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Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 is going back on sale

The new Fan Edition hits stores on Friday – but only in South Korea.

Steven Musil Night Editor / News
Steven Musil is the night news editor at CNET News. He's been hooked on tech since learning BASIC in the late '70s. When not cleaning up after his daughter and son, Steven can be found pedaling around the San Francisco Bay Area. Before joining CNET in 2000, Steven spent 10 years at various Bay Area newspapers.
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The Galaxy Note 7 is returning to market as the Note 7 Fan Edition.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Samsung 's infamous Galaxy Note 7 is making a comeback.

A refurbished version of the handset, which previously had a tendency to catch fire, will return to market on Friday as the Galaxy Note 7 Fan Edition, the electronics giant said Sunday. But the phones , which will use batteries different from those that caused fires last year, will be available only in South Korea. The phone will cost 699,600 won, which roughly converts to $610, £470 and AU$795.

Samsung recalled roughly 3 million Note 7 phones after numerous units caught fire, leaving Samsung with the predicament of what to do with all those returned phones. Samsung had said it would recycle returned Note 7 phones in an "environmentally friendly way" and mentioned the possibility of turning the devices into "refurbished phones or rentals phones."

Selling refurbished phones would be one way Samsung could help soften the financial loss from the Note 7 recall.

Samsung said in March it was considering selling refurbished Galaxy Note 7 devices in select markets. The company has said the phones would undergo Samsung's new 8-point safety check.

Watch this: Explaining the Note 7's battery flaws (with cake)

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