YouTuber says Samsung phone batteries are prematurely swelling – ENGRMKS & CO

Samsung suffered from a major PR disaster back in 2016 when it emerged that Galaxy Note 7 devices were blowing up due to defective batteries. The company has generally steered clear of battery issues since then, but a prominent YouTuber may have uncovered more battery concerns.

Arun Maini, aka Mrwhosetheboss, discovered that several of his Samsung phones have seen serious battery swelling (h/t: Engadget). This swelling occurred to the point that the rear covers of these phones popped off. 

The affected phones initially included 2017’s Galaxy Note 8, 2015’s Galaxy S6, and 2019’s Galaxy S10. All of the YouTuber’s devices were stored on a shelf at the same temperature. Maini revealed that Samsung had collected the three affected phones for investigation in early August, with no word from them in this regard since then.

It’s not uncommon for batteries in older phones to swell as gas is produced inside them over time, particularly if they’re not being used. And the Galaxy S6 and Note 8 are pretty old at this point. However, Maini added that non-Samsung phones in his collection (such as Apple, Google, and Asus devices) didn’t suffer from this problem.

A problem affecting more recent devices?

It also emerged during Maini’s investigation that all older Samsung phones (more than three years old) belonging to Matt Ansini of YouTube channel This Is suffered from battery swelling too. 

Following this revelation, Maini checked all of his Samsung phones and found that 2017’s Galaxy S8, 2019’s Galaxy S10e and Galaxy S10 5G, and 2020’s Galaxy Z Fold 2 had visible battery swelling issues too. The Fold 2 is a particularly concerning case given the phone’s price and the fact that it’s not a super-old device.

This is also rather interesting in light of Samsung being one of the few brands holding out when it comes to ultra-fast charging. Fast charging can accelerate battery degradation, theoretically increasing the risk of swelling. However, the Korean brand has mostly stuck to 25W charging (with occasional dips into 45W territory) while many rivals adopt 65W+ speeds.

We’ve contacted Samsung for comment regarding these battery swelling issues and will update the article if/when it gets back to us.