These are Samsung’s 4 biggest quality control issues this past decade

C. Scott Brown / Android Authority

Samsung has made tech news headlines for all the wrong reasons in the last few days as it paused shipments of its new Galaxy Buds 3 Pro earbuds while investigating quality control issues. Unfortunately for the Korean brand, this isn’t the first time it has had issues like these. Cough, Note 7, cough.

So, with that in mind, we’re ranking the most notable Samsung phone and accessory quality control issues from best to worst. Or from bad to worst. Whatever. You know what I mean.

4. Samsung Galaxy Note 5 S Pen slot

2015’s Galaxy Note 5 was the first Galaxy Note without a headphone jack, and it lacked microSD card support, too. But at least the line’s trademark S Pen slot was still available. Unfortunately, there was one massive problem with this it.

Galaxy Note 5 owners could get their S Pen stuck in the stylus slot if they inserted the stylus backward. This could also result in broken pen detection functionality. So even if you got your S Pen out of the slot or got a second one, you’d still have some problems using it on the Note 5.

The S Pen getting stuck in the Galaxy Note 5's stylus slot isn't the worst quality issue, but it's still a notable oversight on Samsung's part.

“Just don’t insert the S Pen into the slot backward, then,” I hear you say. But this is a real risk for people with young kids or those who didn’t know about this issue in the first place. That’s a pretty big problem in general, too, as the whole point of the Galaxy Note line in the first place was the ability to use the stylus. You had one job, Samsung.

3. Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro torn eartips

Ryan Haines / Android Authority

The most recent Samsung quality assurance issue isn’t the worst case on the list, but it’s still quite bad. Customers who received their wireless earbuds ahead of schedule quickly reported that the ear tips were being torn from the buds when trying to replace them.

This wasn’t the only apparent issue, as there were also reports of differing heights between the earbuds, earbud seams that weren’t flush, and slightly damaged LED lights. However, torn ear tips were mostly the biggest issue experienced by affected users.

It’s no wonder Samsung decided to suspend shipments to retail partners ahead of the July 24 release date to conduct a “full quality control evaluation.” We’re glad the company took this step, but it’s still a disappointing state of affairs overall, especially for those who pre-ordered the Buds 3 Pro and were hoping to get them soon.

2. The original Samsung Galaxy Fold

Samsung initially planned to release its first foldable phone in April 2019, but YouTube reviewers and tech journalists quickly discovered that the device was defective. More specifically, reviewers reported bumps and bulges under the folding screen as well as flickering or black displays. This suggested that debris was getting into the hinge, damaging internal components and the screen. Some reviewers also damaged their displays by removing the pre-applied screen protector, but Samsung didn’t warn users that this shouldn’t be peeled off in the first place.

The first Galaxy Fold saw a last-minute delay after reviewers encountered serious display and hinge problems.

This whole saga resulted in Samsung delaying the launch to September 2019, while it took numerous steps to address the issues. These measures included reinforcing the display, tweaking the screen protector, narrowing the gap between the hinge and display, caps on the top and bottom of the hinge, and making several improvements to protect against “external particles.” The packaging also warned users not to remove the screen protector in the first place.

This was undoubtedly a big fail on Samsung’s part, especially in light of the ~$2,000 price tag. If there’s any mitigating factor, though, it’s that this was the company’s first foldable phone, and the form factor was still very new and fresh. Problems were expected, even if their extent wasn’t very forgiveable.

1. Samsung Galaxy Note 7 goes 🔥

The Galaxy Fold may have been a disaster upon its initial launch, but at least it didn’t blow up. That honor goes to the 2016 Galaxy Note 7, which is easily Samsung’s worst quality control issue over the company’s entire mobile history and is also in the running for the worst tech fail of all time.

Some Galaxy Note 7 units caught fire in the days and weeks after launch, causing bodily harm and/or property damage in several instances. The news spread out very quickly, not just in tech circles, causing airplanes to ban the Note 7. Samsung recalled all units, tracing the problem to defective batteries from two suppliers. It even went so far as to issue updates to effectively brick any remaining phones on the market.