Australian retailers are pulling a new Samsung smartphone off shelves temporarily as there are reports the some phones with faulty batteries have exploded.
Vodaphone, Telstra and Optus have paused the sale of the recently released large-screen smartphone Galaxy Note 7 as photos emerge of the exploded phones.
The are reports Optus and electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi have also paused sales, and The Huffington Post Australia has sought comment from both outlets.
Samsung Electronics may announce a global recall of the recently released large-screen smartphone and confirmed a thorough inspection with their partners is currently underway.
There have been no reports of phones exploding in Australia.
A spokesman from Telstra confirmed the phones had been temporarily pulled, and existing owners would be contacted if the telco learned of an issue affecting their phone.
"We are talking to Samsung to understand more about the reports and as a precaution we have paused Galaxy Note 7 sales," the spokesman told The Huffington Post Australia.
Vodaphone confirmed there had not been any reports of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone exploding in the country, after the phone was released in Australia on August 19.
An Optus spokewoman told The Huffington Post Australia the phone had disappeared from shelves on Friday in light of the investigation.
"Optus has made a decision to temporarily pause sales of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 pending the completion of an investigation by Samsung," the spokeswoman said.
Electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi also reportedly pulled the smartphone from shelves on Friday. The Huffington Post Australia has reached out for comment.
The possible recall comes a week before Apple is set to release its new iPhone models.
In a statement released on Friday, Samsung said: "In response to questions on Galaxy Note7, we are conducting a thorough inspection with our partners. We will share the findings as soon as possible."
The Korean company had not released the phone in the United States yet, but the new model is available in Canada and South Korea.
Meanwhile, tweeters are having a field day with the news: