Samsung to release new phone after Note 7 woes

The latest smartphone from Samsung is expected to be unveiled later today.

The firm will launch the Galaxy S8 at events in New York and London, according to reports.

Industry insiders say it will come in two sizes and will feature a larger screen.

Samsung will be hoping the S8 performs well after the company was forced to withdraw the Note (Stockholm: NOTE.ST - news) 7 because of battery problems.

Note 7s were made subject to a global recall in October after the phones were found to set themselves alight.

The Note 7 issues are said to have cost Samsung more than £3bn.

The firm will sell refurbished versions of the Note 7 with a new battery in South Korea, the country's Electronic Times reported on Tuesday.

Environmental groups have also criticised the company over what it planned to do with the more than four million unused devices.

Samsung has also faced accusations in 2017 that it provided illegal financial support in connection with an abuse-of-power scandal that led to the arrest for bribery of the group's heir apparent and the ousting of South Korea's president.

Industry analysts say the launch of the S8 will provide Samsung with a chance to rebuild its reputation.

Samsung boss DJ Koh said at the time the Note 7's problems were discovered that he "deeply apologised" to Samsung customers.

He also said the internal investigation, which also led to the creation of new stringent safety tests for the company's phones, was the "first step to regain your (customer) trust".

Last week, the tech giant also unveiled its new artificial intelligence-powered virtual assistant, Bixby.

The gizmo aims to be a rival to Amazon's Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL - news) 's Siri.