Samsung on Wednesday announced the launch of Galaxy S22 series smartphones which feature enhanced camera functions and a faster processor chip.
The S22 series will compete with Apple’s iPhone 13 launched last September. Apple sold iPhones worth $71.28 billion in the December quarter of 2021.
Chipset major Qualcomm said its Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is powering Samsung’s Galaxy S22 series in select regions and Galaxy Tab S8 series globally, to enable cutting-edge 5G, AI, gaming, camera, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies.
“A combined Ultra and Note was widely expected after Note phones disappeared from Samsung’s line-up last year. Merging these two phones allows Samsung to navigate ongoing supply chain and component shortage issues, as well as address a growing category of users who demand high productivity combined with entertainment from their devices,” Anisha Bhatia, Senior Analyst at GlobalData, said.
Aggressive carrier promotions amounting to $1,000 off the sales price will make the flagship phones nearly free, helping them gain sales traction.
According to GlobalData, 5G mobile service revenues in North America will reach $195.7 billion by 2026. Carriers will continue to use Samsung and Apple 5G phones to upsell premium service plans to 5G phone consumers.
Samsung’s two-track premium mobile strategy has it launching flagship models in the first half of a year and Galaxy Z foldable phones in the second.
Samsung said the S22 smartphones’ camera offers clearer low light and night shots as well as automatic framing that can track up to 10 people, ensuring they are all in the frame and in focus.
Samsung’s S22 Ultra comes with a stylus – a signature feature of Samsung’s large-screen Galaxy Note model which many fans and analysts now believe to be discontinued.
While Samsung saw sales of smartphones drop off during the pandemic, rival Apple logged sales gains. Samsung’s smartphone shipment touched 272 million for 20.1 percent share in 2021 vs Apple shipment of 235.7 million for 17.4 percent share.
The Galaxy S suite of products usually sells more than 30 million units annually. But it logged less than 25 million in 2020 and a little less than 30 million last year, hampered in part by component shortages, said Jene Park, a senior analyst at research firm Counterpoint.
“We believe that Samsung will ship more than 15 million units of the Galaxy S22 family in the first half of 2022. If the initial sell-through is good we can expect it to reach 30 million units in 2022,” Jene Park said.
A global semiconductor shortage is expected to continue into this year but analysts predict Samsung will fare better than many rivals thanks to its huge buying power and strong grip on its supply chain.
Samsung said the S22 Ultra, S22 Plus and S22 will be widely available starting Feb. 25.
In the United States, the Galaxy S22 will be priced from $799.99, the S22 Plus at $999.99 and the S22 Ultra at $1,199.99.
