(REUTERS) - Samsung Electronics said on Friday (Dec 9) that a software update for Galaxy Note 7 smartphones will be released mid-December in the United States preventing them from charging and functioning as mobile phones, rendering them useless.

The smartphone maker said that more than 93 per cent of all recalled Galaxy Note 7 devices had been returned as a part of its exchange programme in the United States. http://bit.ly/2glcQtG

The US Transportation Department and other agencies in October ordered Galaxy Note 7 owners from carrying the devices or stowing them in checked baggage during flights following reports of fires in replacement Note 7 devices.

However, Verizon Communications said it would not take part in the update because of the added risk this could pose to Galaxy Note7 users that do not have another device to switch to.