1

      The S7 Edge is a pretty good device and it doesn't spontaneously combust!