Samsung, the South Korean company is having its moment. Since it first debuted its phablet in 2011 – the 5.3-inch Galaxy Note, a smartphone as big as a mini tablet, the company’s heyday has not surfaced yet. The device was torn between a phone and a tablet, or as a big joke. People would be put in an awkward position when using the Note as a phone. Boy Genius Report, a blog for the smartphone industry, called Galaxy Note a “useles phone” and added that people talking on it would look stupid. It was implied that buying the Note would make you unhappy. Gizmodo also argued that the device is not just poorly designed, but hardly designed for humans.
Despite the negative first impressions, Notes’ sales reached 10 million in 2012, placing it among the most successful launches in the history of smartphones. Samsung then introduced Galaxy Note II, a larger-screen upgraded version which sold 3 million in less than two months. Its success spawned copycats and the phablet became one of the hottest categories of smartphone.
Christopher Mims argued at Quartz that even though the phablet looks ridiculous, it is affordable to those with limited budgets; a better match than having two devices. Mims said it is on its way to becoming a computing device in the developing world. He believes that the success story of Note may force Apple to build a rival phablet.
Samsung’s willingness to try anything is its exemplified brilliance. By building various models in different categories, the gadget manufacturer is making everything – tablets, phones, washing machines, refrigerators. As long as the device meets its level of quality, the company is able to kill failures and succeeds with great marketing to push itself eventually at the top of a dynamic tech enterprise.
Its strategy suits the current era of technology. The world switches from desktop to mobile, from bigger apps to sleek ones, from limited storage to unlimited storage areas in the cloud. Samsung’s dominance comes from the firm’s wise response to Apple’s iPhone. When the iPhone shoot up sales in 2007, the other smartphone titans like RIM and Nokia sort of ignored it.
However, Samsung saw the opportunity of what the consumers wanted. Some of Samsung’s touch screen phones were akin to the iPhone such as the 2010 Galaxy S, and the devices worked well and werepriced right. Same was the story of tablets which were the Korean manufacturer’s response to iPad. The company hones its tech prowess by improving its workmanship and design along the way, with devices that work well like those of Apple’s, but do not look like Apple clones anymore.
The company has shown its guts – its willingness to try anything, even at the risk of facing patent lawsuits. Their being ubiquitous is welcomed by those who do not love Apple so much. They declared Samsung devices as friendly and great alternatives to the world’s cultish brand. With their functionalities, Samsung’s gadgets are good communication tools for many businesses, and they are practically priced too.
Blog By Judith Aparri
Source:
Slate
Image courtesy of Kārlis Dambrāns – Flickr License