A study claims that Samsung sold more smartphones with LCD screen than with AMOLED screen in 2021. The sales volume of terminals with LCD screen increased by 41% in 2021. This trend reflects Samsung’s desire to be more competitive in the face of Chinese competition which has largely taken over the entry-level market. But it also shows the need to control costs vis-à-vis the shortage of components.
For more than 10 years, Samsung has been actively involved in the democratization of AMOLED technology in mobile telephony. Some very accessible models in the catalog of the Korean brand take advantage of this technology. the Galaxy A22 4G for example, or le Galaxy A32 4G, both released in 2021, are two such examples. And we expected until now that this trend would continue.
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This is however not the case. Indeed, according to the Omdia research institute, quoted by the Korean site The Elec, Samsung sold in 2021 fewer smartphones with AMOLED screen than with LCD screen. 135.1 million units for the first category. 135,8 millions for the second. This is due on the one hand to a drop in the first category, of 15%, but also to a 41% increase of the second.
Samsung chooses more LCD screens on its affordable smartphones
The difference is even more obvious in the segment of smartphones sold under $400: 68.7% of terminals sold in 2021 in this category are equipped with an LCD panel. The firm’s revenues in this category have increased sharply to reach 20 billion dollars. It is therefore not a mere market coincidence: Samsung therefore prefers to equip its affordable smartphones with LCD screens.
The reasons are not technological, of course. They are economical. The research institute explains that Samsung wants improve its prices vis-à-vis the Chinese competition. The latter nibbles Samsung’s market share every year, especially in the affordable segment. We think in particular to Redmi and Realme. But that’s not Samsung’s only motivation. The Korean firm also opts for cheaper LCD panels in order to offset the rise in the price of components in a context of scarcity.
Competition and shortages are therefore the two reasons for increasing the presence of LCD screens in Samsung’s entry-level terminals. A reinforcement which is confirmed by the way at the start of the year: Samsung presented the Galaxy A13, A23, F23 et M23. And none benefits from an AMOLED screen. Recall that the predecessor of the Galaxy A23 was equipped with it. It remains to be seen whether this trend will also affect more expensive terminals, such as the future Galaxy A33.
Source : The Elec