Samsung Killing Off Unreturned Galaxy Note 7 Radio, Mobile Network Connections In Canada

Samsung has already discontinued its phablet flagship, the Galaxy Note 7, but there are still owners in Canada who are keeping their smartphone to themselves. These devices that were not surrendered continue to be a threat to many, so Samsung is left with no other choice than to roll out feature-limiting updates in the country.

Starting next week, Samsung Galaxy Note 7 handsets in Canada are going to be mostly useless. The South Korea tech giant has decided that it will roll out updates to the region, and these updates will disable the cellular, WiFi and Bluetooth radios of the handset. Informing owners via a press release, Samsung explained that it has been in constant communication with owners of the recalled device through notifications, and it will continue to do so until the changes are implemented.

For the radio, WiFi and Bluetooth functions of the device, Samsung is launching an earlier update on Dec. 12. This update will disable all three on top of limiting the charging capacity of the battery. Almost 90 percent of Note 7 phones sold in Canada have already been returned, so these changes are expected to affect the remaining 10 percent.

Network deactivation will take effect on Dec. 15, 2016, so users will no longer be able to connect their defective smartphone to any mobile network carrier. This means the phones will no longer be capable of making calls, sending text messages and using data. Despite these changes, owners can still use the Note 7 to dial 911 in case of emergency, as per GSM Arena.

Samsung is implementing the same changes to unreturned handsets in Australia and New Zealand in hopes of retrieving the remaining models out in the wild. According to 9To5Google, with these drastic changes, customers will be included to finally surrender their smartphones that are going to be comparable with paperweights once the updates are installed.