The fiasco surrounding the exploding Samsung Note 7 devices sent shock waves through the wireless industry, prompting it to revamp its safety standards. However, one company remains adamant that it does not need to make any changes.
While the disaster surrounding the Note 7 prompted Samsung to issue recalls of the device and launch a thorough overhaul of its product safety check, Motorola maintains that no such overhaul was necessary for its batteries.
No Changes For Motorola
After news broke of the faulty batteries in the Note 7, Samsung completely revamped its safety standards and released its revised eight-point check to the industry. However, Motorola was apparently unimpressed.
When asked whether his company changed its own policies as a result of the Note 7 incident, Motorola engineer Russ Gyenes replied, "absolutely not."
In fact, Gyenes went so far as to say that Motorola would have caught the Note 7 battery flaw long before the phone was produced, because the company examines batteries in the pre-production phase to ensure safety. Additionally, it has a 118-item checklist that battery manufacturers must pass. If they get a single question wrong then they must start over.
Gyenes was also asked about Samsung's eight-point battery check. He said that he had seen it: "Why weren't they doing it before?"
Gyenes' statements are certainly big ones, but Motorola is well-positioned to make them. The company has been working with cell phone batteries since the invention of the first cell phone and has testified on battery-related matters in the past.
In terms of Samsung's new checklist, Gyenes said that he believes it was more of a marketing gimmick than anything. However, the company was willing to share its process with the wider industry, which is rare in the tech world.
Samsung has also said that its new checklist was meant to represent a broader approach to consumer safety.
"The eight-point battery process reflects what we learned from the Note 7, but it represents an overall improvement in our quality assurance," said a Samsung representative.
Selling Safety
Despite once being a prominent player in the smartphone industry, Motorola has fallen on hard times in recent years though it has been mounting a comeback. The news surrounding the Note 7 has given the company an opportunity to talk about the importance of safety, though Gyenes says he has been stressing it for years.
"I've been behind the scenes for years asking why can't we sell safety," he said.
