Samsung has been working on an update to render useless the Galaxy Note7 units sold in US, because, apparently, not everyone has turned in their smartphone, which has been recalled twice, deemed a fire hazard, and banned on flights as a result.

The update, which is now rolling out for the T-Mobile units, will inform users, once again, of the recall, but, more importantly, it will also prevent the battery from charging again. So, once your Galaxy Note7 dies, you will basically be left with a brick. As you can see, Samsung really, really wants you to stop using the faulty device.

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While technology can lead to exciting new products like self-driving cars and artificial intelligence, it can also improve boring products, such as appliances. Things such as refrigerators, thermostats, and washing machines are getting smarter and better, making day-to-day chores a little less tedious.

One product type that has benefited greatly from advanced technologies, such as machine learning and robotics, is the lowly vacuum. While not a sexy product, it can be essential for keeping floors clean. While iRobot Roomba is probably the most recognizable robot vacuum, Samsung is hoping consumers will choose its new POWERbot VR7000 instead. What makes this vacuum particularly interesting, is that it is compatible with Amazon Echo.

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If Santa brought you a Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge, you are in for a treat. Samsung's flagships are, without question, two of the best high-end smartphones available right now, featuring an amazing camera, a gorgeous display, fantastic performance, impressive battery life, powerful software, a waterproof rating, and a premium design. Impressive, indeed.

To help you get comfortable with your new Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge, we have prepared this guide with tips on how to get started, set it up and what accessories to buy. So, without further ado, here is what you need to know.

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If you want a thin and light laptop, Apple is usually the way to go. Its computers are designed to be both durable and beautiful while also being very svelte. Windows laptops, however, have historically been more heavy and made of cheap plastic with a focus on affordability -- beauty and skinniness be damned.

Lately, computers running Microsoft's operating system have been much nicer -- sometimes giving Apple a run for its money. The Surface Book, for instance, is a work of art. Today, Samsung refreshes its Notebook 9 laptops with a focus on being extremely portable -- very thin and light. In fact, it is lighter than the 2016 MacBook Pro -- holy cow. Unlike Apple's newest laptops -- which run the older 6th generation Skylake processors -- Samsung's machines have the latest-and-greatest 7th gen Kaby Lake Core i5 and i7 processors.

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Unless you've been living under a rock, the disastrous launch of the Samsung Galaxy Note7 cannot have escaped you. We've already seen the company pushing out updates in some countries to prevent the phones from fully charging in the hope that this will convince owners to take advantage of the exchange or refund program.

Now reports suggest that a new OTA update could be on its way to handset owners in the US. Rather than just limiting charging, the word is that the update will prevent charging completely, rendering the phone useless.

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Over the years, some people have accused Samsung of copying Apple with its designs. While that criticism was certainly more valid early on, the Galaxy-maker has carved out its own design style in recent years -- silencing some pundits. Its smartphones are wildly popular, and for good reason -- they often have great build quality and are chock-full of many outstanding features. They are not mere clones or imitations.

One of Samsung's most popular smartphones is the wonderful Galaxy S7 edge. While you would never mistake it for an iPhone, today, the Galaxy-maker does seem to copy Apple just a little bit -- even if it is unintentional. How? By introducing a new color called 'Pearl Black' which is very reminiscent of the iPhone 7's 'Jet Black' option. While there may not be any proof, do you think there is any copying going on?

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Samsung is currently deciding whether or it not it should follow the advice of the US hedge fund management firm Elliott Management that has proposed that the company split its business in two, with one holding company for ownership and another for operations.

Elliott first proposed the split in October with the aim of boosting shareholder value. However, this move would also benefit the Lee family that owns Samsung as it would grant them tighter control over the company.

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Following on from the Note7 battery farce, Samsung is understandably keen to reassure customers -- and would be customers -- that its other phones are safe. Having lost untold billions of dollars because of exploding Note7s, the Korean company has taken the strange move of advising people that the Galaxy S7 family is safe.

In a weirdly proactive post in the Samsung Newsroom, the company points out that there have been no instances of internal battery failure in these devices. It does concede, however, that there have been instances of battery failure following external damage.

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US chip maker Qualcomm today announces a new flagship mobile processor that will power next year's generation of high-end smartphones and tablets. Called Snapdragon 835, it is the company's first 10nm offering and promises increased energy efficiency and performance in a smaller package.

To build the Snapdragon 835, Qualcomm has teamed up with Samsung to take advantage of its 10nm FinFET manufacturing technology. This is not the first time that the two players have worked together, as Samsung also makes the Snapdragon 820. Let us take a closer look at the new kid on the block.

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In an effort to expand into the auto market, Samsung has announced that it will purchase Harman for $8 billion to gain access to both its automotive and audio offerings.

The American company Harman is best known for its audio equipment, though it also has a large presence in the automotive market. Last year, the company earned over $7 billion, of which its connected car devices and audio systems accounted for 65 percent of the total sales.

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Those who have followed me over the years know that I came somewhat late to the mobile computing party. I didn’t buy my first smartphone until 2014 -- an el-cheapo Samsung Galaxy Avant running Android 4.4.2. However, after languishing in the hinterlands of abandoned devices (Samsung never bothered to updated the Avant’s OS past "KitKat"), I finally bit the bullet and this past August splurged on a Galaxy S7 (I went for the nondescript black model to discourage phone thieves).

No question, the Galaxy S7 is a wonderful "piece of kit" (as my UK friends would call it). It’s fast, has plenty of RAM (4GB), and is expandable via microSD card (unlike its immediate predecessor, the Galaxy S6). But while it runs circles around my old Avant in terms of performance, I found the phone’s TouchWiz-enhanced Android 6.0 Marshmallow UI to be uninspiring.

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Just when you thought the Samsung Galaxy Note7 saga was over, there's a new twist. The Korean smartphone manufacturer placed a full-page ad in US newspapers yesterday, apologizing to customers for the problematic handset.

The ad appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the Washington Post and the company says it is "truly sorry" for failing to deliver "best-in-class safety and quality".

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Samsung's Galaxy Note7 fiasco has been in headline for some weeks now, most recently when it emerged that the company was working with telecoms companies to cut off the phones from networks in New Zealand. Now Samsung has announced that it is pushing out an update to US users that will limit how much the battery can be charged.

This is not so much a case of limiting the charge to make the phone safer, rather an attempt to annoy Galaxy Note7 owners who have not yet taken advantage of the 'refund and exchange' program to do just that. The hope is that by limiting phone charge to 60 percent, and showing a popup, stubborn Galaxy Note7 owners will give in and relinquish their handsets.

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The Samsung Galaxy Note7 was one of the -- if not the -- most disastrous phone launches of all time. After numerous reports of handsets catching fire or exploding, Samsung was forced to recall the device -- but some people have been reluctant to give theirs up.

The phone may have been banned from planes, and Samsung has even offered a financial incentive to hand over the Galaxy Note7, but despite the potential danger many users are hanging onto their phones. In a drastic move to prevent them from being used, some mobile providers -- incoordination with Samsung -- are disconnecting Galaxy Note7s, rendering them all but useless.

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When it comes to the exploding batteries on Galaxy Note7 models, Samsung has been lauded for its crisis management approach and how it’s accepted responsibility for the problem. Now setting up exchange booths at airports around the world so users can exchange their Galaxy Note7 phones is yet another example of its exceptional crisis management approach.

But while it’s commendable how swiftly Samsung is taking action to replace the faulty handsets, the company has left one crucial component out of this plan. That is, erasing the data from those Galaxy Note7 devices that are turned in at its exchange booths at airports around the world. There’s no mention of whether the data is being securely and permanently erased from the Galaxy Note7 phones that are taken back at the exchange booths -- and if it’s being done so before they’re handed off to Samsung’s chosen recyclers.

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