Samsung to Sell Refurbished Note 7 Smartphone

Samsung Electronics said Sunday it will start selling refurbished versions of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone this week in South Korea.


The Note 7 was recalled last year because its batteries would overheat and catch fire. The refurbished versions will use different batteries.


The new Galaxy Note FE phone, built with unused components of the Note 7, will cost $611, a significant drop in price from the Note 7's price tag of nearly $1,000.


Samsung recalled the Note 7 less than a month after its launch when reports of the phone's batteries catching fire emerged.


The company released another Note 7 with replaced batteries, but those batteries also overheated and Samsung discontinued the Note 7.


Earlier this year, the tech giant released the results of an investigation that determined the phone fires were the result of flaws in the design and production of batteries supplied by two battery makers.


Close to 3 million Note 7s were returned to Samsung, prompting environmental groups to urge the South Korean company to reuse the electronics parts of the Note 7 to reduce waste.


"The latest launch of the Galaxy Note FE ... has a significant meaning as an environment-friendly project that minimized the waste of resources," Samsung said in a statement.


Samsung said it has not decided if it will sell the Note FE internationally.