The Galaxy expands: Samsung continues unimaginative run with Galaxy S5 mini

Samsung might have a big lead over Apple and other players in terms of global smartphone shipments but their global marketshare for Q1 2014 paints a different picture. Samsung held a market share of 31% in Q1, down from the 32 percent it had last year. Even in terms of sales, the company is ceding ground to competitors in the mid-range segment. So why is it that a company that has nearly doubled its shipment from last year, suffering a decline in market share?

Apart from stiff competition from brands like Lenovo and Huawei, we feel Samsung’s unimaginative approach towards churning out smartphones could be the reason why consumers are looking elsewhere. Another reason is that brands such as Micromax, Lava and Karbonn have also caught up in terms of hardware and features.

Take for example, the recent slew of Galaxy smartphone releases. Yesterday, Samsung made the Galaxy S5 mini official and in true Samsung fashion, it comes with heavily watered down specifications. Let’s not kid ourselves here; the only stand out feature in the S5 is the camera so you’d imagine that would be part of a product with the name ‘S5’ in it? Right? Wrong. The mini gets a measly 8MP  camera sensor, which is a disappointment in itself. It seems Sony is the only company who have managed to grasp the idea of mini flagship with the Z1 Compact.

Samsung’s lower-end offerings aren’t much to write home about either. They recently launched four new budget Android phones with KitKat, in the hopes to steal some thunder from the Moto E. But once quick glance at the specifications and we wonder why anyone would ever consider them. And it’s not about the Assuming they’re all priced under Rs 10,000, that’s just too many SKU’s under such a cramped price bracket to begin with. And then you also have to consider their existing phones in the market, which will continue to sell along side this.

If that wasn’t enough, Google’s Android One platform could be the final nail in the coffin. At I/O 2014, Google outlined this special programme in which it’s working closely with manufacturers like Micromax, Spice, Karbonn in order to deliver a ‘Nexus-like’ experience for under $100. The programme will adopt strict guidelines in terms of features and quality standards to which all manufacturers will have to adhere to. This means, the newer batch of Android phones from these brands will continue to hit the same aggressive price points, except that they’ll now have Google guiding them to deliver a Moto E-like software experience, which currently doesn’t exist in this price bracket.

The problem with Samsung is that there doesn’t seem to be any focus on doing things right. It’s like throwing a handful of darts at once, hoping that a few will stick to the board. And then there’s the sheer amount of variants for just a single SKU across the globe. No wonder they can’t keep up with software updates.

This dip in market share however is a tell-tale sign that Samsung needs to re-evaluate their strategy when it comes to smartphones. It’s great to have a presence in all price segments but it’s also equally important to have the right device, which Samsung does not have, except in the high-end segment.