Samsung Galaxy S3 didn't explode, owner 'fesses up

Remember the Samsung Galaxy S3 that exploded in someone's car a few weeks ago? Well apparently it was down to "external energy" rather than the handset itself, according to an investigation by Samsung and a third party.

Samsung revealed the findings in a blog post. So rest easy, all you hot-pocketed Galaxy S3 owners.

Last month, pictures emerged on a forum of a burned Galaxy S3. Dublin-based student dilo2k10 wrote that he was, "driving along with my Galaxy S3 in my car mount when suddenly a white flame, sparks and a bang came out of the phone."

The mobile was destroyed and it burned some plastic in his car. "I'm really annoyed," he went on. "That could have been the side of my face or through my pocket and my leg, or set fire to my bed."

Samsung vowed to investigate. The South Korean company contracted Fire Investigations UK (FIUK) to find out exactly why the Galaxy S3 seemed to spontaneously combust. "The energy source responsible for generating the heat has been determined as external to the device," according to the findings and the company found, "the device was not responsible for the cause of the fire".

"The only way it was possible to produce damage similar to the damage recorded within the owner's damaged device was to place the devices or component parts within a domestic microwave."

And the owner of the phone was quick to own up. "I would like to retract my original statement," dilo2k10 wrote on the forum. "The damage to the phone was caused by another person, although they were attempting to recover the phone from water this later caused the damage shown on the phone.

"It occurred due to a large amount of external energy and there was no fault with the phone. This was not a deliberate act but a stupid mistake."

So there you have it. Have you had any issues with your Galaxy S3, exploding or otherwise? Let me know in the comments or on our Facebook page.