Category: Samsung

Samsung Dealers Unhappy About E-Pricing, Threaten Boycott

As if Samsung wasn’t facing enough heat from the market and the users, the dealers of Samsung are taking them on the retail and e-tail price gap. The representatives of Samsung Retail dealers have told Samsung if the massive discrepancies in prices are not stabilized, they may have to boycott the brand.

Samsung has not had a good time against the competition in the past couple years. The phones are seen as identical replicas of each other and their features are unable to compete with the likes of Motorola, LG and the latest entrants, Xiaomi and Asus. In fact, Samsung, which boasted of holding the throne of the biggest smartphone company in the top two populous countries in the world saw itself dip to 2^nd spot. Micromax toppled Samsung’s majority in India and Xiaomi stole its spot in China.

The center issue is that Samsung offers its dealers a margin of 5.5% while the phones can be bought online for 20-25% discounts. The dealers say that they are not able to meet their sales targets as consumers are scared the prices might keep dropping. Times of India reports that some of the dealers have been selling the phones in wholesale markets to achieve their sales goals. These phones too make their way on the internet and are sold at discounted rates.

The dealers have threatened the company with a boycott that includes blacking out Samsung’s branding. Samsung executives have asked the dealers to not take any drastic steps as of yet. The dealer body has given the South Korean electronics giant time till the 15^th of August to resolve the pricing issue. Samsung needs a strategy reanalysis if it wants to prevent a certain dip in sales numbers which includes focus on mobile innovation. Or else it won’t be long before they follow Nokia’s path.

August 6, 2014
Samsung Sends Out Press Invites For Galaxy Note 4 Unpacked Event

It’s that time of the year again. September is fast approaching, and it is bringing with it Samsung’s latest flagship phablet. Yes, Samsung is once again ready to release the next-generation Galaxy Note, and they have sent out invites for the launch event scheduled to take place on the 3rd of September.

Although Samsung hasn’t officially mentioned that the event will feature the launch of the Galaxy Note 4, it’s a pretty safe bet, considering how it’s been Samsung’s tradition to release their latest Note flagship at IFA in Berlin every September.

The Galaxy Alpha, Samsung’s supposed ‘premium built’ phone, may also feature in the event seeing that it’s been making rounds at the rumour mill since a long time. Along with the above two phones, it is also possible that Samsung may also announce some smartwatches which have also had their fair share of rumours and leaks. Another wearable that may be announced is a Samsung virtual reality headset, which will be very similar to the uber-cool Oculus Rift.

Samsung will have to catch up to competition with the next edition of the Note phablet

However, it is very likely that none of these devices are announced at that event, as Samsung would want to keep the spotlight towards the Galaxy Note 4 and nothing else.

If you haven’t heard the rumours, the Note 4 is believed to revolve around the following specs – a 5.7” Quad HD (2560×1440) display, a Snapdragon 805 (Exynos 5433 for some markets, including India) chipset, 3GB of RAM, a 16-megapixel camera with Optical Image Stabilization, a so-called ‘ultraviolet’ sensor, and Android 4.4 KitKat. The remaining specs should be similar to the Note’s smaller sized sibling, the Galaxy S5. The phone might also come with a biometric sensor in the form of an eye sensor

The event will take place on September 3 at 2 p.m. Berlin time. That’s almost a month away, and we should see many more rumours and leaks confirming those specifications. As has been with every flagship these days, we’ll probably know each and every detail about the phablet before the announcement actually takes place. Boy, August is going to be an exciting month.

By Pranav Arora

August 5, 2014
Xiaomi Dethrones Samsung from the Top Spot in China

Seems like a bad day for Samsung, earlier we reported that their No. 1 position in India slipped away, and sounds like they’re headed towards trouble in China as well. Xiaomi is just four years old but the way the company has taken over the market in the last quarter is remarkable.

Just last year, Xiaomi was just another dubious Chinese handset maker. Well, things certainly have changed and according to the report by research firm Canalys, Samsung is no longer the top phone manufacturer in China.

Xiaomi distributed around 15 million phones in early 2014 while Samsung is lagging behind at 13.2 million. The report published on Monday by Canalys, revealed that Xiaomi’s remarkable growth, surpassing giants like Samsung and Lenovo to become the top player in China. Because of its huge growth in China, Xiaomi became the fifth largest smartphone maker in the world.

Xiaomi is little known in Europe or in North America because it sells nearly all of its smartphones in mainland China. But strong growth in China and Indian-subcontinent (recently) was enough to get Xiaomi to a top five position among the world’s smartphone makers from nowhere the previous year.

“Over all, Xiaomi grew 240 per cent, compared with the second quarter last year, to take 14 percent of the Chinese smartphone market. Undoubtedly, this was helped by an under-strength Samsung performance during the quarter,” Canalys research analyst Jingwen Wang wrote in a statement, “But that is only half the story — Xiaomi has also executed on its strategy to grow volume shipments. It has delivered compelling products at aggressive price points, backed by effectively targeted marketing.”

To increase customer base, Xiaomi offered special software that customers cannot get with other Android devices. The company offers a customized version of Android, called MIUI, which customers can help design by giving feedback online; the company releases a new version of the operating system every Friday to keep fans excited.

Samsung reported last week its lowest quarterly profit in two years for the second quarter, partly blaming a slowdown of cheap smartphone sales in China. Samsung said it faced higher competition from local brands and weaker demand for its 3G handsets as Chinese consumers shifted to 4G smartphones.

China has highest percentage of mobile users than any other country and makes up 37% of the global phone market. Encouraged by its success at home, Xiaomi is looking to expand into other countries in the next year, including Mexico, Thailand, Indonesia, Russia and Turkey.

August 5, 2014
Micromax Outsells Samsung to Become India’s No.1 Mobile Vendor

Micromax has overtaken Samsung to become the largest mobile phone supplier in India in Q2 2014, according to independent market research and consulting firm, CounterPoint Research.

As per the report, Micromax’s handset shipments share was 16.6% in the quarter while Samsung’s share was 14.4%. This is the first time that Samsung has been usurped from the pole position. Nokia was at the third position with a 10.9% shipments share, followed by domestic brands Karbonn and Lava which had a 9.5% and 5.6% share, respectively.

Rank India Handset Shipment Share(%) Q2 2014(%age)

1 Micromax 16.6%

2 Samsung 14.4%

3 Nokia 10.9%

4 Karbonn 9.5%

5 Lava 5.6%

6 Others 43%

Total 100%

Micromax also became the leading feature phone supplier overtaking Nokia for the first time. Micromax became the 10th largest handset brand globally in terms of mobile phone shipment volumes in the quarter and has 2.3% market share. This is the first time Micromax enters into the top 10 rankings.

After a highly disappointing launch of the Samsung S5, things continue to get from bad to worse for Samsung as Micromax overtook Samsung to become leading mobile phone supplier brand in India in Q2 2014 . It will be interesting to observe how Samsung will retaliate and what stratergy they will employ to regain the Number 1 position they have held so proudly in the past.

At the same time Micromax through its rigorous publicity and successful launch of the Canvas Series have taken this throne from Samsung. KUDOS to Micromax!

August 5, 2014
Samsung Slashes Note 3 Prices

Samsung’s much awaited Note 4 which is expected to release next month will be again Samsung’s high shelf device. Samsung which has recently faced some serious consumer bashing for not innovating in accordance with the competition and its identical looking devices might want to bring back those users back to its side. The Note 4 would be a good opportunity for Samsung to show off its innovation muscle, especially when the competition is getting really tough with LG’s G3 and Apple’s new iPhone 6 being under constant limelight.

The 5.7 inch Super AMOLED display laced Galaxy Note 3 came with a 1.9GHz eight-core Exynos 5 Octa chipset with 3GB of RAM was released at Rs. 49,990. The device is now available on Flipkart for to Rs 37,983.

Besides the Note 3, its mini version, the Note 3 Neo also saw a major price cut. The device was launched in the market in February this year for a price of Rs 40,900. It features a 5.5-inch 720p Super AMOLED display with Exynos hexacore processor paired with 2GB of RAM. The price of the device after the cut stands at Rs 27,249, talk about a massive cut.

There is though not a lot known about the Samsung’s big release, the Note 4. It is expected to help Samsung gain back some lost trust and prove to competitors of Samsung’s formidability in the smartphone market. The new Note 4 might have a 5.7-inch Quad HD display keeping in line with 2K flagship displays with 3GB of RAM and 32GB internal storage. According to the various rumors, the device might also feature an eye-scanner and might also be powered by a new 64-bit processor. Hopefully Samsung will take a departure from Exynos Chipset for this one and bring in something which will let the Note 4 access its full capabilities.

August 4, 2014
Images of the Upcoming Samsung Galaxy Alpha Leaked

The new Samsung Galaxy Alpha will soon be officially unveiled. The metal-clad phone has been taking rounds on internet and now photos of the white version of the Galaxy Alpha have leaked from the micro-blogging website Weibo.

The metallic side looks more polished on this model. According to various reports, the Galaxy Alpha might be segmented as a high-end device. It is expected to sport a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED 720p display (same as Galaxy S III), Exynos 5433 processor, 2 GB of RAM, 13-megapixel camera, a fingerprint and heart rate sensor, 32 GB of non-expandable storage and Android 4.4.4 KitKat.

The Galaxy Alpha will be a step above the Galaxy S5 mini and will actually be sold as another watered-down variant of the Galaxy S5. There will also be an LTE-A variant, which is affirmed by an image leaked on a Vietnamese tech blog showing the device in the powered on state, and we’re guessing the LTE-A variant could be powered by Samsung’s recently announced Exynos ModAP processor, which brings support for 150 Mbps LTE-A speeds.

Unfortunately, there are no more details on other features and hardware, but more info should start popping up as we approach the rumored launch of the Galaxy Alpha. As rumors have suggested, the Galaxy Alpha could see a limited release.

Earlier, some pictures of black version of Samsung Galaxy Alpha were also released by Sammobile. The images confirm earlier reports that the Galaxy Alpha will sport a 4.7-inch screen and a metallic construction, though Samsung has opted to use aluminium on the sides while keeping the faux leather back that we’ve seen on the Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy Note 3. This should help in offering both a solid grip and a premium feel.

August 4, 2014
Oculus Rift’s New Developer Kit Has a Samsung Note 3 Display

One of the most eagerly awaited technology are the wearable Virtual Reality (VR) glasses and the name that comes to mind when talking of VR wearables is Oculus. Now serial teardowners, iFixit have gone ahead and dismantled the new version of Oculus Rift’s developer edition.

The previous Oculus outing saw tremendous complaints about pixelated screens and motion sickness inducing visuals. Oculus Developer Kit 2(DK 2) intends to address the complaints. One major discovery they made is that the DK2 comes with a Samsung Note 3 display.

Inside the impressive gadget is a Samsung display.

The display is left untouched and it even has the touchscreen controller on it. So you can easily get a replacement for your Oculus screen if you somehow get over involved in the virtual world and accidently bump into real world objects and damage the screen.

Oculus claims that the display works at 75 Hz which is above the standard 60 Hz refresh rate. On their website Oculus calls its display a low persistence OLED display to eliminate motion blur and judder, two of the biggest contributors to simulator sickness. The stunning 5.7 inch Note 3 display might address the pixilation issue and probably save people from the day long motion sickness they feel after wearing these headgears.

Meanwhile Samsung is proactively working on their own VR wearables. With Sony’s Project Morpheus and several start-ups trying out their luck with the technology, the market has started to heat up. We too are desperately waiting for the devices to come to the market so we can enjoy a walk on Mars or get a perfect first person shooting experience minus the PTSD of course.

August 1, 2014
Samsung Launches Affordable India-Centric phones

Samsung today released three phones which are targeted for the lower range. All three are based on Android Kitkat with Samsung’s TouchWiz UI. These new devices will also come with Vodafone internet plans for the first six months to help the users with their beginning months with the phone.

The phones are priced under the 10K segment which is dominated by Indian manufacturers like Micromax and Lava. Recently Big chinese brands have also entered this market to compete. Seems like it’s about time Samsung heated up this market segment. The phones are called Samsung Galaxy Star 2, Galaxy Star Advance and Galaxy Ace NXT.

Samsung Galaxy Star 2comes with a 3.5” display. It has a 2MP camera with advanced camera modes. It also comes with free access to premium games from Gameloft. Galaxy Star Advance comes with a powerful 3MP camera with flash. It has 4.3” display. Galaxy Ace NXT is Samsung’s entry-level 3G phone. With a 4” display and a 3MP camera with flash, this device is optimized for Internet and multi-tasking experience.

Pricing wise the Samsung Galaxy Star 2 is priced at INR 5,100 and is available in White and Grey colours. Both Galaxy Star Advance and Galaxy Ace NXT are priced at INR 7,400 respectively and are available in Black and White. Star 2 and Star Advanced come with a leather finish back panel.

All three phones provide support for 12 Indian languages including Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Guajarati, Punjabi, Urdu, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, and Assamese. Consumers have a choice of accessing these language apps from the Google Play Store. They also have access to the Samsung Galaxy Apps store.

In a saturated market like India, Samsung has to do a lot more to take on the competition. If the decrease in profits of the company is any indication, they need to rethink their entire strategy soon. With their prices, these phones will have a tough time surviving in the market.

July 31, 2014
Chinese Vendors Trouble Samsung and Apple for Smartphone Market Share

We all know that Samsung is losing market internationally as well as in India, now we have exact numbers to believe it. Over the past years, Apple and Samsung slugging it out at the top of the phone and tablet markets. But it seems that the recent boom in Chinese smartphone market has taken a toll on both companies.

IDC (International Data Corporation) estimates that Samsung’s smartphone shipments saw a rare year-over-year drop in the second quarter, taking it from a lofty 32.3 percent market share down to 25.2 percent. This week’s news that Apple suffered a slump in iPad sales would normally be accompanied by news of Samsung taking customers from Apple as it has done in the past. But not this time round.

The cause, analysts say, is the rapid rise of Chinese brands that cuts directly into Samsung’s low-end business. Huawei claimed 6.9 percent of the smartphone space after doubling its shipments, thanks in part to heavy discounts on phones; Lenovo too jumped to 5.4 percent on the back of both budget phones at home as well as rapid expansion abroad.

The worldwide smartphone market grew 23.1% year-over-year in 2014 setting a record of 295.3 million shipments, reported IDC. The market grew 2.6% sequentially due to strong demand and low-cost smartphones. Next quarter is forecasted to be the first to surpass shipments of 300 million smartphone units worldwide.

[quote text_size=”medium” author=”Melissa Chau” author_title=”Senior Research Manager with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.”]

As the death of the feature phone approaches more rapidly than ever before, it is the Chinese vendors that are ready to usher emerging market consumers into smartphones. The offer of smartphones at a much better value than the top global players but with a stronger build quality and larger scale than local competitors gives these vendors a precarious competitive advantage,

[/quote]

Samsung’s fall is especially troubling given that the measured quarter included the release of the company’s new flagship Galaxy S5. Despite the high-profile launch, Samsung shipped 3 million fewer handsets this year than last year. Chinese brands were the big winners in the second quarter, helped along by the still-significant growth from the domestic market. By far the most impressive was Huawei, nearly doubling its shipments from a year ago, followed by another strong performance from Lenovo.

iCharts

July 31, 2014
Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 inch : Benchmarks and Hardware

Samsung reincarnated Galaxy Tab Series with two powerful devices variants: Galaxy Tab S 10.5 and 8.4. Samsung has beefed up the processor, improved the screen and managed to make it even thinner. We tested Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5’s performance and hardware muscles and here’s what we found:

Galaxy Tab S 10.5 has an impressive line-up of core components. At the heart of this ultra-thin tablet lies a Samsung Exynos 5 Octa SoC, which has eight cores (four running at 1.9GHz, four at 1.3GHz), 3GB of RAM, a base storage allocation of 16GB and Mali-T628 MP6 graphics.

To test benchmarks, we started by running Quadrant Standard on the device. The device performed well up to its hype and got an impressive score of 25,553. The score is quite higher than Galaxy Note PRO 12.2, which stands at 17,396.

Following up, we ran AnTuTu Benchmarks on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5. The device scored 34,270, which is again pretty impressive. While the 8.4 inch variant of Galaxy Tab S lags slightly behind its bigger brother. Also, we ran the device through NinaMark 2 and the tab scored 59.8fps. The number is a little low as compared to other devices available in market such as Asus Nexus 7 and Sony Xperia Tablet Z. The multitouch score of the device was 10 which makes it a wonderful device for QWERTY typing.

Check out our full benchmark and hardware test video of Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 above.

July 26, 2014
Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4 : Benchmarks and Hardware

Following up the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5, we tested the smaller variant: The Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4. One thing that we appreciate a lot is that the Tab S 8.4 is a true little brother of the Tab S 10.5. Both slates have identical specifications, from processor to display resolution and even the internal RAM and storage. What differs is the size of the screen and the battery capacity which are both reduced.

Same as its bigger brother, the 8.4 Tab S variant has a phenomenal display. Running through the Quadrant Benchmark, the device scored 18,362 which little low from its big brother’s score that is 23,553. Anyhow, 8.4 Tab S scores much better that many of the devices in the same price bracket.

Next up is Antutu benchmark, the device scored 29,559 in this test, again lagging behind the 10.5 variant which scored 34,270. Along with that we also ran the device through NinaMark 2 Test scoring 59.1 fps which is quite similar to the 10.5 Tab S which scored a 59.8 fps. Same as the bigger variant, 8.4 variant is also 10 finger multi-touch.

Check out our full benchmark video of Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4 above.

July 26, 2014
Samsung Answers The Galaxy Tab S Back Cover Deformation Issue

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S are one heck of an offering from Samsung. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that they are one of the best tablets out there. The stunning 1600 x 2560 pixels display makes it stand out in the crowd. Both Tab S tablets are sleek, sexy and flauntworthy. But recently one major issue has been troubling some consumers. The beautiful back design is getting deformed due to overheating of the devices. Though it’s not an extensive deformity, it is still noticeable.

The back cover on some Tab S were deforming due to overheating.

It has been speculated that the deformity is caused because of the heat generated by the application processor while running a 1600 x 2560 pixels display. The heat causes the Tab’s sexy back to bulge out in an uncomplimentary manner.

In an official statement issued by Samsung, they have negated this perception saying:

[quote text_size=”small”]

Contrary to certain media reports, the slight disfiguration that has formed on the rear surface of the Galaxy Tab S has been attributed to a limited number of defective back covers, which has no relation to the overheating of the application processor or the material used for the back cover. We would like to assure our customers that we have already resolved the issue. We ask affected customers to please contact their nearest Samsung Electronics customer service center.

[/quote]

Samsung is providing replacement and repairs for the affected customers. Considering the hefty pricing of the tablets, this is the least they could do. Samsung haters can give Samsung a break in this case.

July 22, 2014
Samsung Launches 4G-Equipped Galaxy S5 in India
At the very least, we can give credit to Samsung for understanding the need of the hour. With Airtel and Aircel racing to provide India with 4G cover, Samsung has decided to launch a 4G variant of its Flagship Device at the price of Rs 53,500.

While most of its features remain the same as the 3G S5, some of the key features of the new 4G variant include:
- Qualcomm 8974 Pro 2.5 Ghz processor
- Supports Eight 4G LTE bands support
- Advanced Camera (HDR mode, Selective Focus)
- IP67 protection (Dust and Water Resistant)
- Ultra Power Saving Mode (24 hours standby time with 10% battery)
- Download Booster
- Wi-Fi MIMO
For this device, Samsung and Airtel have tied up and are making a special data offer to Samsung S5 customers. All existing and new Airtel 4G subscribers will get 5GB 4G data/month free for 2 months. The device will be available in India from 20th July in Copper Gold, Charcoal Black and Shimmery White colour options.

One of the impressive features of this phone is the Download Booster. It allows users to access 4G and Wi-Fi simultaneously, resulting in super high connectivity.

All this sounds pretty fancy, but we’d advise recommend you not to make a hasty purchase, since the brand is notorious for reducing its prices.
July 18, 2014
Samsung Enters The “Premium Audio” Market With Its Level Series

By Pranav Arora

Premium headphones seem to be the craze right now. With artists like 50 Cent and Ludacris starting their own brand of headphones, the potential of this market seems to be sky high. Now if you are thinking this is just a move by Samsung to score some of Apple’s market share following the recent Beats acquisition by Apple, you may not be completely right. These headphones started their development long before the Apple-Beats deal had ever happened. Even the announcement took place in April. So no, this isn’t just a cheap shot at Apple.

Samsung’s Level series will take on the giants of Premium Audio business

Level Over sure appears massive on this model

The headphones, on paper at least, look pretty impressive. The lineup is led by the Level Over (Over-ear) headphones, which are priced at $349.99. They feature 50mm drivers with neodymium magnets, to reproduce “deep, powerful and realistic sound”. These are Bluetooth headphones, so no more dangling wires. Other features include NFC pairing, Active Noise Cancellation, and touch panel controls.

These are followed by the $179.99 Level On (On-ear) headphones, a set of foldable, wired cans that promise to deliver “powerful, clear, and pure sound.” These don’t come with the fancy Bluetooth connectivity, or the touch panel controls, but Samsung is hoping that their sound quality will make up for that.

Moving further down, we have the Level In (In-ear) earphones, a pair of $149.99 earphones that aim to deliver “clear sound separation and rich, natural sound quality.”

These look pretty impressive on the design front

Finally we have the Level Box, a portable Bluetooth speaker, that aims to take on a vast array of competitors from Bose, Logitech, Jawbone and unsurprisingly, Beats. It is priced moderately at $169.99, and based on early reviews, delivers nicely in the design and performance departments.

All these may seem good on paper, but Samsung still has a mountain to climb if it plans to trump the massive name that is Beats. It’s going to be pretty hard to sell a pair of headphones for $349.99 without the massive ‘b’ logo on them, and it seems like Samsung will have to use all of their advertising muscle that they’ve become known for.

The Level Series looks like a good start, and we’ll just have to wait and watch how they sell. They’re currently only on sale at luxury store Gilt in the United States, but Samsung will surely expand to a wider market soon, as they have done in the case of their smartphones.

July 18, 2014
Samsung Launches The Galaxy Core 2

Samsung has launched the Galaxy Core 2 device in India today. The phone is a successor of the Galaxy Core and will compete in the mid segment market.

The phone is powered by a 1.2 GHz quad core processor with a 768 MB RAM. The Core 2 has a 4.5 inch WVGA display. There are 4 GB’s for internal storage and runs Android KitKat with Samsung’s Touchwiz UI. The cameras on the device are a 5 Megapixel shooter with auto focus and an LED flash on the back and a 0.3 megapixel VGA cam in the front.

The Dual SIM Galaxy Core 2 is powered by 2000 mAh battery that Samsung claims gives 30 days of stand by power on 2G networks and half of that on 3G networks.

On the look front, the phones minimal curves make it visually appealing. The Core has a Galaxy Note 3 like leather-ish back cover. This surely makes the device look classy. The device comes in Black and White color options.

It is priced at Rs. 11,900, which is quite hefty when compared to the competition. With competitors like Xiaomi and Asus bringing phones in the same price points, Samsung needs to up its game, if it wants to maintain its brand standing and prevent its graph from tumbling.

July 15, 2014