Samsung Galaxy Note 7

Samsung Galaxy Note 7 set a new standard for hardware failure: phones that literally exploded due to a battery defect causing thermal runaway. In 2016, Samsung recalled 2.5 million units, only for replacements to also catch fire. The FAA banned them from flights, and Samsung lost $17 billion. This catastrophic engineering flaw makes it worse than Google Glass's privacy issue, which at least wasn't dangerous. The Note 7 remains shorthand for product failure, with zero sales after the recall.