Global sales of 53.2 million units in two months of iPhone 12 series launch
Early release of new Samsung and LG products to contain iPhone solo
Expert “Price and camera optimization are important”
[오피니언뉴스=정세진 기자] In response to the worldwide popularity of the iPhone 12 series, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics accelerated the release schedule of the new smartphone. This is an extraordinary measure taken to put a brake on the solo global market of iPhone 12.
According to market research firm Counterpoint Research on the 22nd of last month, iPhone 12 ranked first with 16% of the global 5G smartphone market share in October last year. The second place was also the iPhone 12 Pro, which took 8% of the market share. This is an achievement that was achieved two weeks after its launch in mid-October last year. The sum of the 1st and 2nd largest share of the iPhone 12 was 24%. According to market research firm Strategy Analytics, the iPhone 12 series sold 52.3 million units in just two months after launch.
On the other hand, in the case of Samsung Electronics’ smartphones,’Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G’ ranked 3rd with 4% in the global market last October, and’Galaxy Note S20′ and’Galaxy Note S20 Plus’ recorded 2% market share, respectively. It was ranked 9th. The combined market share is only 6%, and the gap with the iPhone 12 is about a quarter.
According to the market research firm Strategy Analytics (SA), last year, Samsung Electronics took the first place in the global smartphone market with an estimated market share of 19.5%. However, after recording 19.9% in 2011, the wall in the 20% market was broken for the first time.
Although it was the first product to be released in the 5G smartphone market, the overall smartphone market share declined due to an increase in sales of the iPhone 12 series in mid-October last year.
LG Electronics also decided to unveil its new flagship phone, a rollable phone, at ‘2021 CES (International Electronics Show)’ two months after the LG Wing was launched.
LG Wing, launched in November last year, introduced a new form factor (device type), but the market response was below the target. The maximum publicly disclosed subsidy was only 240,000 won at the beginning of the launch, but on the 2nd, LG U+ raised the subsidy for the LG Wing to a maximum of 500,000 won. As the sales of LG Wing were sluggish, it is known that LG Uplus, an affiliate, has significantly raised the disclosure subsidies to exhaust inventory.
Samsung launches faster than a month…LG also unveils rollable phones
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics cannot see only the popularity of the iPhone 12 series. Both companies plan to unveil the new smartphones earlier than scheduled to check the iPhone 12 series. On the 15th (Korean time), Samsung Electronics announced a global simultaneous’Galaxy S21′ public event online. Samsung Electronics held a public event for the Galaxy S series every year from February to March and officially released it from March to April. By convention, it’s faster than two months.
LG Electronics is also expected to unveil a prototype of’LG Rollable (tentative name)’ on the 11th at 2021 CES ahead of official release in March with the aim of commercializing the world’s first rollable phone.
Ahead of the official launch event, the Galaxy S21 and LG Rollable specifications were largely released to foreign media and Twitter. According to the IT media, Phone Arena, the Galaxy S21 series consists of three types: Galaxy S21 (basic), S21 Plus, and S21 Ultra.
The estimated price is $899 (about 1 million won) for the Galaxy S21, $1099 (about 1.2 million won) for the Galaxy S21+ (plus), and $1349 (about 1.47 million won) for the Galaxy S21 Ultra. The Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Plus were cut by about $100 (about KRW 110,000) compared to the previous one, and the Galaxy S21 Ultra was cut by $50 (about KRW 50,000).
Currently, the factory price of the iPhone 12 (128G) is 1155,000 won, and the iPhone 12 Pro Max (128GB) is about 144,000 won. Looking at the price alone, the Galaxy S21 is cheaper than the basic model.
Design changes are also detected. The Galaxy S21 and Plus models have a’flat display’ with a flat side of the screen, while the Galaxy S21 Ultra models have an edge-shaped display with a curved side of the screen. In the previous work, edge displays were applied to all models.
In addition, the Ultra model seems to support the S Pen, which was only provided for the Note series. According to German IT media Onepure, the’S Pen’ can also be used on the Galaxy S21 Ultra model. In the Note series, you can use the S Pen to adjust the music viewing rate through gestures or flip through photos in the gallery without touching the display. This function is expected to be applied to the Galaxy S21 Ultra.
‘Samsung and Apple’, and’LG’, which have won the game with a camera, strengthen the form factor
In addition, Samsung Electronics unveiled the camera module at an invitation to the Galaxy S21 series public event. It emphasizes the camera performance that is being strengthened in recent flagship smartphones. The top model, the Galaxy S21 Ultra, has four cameras on the back.
It is reported that, along with the 18 million-pixel main camera applied to the previous Galaxy S20 Ultra, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, two 10-megapixel telephoto cameras, and a flight distance measurement sensor (Tof) are included. ToF is a sensor that helps to make portraits stand out because it can focus on the subject and blur the background.
The emphasis on the camera function seems to be considering competition with the iPhone 12 series. As the smartphone form factor (device type) is leveled upward, manufacturers are trying to differentiate themselves by reinforcing camera functions of strategic smartphones.
The camera performance of the iPhone 12 series, which was evaluated as having no major innovation compared to the previous work, also improved significantly. The difference between the basic model and the pro model of the iPhone 12 is the type and quantity of cameras installed. The basic iPhone 12 and Mini have two cameras.
The iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max have a total of three camera lenses, one wide-angle, ultra-wide, and telephoto camera. The iPhone 12 Pro Max is equipped with a triple camera (wide angle, ultra wide angle, telephoto camera) and a lidar scanner. The lidar scanner helps to implement night photography and augmented reality (AR) by measuring the time it takes for light to hit an object and then return to it.
Myung-seop Song, a researcher at Hi Investment & Securities, explained, “As the form factor becomes difficult to differentiate, the camera is now a feature that can highlight product specifications.”
In this situation, LG Electronics is challenging form factor innovation. The rollable phone to be unveiled on the 11th is equipped with a rollable OLED display that is rolled out for the first time in the world.
According to data released on the Android developer site, the LG Rollable is usually used as a smartphone with a size of 6.8 inches (aspect ratio of 20 to 9), and a 7.4-inch display appears when you grab the right side of the screen and stretch it.
It is transforming from a smartphone to a tablet PC. It supports phone mode and video mode depending on the screen size and ratio. Information on new IT new products Tron (leader) Tron claimed through Twitter that the estimated price of LG Rollable is $2359 (about 2.59 million won).
This is about 200,000 won more expensive than Samsung Electronics’ foldable phone’Galaxy Z Fold 2′. The domestic price of the Galaxy Z Fold 2 released this year was 2398,000 won.
“S21, take away Huawei share and compete with Apple”
Stock prices analyze that as the smartphone form factor is leveled upward, manufacturers are making a difference with the camera function of the flagship model.
“There is an exchange cost between IOS and Google Android, which is an iPhone operating system,” said Eui-young Ko, a researcher at Hi Investment & Securities. “Since customer loyalty to the iOS is high, the Galaxy S21 is expected to bring the market share of Huawei or Xiaomi after launch.” Said.
He added, “Huawei is under sanctions and Samsung flagship model competitiveness is strong, so I think it is advantageous against Xiaomi and Huawei.”
Kim Ji-san, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, said, “Rather than taking the iPhone 12 customers directly, I think Samsung will compete with Apple by taking Huawei’s share through the early release of S21.”
Kim Gyeong-rok, researcher at Hana Financial Investment, said, “In the case of LG rollable phones, we believe that the brand image is built rather than aimed at high sales volume.” “By using a variant form factor in the market, we can see the effect of brand recognition on the flagship model.” did.
Researcher Ko said, “After LG failed as a wing, it seems that it has set out to build a brand image by challenging a new form factor called Rollable.” “The form factor called Rollable attracts attention and makes consumers aware of the LG brand when choosing a smartphone. It will be” he added.
Reporter Jeong Se-jin[email protected]
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