Samsung Galaxy S III exploding case solved, could have been microwaved

The explosion of a Samsung Galaxy S III had exploded belonging by an Irish made news across tech circles late last month, prompting Samsung to look into the matter. The resulting investigations reveal that an external energy source was the cause for the explosion of the device, which appeared to have heat-related damage. Samsung contracted Fire Investigations UK (FIUK), an independent third-party organization, to determine the exact cause of the damage inflicted on a GALAXY S III unit, which had allegedly been affected by heat. The damaged device and additional accessories were examined and exposed to a series to tests. The investigation summary states “the energy source responsible for generating the heat has been determined as external to the device” and “the device was not responsible for the cause of the fire.” Additionally, the investigation results state, "The only way it was possible to produce damage similar to the damage recorded within the owner's damaged device was to place the devices or component parts within a domestic microwave."

The owner of the has admitted that he was responsible for the damage. The user's post on Boards.ie reads, “I would like to retract my original statement. The damage to the phone was caused by another person, although they were attempting to recover the phone from water this later caused the damage shown on the phone. It occurred due to a large amount of external energy and there was no fault with the phone. This was not a deliberate act but a stupid mistake. I am unable to comment any further.”

This is in contradiction to his earlier comment where he grieved about how an over heating issue caused his new smartphone to burn up from the inside. He stated that the S III was placed in a car mount and then suddenly the smartphone burst into white flames, with sparks and a bang. Explaining the situation, he had stated, “I pulled in to look at my phone, the phone burned from the inside out. Burned through the plastic and melted my case to my phone. The phone kept working but without any signal. I brought it to the carphone warehouse and they told me that they couldn’t replace it for me that they had to send it off to be checked out first. No even replacement phone, left with nothing. The phone was destroyed and it slightly burned a piece of plastic on the inside of my car.” Later on, Samsung contacted him and provided him with a replacement Galaxy S III and told him that they would send him some free stuff as well. However, the brand did not confirm if it was a fault of the smartphone.

Well, as can be seen, Samsung didn’t leave it at that and their investigation has definitely saved them the blushes. Samsung’s entire statement can be read here.