The giant Samsung has been pinned for a non-compliant trunk SAR of its folding smartphone. He was also fined 7,500 euros by the ANFR, which did not appreciate the slow reaction of the South Korean manufacturer.
The National Frequency Agency (ANFR) has, as part of its checks on public exposure to electromagnetic waves, checked the specific absorption rate (SAR) of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip. It turns out that the trunk SAR of the folding phone marketed in 2020 was higher than the limit set by the European regulations in force. The ANFR had to do it twice to push Samsung to fall into line. A Wiko mobile was also in the agency’s sights.
The ANFR struggled to bend Samsung
Remember that the SAR makes it possible to quantify the energy transported by electromagnetic waves and absorbed by the human body. Regulatory limits have been set by the European Union and must be respected in France. They are set at 2 W/kg for the “head” SAR (phone to ear, in voice conversation); 2 W/kg for the “trunk” SAR (smartphone carried near the trunk, in a bag or jacket pocket); and 4 W/kg for the “limb” SAR (mobile pressed against a limb, when it is held in the hand or in the trouser pocket).
The ANFR first gave formal notice to Samsung for a trunk SAR beyond the regulatory limits. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip was indeed measured at 2.502 W/kg. Except that the update of the mobile had finally caused an increase in this data, with a trunk SAR then measured at 3.024 W / kg, which had not really enchanted the French agency.
So it took a second update for the folding phone to finally meet the standards, as Samsung reduced its power slightly. The ANFR indicates that its trunk SAR has been reduced to only 1.024 W/kg.
A small administrative fine for Samsung
Samsung did eventually bring the Galaxy Z Flip into compliance, but after two reminders. More than a formal notice, therefore, the Korean manufacturer was fined an administrative fine, all in all symbolic, in the amount of 7,500 euros.
” This administrative fine against Samsung has a symbolic value. However, it represents only a few units of the smartphone sold by the Korean manufacturer. It is therefore completely insufficient to dissuade the manufacturer from continuing these bad commercial practices. As a reminder, in a few weeks, this is the second model of the brand pinned after the Galaxy Note 10 Plus says Doctor Marc Arazi, co-founder of the Alerte Phonegate association.
Another builder was also caught by the patrol. The ANFR had sent a formal notice to Wiko for its Y82 model, whose member SAR very, very slightly exceeded the regulatory limit value: 4.01 against 4 W/kg. The Chinese mobile brand, born in Marseille, quickly updated the entry-level mobile, dropping its SAR member to 2.3 W / kg.
Source : ANFR
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