[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics is expected to release the refurbished version of its ill-fated Galaxy Note 7, tentatively dubbed the Galaxy Note 7R, in Korea as early as this month, Chosun Ilbo reported on May 10.

The report said Samsung plans to soon apply for safety certification of the refurbished phone from the state-run National Radio Research Agency. The company recently gained similar approval from the US Federal Communications Commission. 

Considering the approval process takes up to one month, the phone could hit the shelves by May or early June, the report said.

According to leaked images and information about the Note 7R, the phone is expected to sport a 3,200 mAh battery capacity and run on the Android 7.0 operating system. The original Note 7 featured a 3,500 mAh battery and the Android 6.0.1 OS.

The phone is widely rumored to be priced about 50 percent cheaper than the discontinued Note 7.

“We have not yet decided on the phone’s launch schedule,” a Samsung official was quoted as saying. “We plan to launch the phone before the Galaxy Note 8 that comes out later this year.”

The Note 7 debuted in August last year. Before its production and sales were suspended in October, about 4.3 million units of the phone were produced.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)