In a statement, Samsung said that neither software nor hardware were at fault, only the batteries.

Internal and independent investigations "concluded that batteries were found to be the cause of the Note 7 incidents", the said in a statement.

The firm had axed its iPhone rival in October last year after an earlier botched recall and re-release.

The recall is thought to have cost $5.3bn (£4.3bn) and was hugely damaging for the South Korean firm's reputation.