Samsung Galaxy Note 5's major design flaw could damage smartphone

By Lorraine Caballero, Christian Post Contributor Thursday, August 27, 2015

The Samsung Galaxy Note 5 is getting a lot of positive reviews over its sleek physique, but a major design flaw lurks in the new smartphone.

There have been reports circulating online about the potential permanent damage that the Samsung Galaxy Note 5's S Pen could inflict on the handset's functionality. If a user inserts the pen the wrong way, the phone's stylus detection could be affected, according to IBN Live.

Styluses are usually designed in such a way that the user cannot insert it in its slot the wrong way, but not the S Pen for the Galaxy Note 5, or so it seems.

"If you are unfortunate enough to slide your S Pen in the wrong way, you'll have a hard time unjamming it from the slot (though eventually you should be able to pry it away)," says The Verge in a review. "But more importantly, you might disable the Note's stylus detection feature."

Samsung, on the other hand, has responded to The Verge's concern by recommending that the users follow the instructions stipulated in the manual to prevent the damage from happening.

"We highly recommend our Galaxy Note 5 users follow the instructions in the user guide to ensure they do not experience such an unexpected scenario caused by reinserting the S pen in the other way around," IBN quotes Samsung's reply.

The S Pen is the built-in stylus for the Galaxy Note 5 that allows the user to take notes without unlocking the handset. They can also sign and send a PDF file. In addition, it enables users to write out texts in lieu of typing on the on-screen keyboard, the Business Insider reports.

The Galaxy Note 5's predecessors also have their own stylus, but they are structured in such a way that users have to slide in the pen point first. The new S Pen, however, has uniform size and shape all throughout, and the blunt end can be accidentally slid into the slot with little resistance. Trying to remove the wrongly placed S Pen would result in the damaged stylus detection functionality of the Note 5.