Samsung is probably the only Android OEM known for offering longer software support. The recent devices from the company are not only confirmed to get at least four years of security patches but some of them are even guaranteed to receive three years of Android updates. But unfortunately, the new policy is not applicable to some very old handsets. Samsung cuts off the software support of two such phones.

According to a report by SamMobile, Samsung has ended software support for Galaxy Note Fan Edition and Galaxy S Light Luxury. These two devices are no longer listed on Samsung’s Security Updates Scope page. At the same time, the Galaxy Note9 has been now dropped to quarterly updates instead of monthly.

The Galaxy Note FE was the first-ever ‘Fan Edition’ device from Samsung. It was nothing but a refurbished Galaxy Note7 with a safer and smaller battery. The handset was released a month ahead of the launch of the Galaxy Note8 in 2017.

It debuted with Android 7.1.1 Nougat and was updated up to One UI based on Android 9.0 Pie. Being an older flagship from Samsung, it only received two OS updates but four years of security updates.

On the other hand, the Galaxy S Light Luxury (aka Galaxy S8 Lite) was a China-exclusive smartphone. It was a toned-down version of the  Galaxy S8. This phone was released in 2018 with Android 8.0 Oreo. It also got two OS updates up to Android 10-based One UI 2.x but only three years of security updates.

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Samsung had relaunched the refurbished edition of the Galaxy Note 7 as Galaxy Note Fan Edition in the first week of July. The smartphone was exclusively available for purchase in the home country of South Korea. Fresh information suggest that the Galaxy Note FE units are completely sold out and the South Korean company has no plans to replenish its stocks.

Reports had revealed that Samsung had released only 400,000 units of the Galaxy Note FE in South Korea. The Note FE was sold around $265 cheaper than the original Galaxy Note 7 phablet that was discontinued because of its battery related issues. It was sold for $620 in South Korea.

In order to ensure that the Note FE does not meet the same fate as the Note 7, Samsung added a smaller battery of 3,200mAh capacity instead of the original 3,500mAh battery. The rest of the specs of the Note FE were same as the original Note 7. The company had also included Bixby AI on the Note FE.

Samsung had timed the launch and sales of the Galaxy Note FE in such a way that its stocks would get sold out before the arrival of the Galaxy Note 8 flagship smartphone. The pre-orders of Note 8 are already going on in the home turf and it is expected to be available in the market from Sept. 15. Even though Samsung is unlikely to sell the Note FE again in the home country, it is reviewing overseas releases.

Samsung’s mobile chief, DJ Koh had recently told the media that he did not want to cover the mistake that was committed by the company. After thoroughly investigating the issue, Samsung was able to find the fix for the issue. For 100 days, the company had tested 200,000 phones and 30,000 batteries. It was found that the Galaxy Note 7 explosions were caused by its batteries. He added that the Galaxy Note Fan Edition was launched not to make money, but to prove that the recall decision was carried out because of the batteries and not due to other defects.

Read More: Galaxy Note 8 Awarded with A+ Grade for the Most Innovative & High-Performance Smartphone Display

As far as Samsung Galaxy Note 8, the company is quite sure users will not encounter battery related risks. The Galaxy Note 8 that features a huge display of 6.3-inch has a larger and wider chassis than the Note FE (or Note 7). Also, it features a smaller battery of 3,300mAh capacity. Koh also said that despite the fact that the Note 8 features a smaller battery, it can deliver better battery performance because of the power-efficient chipset present inside it.

(source 1, 2)

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Samsung Galaxy Note Fan Edition is the refurbished units of the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 that is best known as the “exploding flagship”. The new Galaxy Note Fan Edition was launched in South Korea about two weeks back and is tipped to go on sale in other regions soon. Before the Galaxy Note FE hits your region, we have got the teardown for the device revealing the internals.

The Samsung Galaxy Note Fan Edition teardown comes to us courtesy of the guys at IFIXIT and it gives us the opportunity to compare the Note 7 with the Note FE. As we already know, the Galaxy Note FE comes with exactly the same design as the botched Note 7. The internals also looks alike except for some changes. The battery obviously is one of the things that were changed on the new Galaxy Note FE. The new battery is labelled with a June 20, 2017 manufacture date and weighs about 2.3g lesser than the Note 7’s. The battery is also a non-removable one.

Read More: Samsung Galaxy Note FE Global Launch May Happen this Month

Also, the teardown reveals that the Note Fan Edition uses an Octa-core chipset instead of a quad-core model. This effectively casts doubt over the presence of a Snapdragon 820/821 processor on board because both chips are quad-core chips. Since this is the Korean model, it is possible this is an Exynos-powered model 2hile the SNapdragon version will hit the global market. Apart from these few things, the Galaxy Note Fan Edition and Galaxy Note 7 seems to be the same device in design and the internals. Check out the teardown photos from below.

(source)

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Samsung had begun the sales of Galaxy Note Fan Edition (refurbish Galaxy Note 7) in the home country of South Korea on July 7. Since the phablet has received amazing reception, reports are claiming that the Galaxy Note FE will be debut in other regions later this month.

The South Korean company had previously confirmed that it will be only selling 400,000 units of Galaxy Note FE in South Korea. Information coming from local carriers have revealed that the number of mobile subscribers have reached 24,000 since July 7. Before the Galaxy Note FE’s release, the average rate of daily device activations was 15,000. The 60 percent spike indicates that the Galaxy Note FE is selling well in South Korea. The telecom operators are silent on the number of Galaxy Note 7 units that have been sold so far.

Black Onyx and Blue Coral color variants of the Galaxy Note FE are quite popular compared to other options such as Gold Titanium and Silver Platinum. An official from the South Korean company had said that the limited edition Galaxy Note FE’s stock will not be replenished once it gets sold out.

Read More: Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017) Chinese Edition Showing Its Dual Rear Cameras Surfaces in Leaked Photos

An insider has confirmed to The Investor that the Samsung may debut the Galaxy Note FE in other markets by the end of this month. However, he has not revealed which markets will be receiving the Note FE. It appears that the Note FE would be made available in limited markets.

Just like the South Korean Galaxy Note FE, the international edition is expected to be priced considerably less than the discontinued Galaxy Note 7 and it is expected to feature 3,200 mAh battery, Android Nougat OS, and partial support for Bixby AI. Rumors claim that the international edition of Note FE will be driven by Snapdragon 821 chipset instead of the Snapdragon 820 that came with the Galaxy Note 7. The Galaxy Note FE is selling for KRW 699,000 (~$608) in South Korea.

The Galaxy Note FE is made from recalled Galaxy Note 7 units. However, Samsung will not be refurbishing all the Galaxy Note 7 units as some of them will be recycled or used for internal testing purposes. Samsung is expected to unleash the Galaxy Note 8 by the end of August and make it available for buying at some point in September.

(source|via)

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Samsung has finally relaunched the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 as the Galaxy Note FE (Fan Edition) in South Korea. As the rumor mill had revealed, the Galaxy Note FE has similar specs as the original Note 7, but it sports the user interface of Galaxy S8 along with the Bixby AI.

LG Uplus is already receiving pre-orders of the Galaxy Note FE with a pricing of 700,000 KRW (~$611). The South Korean company will be selling only limited units of Galaxy Note FE. Samsung will be selling only 400,000 units in the home country. There is still no information on the availability of Galaxy Note FE in other markets.

In South Korea, the phablet is available in four colors like Black Onyx, Blue Coral, Gold Platinum and Silver Titanium. The original Note 7 was also made available in same color options. With every order of Note FE, Samsung is also providing a cover case that matches with the color of the handset. It features a distinctive logo of Samsung Galaxy Note Fan Edition on its rear panel.

Is Galaxy Note FE Safe to Use?

Samsung states that the Galaxy Note FE is made from unused Galaxy Note 7 and unused components. Because of the faulty battery issue that caused the Note FE to explode, Samsung recalled 3 million units of the phablet and met with big financial loss. Since disposing so many Note 7 units could lead to environmental hazard, Samsung decided on selling refurbished Galaxy Note 7 which could also help in softening its financial loss.

In January, after investigating on multiple instances of Galaxy Note 7 explosions, Samsung confirmed that the faulty battery was the cause of the problem. Hence, it laid down an 8-point safety check procedure to ensure that the battery used in its phone is completely safe. The original Galaxy Note 7 came with 3,500mAh battery, but the newly launched Galaxy Note FE has a reduced battery of 3,200mAh capacity.

Read More: Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Coming in 64 GB, 128 GB Storages; Would be the Most Expensive Galaxy Note

Samsung Galaxy Note FE Specifications

The Galaxy Note FE comes with a 5.7-inch S-AMOLED screen that produces a QHD resolution of 2,560 x 1,440 pixels. It is driven by Snapdragon 821 chipset that includes a quad-core CPU and Adreno 530 graphics. The SoC is coupled with 4 GB of RAM and a native storage of 64 GB.

It sports a IP68 certified chassis that features that is fitted with security features like front-mounted fingerprint scanner and an iris scanner. It also comes with an S-Pen. It sports the same software that is available on the Galaxy S8 which includes features like “Always On” function and Bixby AI without a dedicated button for it. It includes a 3,200mAh battery.

(source)

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