Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 gets put on no-fly list in Australia
Swayed by the product recall and other horror stories, three Australian airlines won't let you use the Galaxy Note 7 on board.
Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 is off to a rough start. Not only was the product recalled soon after its release due to battery issues, horror stories about the phones exploding keep grabbing attention. The latest update in the saga comes from Australia after three airlines -- Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia -- banned travelers from using or even charging the Note 7 during flight.
This means the phones are still allowed on board, but you own't be able to use them (presumably, they'll need to be turned off and stowed away). It is unknown whether flight attendants for these airlines are being trained to look out for this specific device, or whether they'll be able to spot the differences between similar models like the Galaxy Note 5 or the Galaxy S7 Edge.
The ban wasn't forced on the airlines by aviation authorities, according to Reuters; instead, the airlines initiated the policy as a precaution.
Notably fried.
Recently, the Note 7 gained bad press Down Under after an Australian man on Reddit reported that his Note 7 exploded in a hotel room while charging overnight. Damages to the hotel room were estimated to be just shy of $1,400.
Samsung said it's sold nearly 2.5 million Note 7 devices in all.
Fear of exploding electronics is common throughout the world. Many airlines ban hoverboards, which kept blowing up. The spontaneous combustion of their batteries draws parallels to the exploding Note 7s.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is still considering its response to the Samsung recall; we may yet see more airlines banning use of the device on flights.
(Via Android Central.)