Samsung Electronics Co Ltd , the world's biggest mobile phone maker,
unveiled new versions of its Galaxy Note smartphone on Wednesday after
previous design miscues cost it customers in the large-screen phone
market it pioneered. The new Galaxy Note 4 features a crisper,
5.7-inch display in a metal frame, reflecting Samsung's latest design
strategy to keep pace with rivals including Apple Inc, which is expected
to launch its first large-screen phones next week.
The new
model offers accessories designed to attract gamers and an improved pen
stylus and related software as a handwriting alternative to typing on a
keyboard. It boasts easier to use multi-tasking features that take
advantage of its large screen.
The Note 4 is key to a recovery
by Samsung Electronics, which faced initial derision at the idea of
callers holding elephantine screens up to their ears. Since the Note's
introduction in 2011, it has made 5-inch and larger screen sizes the
standard for high-end phones as usage shifted overwhelmingly to reading
and writing texts and emails or documents, using apps, watching movies
or playing games rather than calling.
Mobile phone analysts
said that, while packed full of hundreds of features and many of the
latest hardware specs, there is little in the Note 4 to excite new
users.
"I think this is mostly an incremental change,"
Forrester analyst Thomas Husson said. "What is missing is a total
experience on top of the device to really differentiate in the
interchangeable Android device ecosystem," he said, referring to the
closely coupled software and services Samsung needs to distinguish its
devices from dozens of cheaper rivals.
Samsung Electronics'
operating profit fell to a two-year low in the second quarter as it lost
market share, despite still shipping nearly a third of all smartphones
worldwide.
Research firm Canalys says Samsung lost its title as
No. 1 smartphone player in China, the world's biggest market, to Xiaomi
Inc during the April-June quarter. It continued to lose market share in
other emerging markets, analysts say, undercut in part by rivals
producing increasingly attractive products at much lower prices in the
lower end of the market.
Part of the blame goes to the Galaxy
S5, which is seen widely as a disappointment since its global launch in
April. Research firm Counterpoint estimates the flagship premium phone
was outsold by the much older Apple iPhone 5S in May, and analysts say
it failed to deliver major improvements from its predecessor.
Needing a big hit
While the new Note device appears to meet expectations on key features
such as the quad high-definition display and a 16-megapixel rear-facing
camera, the improvements are incremental and suggest further struggles
ahead for Samsung to differentiate its product, especially with
large-screen iPhones on the way.
"It is an acknowledgement that
Samsung took a wrong turn with the move into plastic cases and that its
designs didn't move fast enough to keep pace with many competitors,"
said Ben Wood, a mobile industry analyst with UK-based CCS Insight.
"The importance of metal cases is that it directly translates into bigger, edge-to-edge screens," he said.
(The curved display of a Samsung Galaxy Note edge is pictured during an 'Unpacked event' at the IFA)
Samsung also showed off a limited-edition version of the Note with a
curved edge screen on one of the phone's sides, helping users to stay
focused on their main screen without having to respond to calendar
reminders or incoming emails.
It demonstrated a Virtual Reality
headset that turns the Note 4 into the sort of immersive gaming
platform once confined to consoles.
The Korean electronics
giant says it will get more aggressive on pricing and focus on a
narrower set of products for its mid-to-low tier products. The moves
could help Samsung staunch a loss of market share but would inevitably
undercut profit margins.
Source: The Times of India
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