Samsung’s new ‘flagship budget’ phones emerge as major revenue drivers, taking aim at Apple and Google [Daily IT Item]

[Financial News] Samsung Electronics is launching new models in its budget "Samsung Galaxy A series" in global markets, intensifying competition with Apple and Google in the affordable smartphone segment.
According to industry sources on the 7th, Samsung Electronics will begin rolling out the "Samsung Galaxy A37" and "Samsung Galaxy A57 5G" from the 10th in markets including the United States, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Brazil, and Southeast Asia. The Samsung Galaxy A series offers key features from the flagship Samsung Galaxy S series while keeping prices lower, positioning them as strong value-for-money phones.
The Samsung Galaxy A57 5G is expected to feature a 6.6‐inch display with a 120‐hertz (Hz) refresh rate. It will be powered by the Exynos 1680 mobile application processor (AP). The rear camera setup will include a 50‐megapixel wide camera, a 12‐megapixel ultra‐wide camera, and a 5‐megapixel macro camera. The phone will pack a 5,000‐milliampere‐hour (mAh) battery and support 45‐watt (W) wired fast charging.
The Samsung Galaxy A37 will come with a 6.7‐inch display and a 120 Hz refresh rate. It will be equipped with an Exynos 1480 chipset, along with a 50‐megapixel wide camera, an 8‐megapixel ultra‐wide camera, and a 5‐megapixel macro camera.
Both models will feature "Awesome Intelligence," an AI platform dedicated to the Samsung Galaxy A series.
The Samsung Galaxy A series, known for its strong price‐to‐performance ratio, has become a major revenue driver for Samsung Electronics. According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung had five models ranked between fifth and ninth among the world’s top 10 best‐selling smartphones in the third quarter of last year. All of them were from the Samsung Galaxy A series: the Samsung Galaxy A16 5G, Samsung Galaxy A06, Samsung Galaxy A36, Samsung Galaxy A56, and Samsung Galaxy A16 4G.
However, surging component costs, including memory semiconductors, are pushing new model prices higher than their predecessors. The Samsung Galaxy A57 5G will launch in the United States at 549 dollars (about 820,000 won), up 50 dollars from the previous model. The Samsung Galaxy A37 will also see a 50‐dollar increase, debuting at 449 dollars. Counterpoint Research forecasts that in the 400‐ to 600‐dollar smartphone segment with 8‐gigabyte (GB) DRAM and 256 GB storage, the cost share of DRAM and NAND will rise from 14% and 11% in the first quarter of this year to 20% and 16% in the second quarter.
Global manufacturers are racing to release budget smartphones that combine low prices with near‐flagship performance, tightening their grip on profitability.
Recently, Google launched its budget smartphone "Google Pixel 10a," powered by the Google Tensor G4, at a retail price of 499 dollars (about 740,000 won). The Google Tensor G4 is the latest chipset used in Google’s flagship "Google Pixel 9" series. Apple has also released the iPhone 17e at 599 dollars (about 890,000 won). While the price remains the same as its predecessor, the base storage has been upgraded from 128 GB to 256 GB.
An industry insider said, "Performance in budget smartphones is being significantly upgraded as more AI features are added," adding, "Demand is growing for mid‐priced devices that remain relatively affordable."
mkchang@fnnews.com Jang Min-kwon Reporter