On Sept. 19, Samsung responded to the news that a Chinese user had claimed that his Galaxy Note 7 had exploded. The Korean smartphone maker said in a statement that the fire was caused by external heating, and that the incident had nothing to do with the phone's battery. The statement has so far been met with doubt on the part of Chinese consumers.

On Sept. 18, a Baidu user "Jiwawani" posted pictures of a burnt Galaxy Note 7 on a discussion board on web portal Baidu, claiming that the phone had exploded. The user said he bought the phone on JD.com, an online shopping platform, and posted pictures of the receipt and original box.

Samsung's recall plan in China has triggered widespread dissatisfaction among Chinese consumers. According to information on the website of China's quality watchdog, Samsung decided to recall 1,858 units of the phone, which were sold through several different channels, including Samsung's own website. However, none of the phones officially sold in China were included in the recall.

Fang Xingdong, dean of the Internet Research Institute of Shantou University, told Global Times that Samsung claims to have used batteries provided by a different supplier in its Galaxy Note 7 phones that were sold in China. As consumer protection laws in China are not as strict as those in the U.S. and Europe, Samsung likely weighed the legal risks against the losses it would sustain in the event of a larger recall when making the decision about its Chinese phones.