T-Mobile begins issuing its Note 7-killing update

T-Mobile has begun administering the drug (opens in new tab) that will prove fatal to the twice-recalled Note 7, an update that will eventually roll out to all remaining units (some 100,000) in the U.S. The update, which will be required, adds a persistent notification to the Note 7. It also prevents it from being charged, and limits its connectivity to the network. In other words, the update kills the Note 7.

AT&T, Sprint and, reluctantly, Verizon, have all agreed to begin issuing the same update starting January 5. The build number is N930TUVU2APL2 and, of course, it's not Nougat. Come on, people.

More: Galaxy Note 7 recall, fires and dumpsters

Daniel Bader

Daniel Bader was a former Android Central Editor-in-Chief and Executive Editor for iMore and Windows Central. 

81 Comments
  • So can the user still just ignore the update?
  • I was wondering that as well. Like if you just long press that notification and then tell the system to block all future notifications for that app/service you should be able to just ignore it indefinitely, right?
  • Or just disable packages associated with Samsung's Push updates which pretty much whoever that is still holding on to their note 7 has done by now anyways so there is nothing "fatal" about this.
  • This ^
  • Or just return the damn phone
  • Exactly
  • What's the point in keeping it? If morons continue to use it... Next step is, carriers ban the imei.
  • Lawsuit lottery. Same people who would "accidentally" spill coffee on their lap and sue McDonalds for serving it hot.
  • There is a workaround for that also. 😊
  • Exactly
  • It stops the phone from being able to charge, so sure you can just ignore the notification for 10 hours until your phone is dead and no longer usable...
  • The notification stops from charging the phone? How is that possible? That's wierd.
  • The update does, not the notification
  • But, it doesn't stop it from running off of AC. So, you could leave it plugged in indefinitely without a battery. I mean, it could be a nice looking remote control or something. Cutting down on EWaste.
  • Why is ANYONE still using this? It's ridiculous that anyone would still even have this device anymore. How dense can people possibly be?
  • Check back on this post in a few hours. You'll see some pretty remarkable mental gymnastics in defense of their choice to keep using the device.
  • Lol, spot on
  • Hahahahah exactly
  • The famous saying is......"you can't fix stupid". That's why people will still try to use the note 7.
  • Here's one for you. The danger posed to you by someone with Note 7 is less than the odds that the person behind you is a psychopath intending to do you harm... Keep your perspective, and watch your six
  • It's only ridiculous that people worry about someone with a note 7. Get a phone of your choosing and live life.
  • Good. I can't wait until the selfish idiots that are still holding onto this phone can no longer use it and pose a danger to the rest of us.
  • I so badly wanted to just keep mine. But as soon as the recall became mandatory (before the FAA ban even began), I turned mine in. Got a LG V10 as a loner and now a LG V20. Assuming it does not boot loop, Sammy is going to have to work hard to get my business again. I understand wanting to keep your Note 7, but people come on, you safety and mine are too important, do the right thing, send it back in! If it burns your house down (or worse injures people), I doubt your homeowners insurance will be responsible.
  • Curious, I know the V10 had a boot loop problem, why do some assume (not you) the V20 might? I have not heard it happening, maybe I'm wrong.
  • LG phones are notorious for bootloops.
  • I used to work in a phone Store and sold lots of lg devices over the years . Never actually seen the bootlooping issue, I have owned many lg devices as well ... not my manufacturer of choice but still. What exactly causes such issues? I am currently using a lg g5 that I use beside my BlackBerry Passport. No issues yet..
  • I used to be a device technician, LG units were in everyday for this issue. Multiples per day.
  • And boot loops wont burn down houses, cars, etc...what the point of bringing an LG bootloop issue into the thread of the fireball note 7.
  • Because it wasn't just the V10. The G4 had a huge problem with bootloops, and the G5 had the same problem, although to a lesser extent. If the last three flagships that a company released had an identical issue, it's fair to assume that their current one might as well.
  • It wasn't just the V10... People are allowed to be skeptical at this point.
  • My G4 had the boot loop, then the 2 replacements had the boot loop.. thats when I decided to leave LG for good. Hope you have better luck. I loved having my LG phone but giving it a 4th shot after they "fixed" the issue wasn't happening.. and I kept hearing rumors about the v10 and v20 having occasional boot loops too.. god speed with LG
  • I've been fortunate to never have a boot loop. My G4 is a little finicky with the touchscreen, but no boot loops.
  • That touchscreen issue is exactly why I sold mine.
  • sammy wont have to work hard for my business. I will, however, wait a couple weeks to purchase to make sure no one reports explosions but i would expect the s8 (note) maybe to be an exceptional phone. even if just a reskineds note 7
  • I hope people are turning in all those hondas and Acuras with Tecate air bags. Lol
  • I still have mine and blocked all future updates , Samsung has to try harder
  • Aren't you a badass now? It's people like you that I can't stand. I hope your phone blows up in your pocket. It'll serve you right.
  • Hopefully he's standing next to you when it does.
  • Maybe he'll be standing next to you. Then we'll see who wants to be an idiot and keep his phone.
  • Good job.
  • Hope it doesn't blow up in your face.
  • I hope it does blow up in your face lmao. Hope it explodes while you're sitting there playing flappy bird or pokemon go or some dumb mobile game.
  • Your phone is going to automatically push the update to your phone regardless of if you disable the updates or not. Might not be today or tomorrow, only a matter of time.
  • no it's isn't..don't spread lies. people know these phones by now better than you think..
  • For all intent and purposes, this is really a carrier based virus!
    Necessary? Probably.
    Still, wish there was a quick and painless way to get people off of this safety hazard phone and get them a new stable one.
  • You would definitely think it was fair if you were say on a flight sitting next to a note user about to charge their phone.
  • All phones carry the same possiblity of this happening
  • Mental gymnastics, see above.
  • ^ you're right. People don't realize how dangerous this phone is. Return the phone.
  • In the name of- WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU????????
  • My reaction was https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCdp3YktVIg&t=24m18s
  • and yet all phones don't have this happen enough to be recalled.. there is a reason it was recalled...
  • It is possible on all phones, but it is tens or even hundreds of times more likely on the Note 7 than on anything else.
  • You must have failed math, huh?
    All phones carry a slight chance of exploding due to their lithium ion batteries = YES.
    However all phones do not explode at the same rate as Note 7's because they were not built with a defective design, hence the change is much lower with a phone that has not been proven to have a defective design.
  • No, dummy, this one increases that risk significantly.
  • I'm wondering if Samsung / Google can stop all services running to the phone so it can still call and text. Dumb phone so to speak. Wish Shen Ye could comment after the science articles he did on batteries, but I think is with HTC now?
  • They should just blacklist all the imei numbers, get everyone at once whether they accept the update or not
  • https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dvmKLq9QsqI
  • You can block an update for only a certain period of time. After that, it will automatically update. Even if you shut off your devuce. The second you reboot, it'll continue to update. With something this dangerous that puts everyone at risk, samsung should have told note7 holdouts to return the device by a certain date, then blow them up like the self destructing tape in mission impossible. How absolutely stupid some people are.
  • Are people going to lose the chance to transfer their information if this update hits first? If so, that's not good news for me and all the other cells phone reps and techs in the world. As a technical consultant for a major cell phone company. The heat I got for the two recalls was astronomical. I'm scared :(
  • Well, with all due respect, the holdouts only have themselves to blame for their problem. You knew we all had the better part of what, THREE MONTHS, to dispose of the Note Nuke and get a "safe" phone. If they lose all their data, it's their fault. If you get the flak for it, ask them "Where the f--- have you been for three months? You knew that phone was being recalled, why'd you still use it?"
  • Believe me, I know very well that's it's the customer's responsibility and I'd love to tell them off without losing my job, but I probably would, so... Anyway, there's one big difference between you and I and the absent minded customer. We're actually rational human beings that are accountable for our own actions. Customers expect the world and everything in-between. No one knows their passwords, no one knows how to back anything up, and everyone passes the blame on to the rep or tech. It's the most important tool in life to these people, but they don't take the time to learn how to use it. Then it's my fault when everything is lost. Sorry, I might be digressing a little during my rant. Point being, somehow, someway, I will be blamed for this if they lose the ability to transfer their information after the update. Overall I do like my job, don't get me wrong. Gotta take the good with the bad.
  • As someone else who works at a carrier store and does phone repair, I too have to deal with customers that know nothing and expect us to work like magic to get their stuff back. I feel your pain.
  • They can have their Note 7's when they pry them from their hot, charred hands.
  • It's horrible that all these stupid people keep using devises that actually kill 45,000 people every year in the U.S. alone. Totally risky devises these "automobiles." Don't let actual facts about 200+ problem phones out of 2.5 million get in the way of your ignorance.
  • What an idiotic statement. Changing your car for another car does not change the likelihood of an accident. Changing the N7 for a different phone DOES lower the chance of fire. This is trying to justify an immature decision with faulty logic. (Try "devices" as opposed to "devises", btw)
  • Can't believe people are still holding on to those phones
  • Maybe these people procrastinating are actually trying to have the phone blow up on themselves so that they can try to suck money from Samsung lmao
  • And won't they be surprised when Samsung successfully argues that, by deliberately blocking this update, these idiots have accepted all liability for any damage or injury caused by the phone when it explodes?
  • Moreover, won't they be shocked when their insurance company refuses to cover their burned down house due to an electrical fire by saying that they kept a recalled electronic device plugged in? Whether or not the note 7 caused the fire, the insurance co will still claim that COULD have, and exclude the damages.
  • Not nearly as shocked as they'll be when they get sued by someone who has their property destroyed or, worse yet, is injured as a result of their phone starting a fire. And God forbid someone dies in said fire. Can you say "negligent homicide"? Yep, I knew you could. Look folks, if you're hell-bent on keeping this phone, you might want to consult with an attorney first. Whether or not you think the phone is safe, Samsung, the CPSC, the FAA, and many other government agencies in countries around the world think it isn't. Even if you think you're smarter than all of them, or you think the odds are stacked in your favor, you're still exposing yourself to some amount of legal liability. You at least owe it to yourself to find out how much.
  • People buy phones on the condition that they are in full control of the product they paid for. No one ever signed a document agreeing that your property that you now own, is backdoor controlled by the producing entity. No one should be forced to return a recalled item (under this kind of medium-low danger grade) nor have it locked down or have it interfered with remotely. Having said that, anyone acting on their right to keep their Note7 should treat it *like* a firearm/poisonous fluid bottle and not remove it from their house- unless it's in the safe/safe container you should be keeping it in already (and obviously not take it into any place of business or other location that would not welcome it). Keep it as a collectible item sure, but it's too dangerous to use for the purpose designed.
  • Medium low danger grade my ass. Medium low in this case would be the likely hood that it heats up enough to burn you at the touch, not exploding in a ball of harmful potentially dangerous chemical fire. But hey, that's the only opinion that matters right? SMDH
  • The phone itself may be your physical property, but the software that makes it run is owned by Samsung, Google, and Qualcomm. You agree to the licensing when you power up the phone the first time. One of the things in that license is their right to terminate your license to use the software.
  • All BMW X5 are on recall due to crimp wiring at the fuel pump and an airbag recall, but the replacement parts won't be available for months. Yet, BMW X5s are still on sale, and you only have to sign that you are aware of the issue to be granted the sale of a fatally unsafe car. http://www.autoblog.com/amp/2016/10/30/bmw-recall-5-series-x5-x6-fuel-leak http://www.bmwblog.com/2016/09/30/bmw-issues-recall-new-takata-air-bag-p... http://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/cbs-news-undercover-investigation-used-c... So, yeah let's blow this Note 7 recall out of proportion that has had 0 deaths and a .0001% probability of it happening. Phones explode all the time, but Samsung was just unlucky that one actually exploded on a plane before take off and had to react for public image. To this date, Samsung has not been able to reproduce the issue in their lab which indicates that they had a higher than usual manufacturing defect rate rather than an inherit design flaw on the phone.
  • "Phones explode ALL THE TIME (emphasis mine)".
    This statement is an outright lie OR you do not know what "all the time" means. I have seen many phones not in the act of exploding. CORRECTION: ALL phones I have witnessed have been in a non-exploding state. Seriously, BMW may choose to continue to sell, but Samsung has NOT. Plus, Samsung has gone to great lengths to get the phone returned to them. This is a distinction that should be heeded.
  • Even though I returned mine twice I totally agree with this comment. Some of the people posting on here are ridicilous. Talk about blowing it out of proportion! ;) Posted from my unlocked S7 Active/ Jet black iPhone 7+/ peerless Note 4/ or iPad Pro 12.9
  • All this just makes me wonder.
    I wonder what is so special about this particular device that they would be so stubborn about holding onto it, risking fire, risking a crippled device, losing out on $800+, risking being booted off a flight. I wonder if they really care about a phone so much that they would ignore recalls, public shaming, and safety hazards to themselves and others.
    You can't claim ignorance and you can't claim that this device is so singularly critical to your daily life. So really...what ARE you trying to prove?
  • I think a lot of it can be chalked up to sheer stubbornness. Nothing more.
  • I just came here for the anguish, and the indignant rage.
  • nothing will happen after this last update..it's no longer worth the chase for carriers. Even if they blacklist the imeis, that can be corrected.