It appears that the end is near for what can only be described as one of the biggest tech debacles of the past decade. Shortly after the August release of Samsung’s highly anticipated “phablet” the Galaxy Note 7, consumers began to report their devices exploding or catching fire. While this defect didn’t affect all Note 7 owners the cases of personal and property damage from those affected devices quickly mounted in the weeks following its release. The original cause of the Note 7’s malfunctioning was thought to be linked to faulty batteries at which time Samsung opened an exchange program where customers could trade in their faulty devices for new ones with different batteries that didn’t double as bombs.

Soon, however, after reports started coming in of these “fixed” Note 7 were also destructing. Due to this, all major mobile retailers suspended sales of the device. Samsung had little choice but to officially end production on the device and has issued a recall for all Note 7 models that were sold. Samsung Electronics recently released loss estimates in the billions associated with the discontinuation of the Note 7. Samsung is also attempting to retain customers by giving total refunds and bill credits from $25.00 to $100.00 depending on whether or not you select a Samsung replacement device and stick with your carrier. Tim Baxter, President and Chief Operating Officer at Samsung Electronics America had this to say:

We appreciate the patience of our consumers, carrier and retail partners for carrying the burden during these challenging times. Customers’ safety remains a top priority and we ask consumers with an original or replacement Galaxy Note 7 to power down and take advantage of the remedies available. We are committed to doing everything we can to make this right.

There have been rumors and speculation that the issues that plagued the Note 7 could have been prevented if more time was given in the testing phases of production. It’s also rumored that corners may have been cut in order to get out in front of Apple’s release of its flagship phablet the iPhone 7 Plus, which was released weeks after the Note.

Will we ever see another Note 7 iteration? Will we see the reveal of the Note 8 next year? Or will Samsung reinvent and re-brand their phablet under a new name? Only time will tell what long term ramifications the failure of Samsung’s latest product will have on the company and in the market in general. Meanwhile I’ll just be over here sticking with my Note 5 that I know . . .. that I’m 80% sure will not explode.

You can also see the contact information below on how to go about obtaining a refund if you currently own the Note 7 here.