Samsung launches free Galaxy S4 battery replacement program

[Shawn Knight]

Samsung has launched a battery replacement program in the wake of continued battery issues with the Galaxy S4. In a statement on the matter, the Korean tech giant said they are aware of a battery issue that has affected a limited number of customers and will be rectifying the issue with free replacement power packs.

Recent reports have suggested some carriers are seeing a return rate of 30 percent due to various battery-related issues including fast-draining power and lithium-ion batteries that swell up and push against the back shell of the phone. It’s normal for a battery like the 2600mAh unit found in the S4 to degrade over time but the speed at which the batteries in question are breaking down is alarming.

Samsung is inviting all affected users to visit their nearest service center where they can receive a replacement battery free of charge. It’s unclear if users will be able to have a replacement battery shipped to them or if they must visit a service center for a replacement. Furthermore, we don’t know if the issue is limited to certain regions or variants of the S4.

The S4 launched in March and has helped Samsung retain the title of world’s largest smartphone maker.

At least one S4 user I spoke with personally said they are currently experiencing severe battery drain problems. Have you been having problems with the battery in your S4? If so, tell us about it in the comments section below.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/54376-samsung-launches-free-galaxy-s4-battery-replacement-program.html

 

[Guest]

Really, this is news to me. I have to say that I am not one of the people with affected phones. in fact for me, the s4 is the first phone that I cant find anything to complain about. previous owner of multiple htc phones, which seem to have decreased in quality, features, and being generally exciting in recent years.

 

[ghasmanjr]

I asked the salesman how the battery life was compared to my (at the time) iPhone 4s and he claimed it was much, much better. After using the Galaxy S4 for about 2 months now, I have to say that I am not impressed with the battery life at all. It may actually be worse than the iPhone 4s which is definitely saying something.

 

[Panda218]

I have not had a single complaint regarding the battery life on my S4. I primarily use it for listening to music and checking social media throughout the day and its usually around 15% when I go to bed. The iphone 4s that I have for work is about the same, but I don't touch it at all unless I get called. Which is quite odd to me since it's just idle all day. Ever since upgrading to iOS7 it has got worse too.

Glad to see Sammy is trying to help out!

 

[veLa]

I must say I've seen my S4 battery life degrade at least a bit. I might take advantage of this.

 

[Guest]

Where is the link to take advantage of these repalcement?

 

[Trillionsin]

Where is the link to take advantage of these repalcement?

This is only for the Guest. NOT for the people of Techspot. Some guests just need a little extra, ya know?

www.manties.net

 

[Guest]

Horrible experience of battery draining all of a sudden and the phone going dead in mid conversation. Never expected this from a brand claiming to be the best and offering the most advanced technology. Will never buy a samsung again.

 

[Darth Shiv]

Interesting... will have to keep an eye on it for other new samsung models too hey?

 

[Guest]

My S4 - have had since May - had pretty good battery life until very recently where the rate of degradation has become incredible. With minimal use it isn't able to hold a charge for but 8 or 9 hours. I'll be visiting the dealer for the free replacement!

 

[Guest]

Definitely experiencing battery drain since acquiring the S4. Tried all of the suggested settings and still cannot get by a day without a dead battery, even when the phone is practically not used??

 

[Camille]

I thought it was the most recent update.. but out of nowhere my battery is hardly holding a charge and draining super quickly. It also seems to be getting very very hot.

 

[Guest]

I've had my S4 for less than 2 months and just did the software update. Immediately after downloading the software update, not only has my battery life dropped significantly (50% in 3 hours with no use) but I have trouble obtaining my 4G signal.

 

[Russ H]

I've also noticed considerable battery drain in just the last few days. I attributed it to the recent software update, but perhaps it's something else. This battery replacement program sounds like there is really a hardware problem... perhaps a bad batch of batteries?

 

[Guest]

At least I know it's not just me. I just bought the S4 2 days ago and I charged it last night and between waking up and getting to work I am at 60%. This is unacceptable. I will be marching back to my retailer and demanding a new battery post-haste!

-Victoria
P.S. I love the phone otherwise!

 

[Guest]

Correction 53%

-Victoria

 

[Guest]

I have had my S4 for 6 months and loved it until the recent update, I have had horrible battery life. With minimal use it will be 20% before I get home from work. It gets very hot when charging , but I have not had the swelling as of yet. Verizon or Samsung have been NO help with the matter.
Oh and if you do not have a Samsung Service Center where you live you will have to send your current battery to them first then they will send you the replacement!! My cell phone carrier will not do anything to correct the problem either. So I am stuck buying a new battery.

 

[Guest]

I just spoke to someone on Samsung live chat. They are sending me out replacement battery. All they required was the battery serial number and a new battery is in the mail.

 

[Guest]

I'm having so much trouble with the battery issues! From out of the box I have nothing but headaches with this and turned off everything just to keep battery life throught the day! Not a day goes by that I'm out or near out of power! May go back to iphone!

 

[husseyn]

Hello guys
I bought a samsung s4 exactly 2months ago and it worked v well for 2weeks then I noticed rapid battery drainage from 100% to 40% in less than an hour.about a month after buying the phone,the battery started heating up and swelling up.right now am using the fone without the back cover because the battery is so swollen that the back cover can't fit.the battery no longer holds charge;it shortdown at 95%.Hardly works for 5mins.
I've checked everywhere for samsung service center in nigeria for replacement but,none.checked stores to buy a replacement,none.
I'm stock with my s4 with no battery.pls.......I need help!!!!!!
(post from nigeria)

 

[Guest]

With the recent android update my S4 suddenly start to use battery like crazy, heating up, etc..it drained literally in 2-3 hours with no use. I checked the battery consumption (settings - more - battery) and I noticed Samsung ChatOn app taking most of the resources. I unregistered all its services and since then it's "normal": phone needs to be charged in 1 day (used often) or 1.5 - 2 days when used less.
If you are having similar issues as above, first see what apps/processes are using the battery most.

 

[Guest]

I'm also experiencing the same exact symptoms. The phone was awesome up until I installed the most recent update.

 

[bnyce21]

Ve had my s4 a month and in the first few weeks battery life was awesome. Now its awful. The only time its good Is wen its idle but wats the point of that. Verizon switched my battery yesterday and its no different. I don't think its a battery issue I think its some of the BS that comes pre loaded on from Samsung N android.

 

[Guest]

Received the S4 in Late August, It worked well until about mid October. It has been steadily getting worse.The problems began when using any program which utilise GPS. It then moved to using the camera, in particular the gallery. Jumping from link to link on a webpage, moving from one setting to another in Device settings, these have also resulted ion the same event. The unit will abruptly restart.

In many cases the restart will fail, only when the charger is connected will be unit restart sucessfully. I tried several steps to correct the problem ... removing SD Card, uninstalling all apps added since purchase, reseting back to factory defaults.

Many of the responses have spoken about battery life draining very quickly, I have not seen this. After the unit restarts, in many instances the battery is well about 50% available charge.

However, if the battery is asked to deliver power to power hungry services GPS, Camera or Galery, this is where it appears to fall over in my experience.

 

[Guest]

I purchased a Galaxy S4 mobile phone on 22 Aug 2013 through Flipkart.com. However for the past few days the phone started to get abnormally hot after continuous use. On examination of the battery, I noticed that it had swollen up. Hence I sent it to the nearest authorised samsung service centre for warranty replacement of the battery since the battery warranty was for 6 months from the date of purchase. The Service Centre rep however flatly refused to accept the battery and told me the the warranty was void as the battery had swollen up due to overcharging. I told him that it could also be due to a manufacturing defect since the battery swellng issue was an acknowledged problem in the Galaxy S4 with a host of complaints online about the same issue. There was also no issue of tampering of the battery which could make the warranty void. Yet to resolve the issue as I reported it on 1 Nov 13.