Samsung halts sales of Note 7, tells customers ‘switch-off’

SEOUL: Samsung on Tuesday halted worldwide sales and exchanges of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone and told customers to stop using the device, following reports that replacements for combustible models were also catching fire.

The latest effort to contain a snowballing safety crisis that threatens to derail the powerhouse global brand came as the federal US consumer regulator issued an alarming warning of the possible dangers the Note 7 posed to its owners, their families and homes.