Samsung Tells Users To RTFM To Avoid Damaging Galaxy Note 5 Stylus Silo

Earlier this morning, we brought you news that Samsung’s brand new Galaxy Note 5 can be easily damaged by the simple action of inserting the S Pen (stylus) in backwards. In previous iterations of Galaxy Note series (including the Galaxy Note Edge), it was not possible to insert the stylus into the device backwards. However, the design of the Galaxy Note 5’s S Pen allows it to easily be inserted “blunt end” first, which causes it to become stuck.

Once this happens, one of two things is bound to happen: 1) the S Pen will become permanently wedged into the device or 2) if you do manage to retrieve the errant S Pen, removing it breaks Galaxy Note 5’s pen detection. This means the Galaxy Note 5 can’t tell if the S Pen is in or out of the device and it won’t make the nifty “swish” sound when the S Pen is ejected.

We figured it wouldn’t be long before Samsung would issue a response given how quickly the story has gained traction. And despite what appears to be a real design flaw with the Galaxy Note 5, Samsung has issued a statement to the BBC which in a polite way says that users simply need to RTFM, “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."

We decided to follow Samsung’s advice, and low and behold on page 25 [PDF] there’s a warning regarding the S Pen:

Warning: Be sure to insert your S Pen with the nib pointed inward. Inserting the S Pen the wrong way can cause it to become stuck and can damage the pen and your phone.

At least we know that Samsung was well aware of the issue before shipping the Galaxy Note 5, but it still doesn’t explain why the company allowed it to be so easy to damage the device with an improperly inserted S Pen.