SAMSUNG said it is halting sales of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone after a spate of fires involving new devices that were supposed to be safe replacements for recalled models.

The firm said consumers with original Note 7 devices or replacements they obtained after the recall should turn off the power and seek a refund or exchange them for different phones.

South Korean authorities said in a statement they had found a new product defect in the Note 7 and asked consumers to power them down or to exchange them.

The statement did not identify the defect.

The technology giant ordered a recall of the device in September, on the eve of its launch in the UK, after more than 30 reports globally of devices overheating.

The Korean manufacturer then began a program offering replacement phones to consumers who had pre-ordered the device in the UK.

Samsung said last month it was "confident" it had completely overcome the problem and was ready to launch the device.

However, concerns have now been raised over further defects within the device, beyond the battery cell, following several reports in the US of phones catching fire that showed the green battery icon Samsung added to replacement phones to mark them as safe.

The company added that 45,000 Note7 devices had been sold in Europe through their pre-order campaign - the majority in the UK - and more than 75% had since been replaced with either a Note7 or another Samsung handset.