To Better Compete with iPhone
Qualcomm’s most powerful application processor (AP) will go into all models of the Galaxy S23 smartphone series, which are scheduled to come out in February next year. Samsung Electronics made the decision in consideration of a slowdown in global smartphone sales and performance controversies that arose when the previous model was released.
Samsung plans to officially launch the Galaxy S23 around mid-February of 2023. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 AP produced by TSMC using a 4-nm process node will power this new smartphone model.
The company has used different APs for Galaxy S series smartphones depending on their sales region. In the case of the Galaxy S22, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 was used for the smartphones for Korea, the United States, China and India, and the Exynos 2200 for products for the European Union (EU). Putting 100 percent of Qualcomm chips in the Galaxy S23 shows the Korean smartphone giant’s intention to block a possible quality controversy, analysts say.
They forecast that the top-end Galaxy S23 model will be equipped with new 200-megapixel image sensor ISOCell HP2 (tentative name). The image sensor is a semiconductor that acts as a camera’s eye. ISOCELL HP2 is of Samsung Electronics’ own development and is known as an upgraded version of a 200-megapixel image sensor recently supplied to Xiaomi.
Samsung Electronics’ strong will to increase its share in the premium smartphone market is reflected in the use of high-end hardware parts in the Galaxy S23, they say.
Currently, the global smartphone market is going through a slump. According to market research firm Counterpoint Research, global smartphone shipments totaled 301 million units in the third quarter of this year, down 12 percent from the same period of 2021.
However, it is a different story in the premium smartphone market. In the third quarter, premium smartphone sales grew by more than 10 percent. They say that the impacts of a global economic slowdown in the consumption market clearly divided the smartphone market into a luxury model segment and a budget model segment.
Apple is the leader in the premium smartphone market. Based on November shipments in the second quarter, Apple took a 57 percent share against Samsung's 19 percent. Samsung is speeding up its pursuit of Apple with the Galaxy Z series, a specialized model with a folding display. But they say that it still has a long way to go to overtake Apple.
Samsung plans to differentiate its smartphones by boosting the competitiveness of their hardware, the main strength of its smartphones, to a level that overwhelms those of models from other companies.
Samsung Electronics’ MX Division is expected to continue its close business relationship with Qualcomm to secure the highest level in smartphone hardware competitiveness.
Apple, which has a big strength in software, is currently focusing on improving the competitiveness of parts such as displays and semiconductors. Analyses have found that Apple’s self-developed AP “A” overwhelms APs for Android phones.