Fashion
Smartphone shipments are expected to fall by over 10% this year because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The situation is affecting all brands yet it seems Samsung is in an even tougher position following the poor reception of the Galaxy S20 series.
Samsung has been betting heavily on 5G-ready smartphones ever since it announced the premium Galaxy S10 5G in early 2019. That phone was eventually followed by the Galaxy Note 10+ 5G and the Galaxy A90 5G, two very expensive offerings.
This year the strategy is all about taking the technology mainstream. The South Korean giant has already introduced the Galaxy A51 5G and Galaxy A71 5G, priced at $499 and $599 respectively, but is now expected to double down on next-gen network support.
The exact plans remain unclear at this stage but Samsung is reportedly working on an updated Galaxy A series that incorporates even more 5G-ready smartphones. Crucially, these will be even cheaper in the hope of attracting consumers on tighter budgets.
The global financial crisis is going to make selling smartphones this year harder than ever – global sales tumbled a humongous 38% annually in February – and Samsung along with other top manufacturers aren’t under any illusions that the worst is behind them.
But Samsung does believe that, if something is going to convince people to upgrade in 2020, it will be 5G. After all, next-gen networks grant access to unprecedented upload and download speeds that make cloud gaming and video streaming, among other things, easier and more seamless than ever.
