Samsung Electronics Forecasts 60% Fall In Quarterly Profit

[katchytitle]

Had s samsung samrt phone for around 4 years. Paid contract off almost 2 years ago and been sim only since then, pay around £12 a month.

My phone just packed up 2 weeks ago and bought the Samsung S4 for £300 new, unlocked so can move to a new sim package anytime I like.

A fair bit cheaper than having the latest phone.

The cost of phones and the £30-£40 pcm 2 year contracts has ensured I'm not buying into their perpetual contract nonsense any more.

You can just get a clone android smart phone for $30 - $160 no contract. They literally cost almost nothing to make - like DVD players. Its just the marketing that you're paying for and those wonderful apps that no one uses...like S Calendar and S Note

http://www.everbuying.com/Wholesale-Unlocked-Phones-c-23.html

[StainlessSteelCat]

Previous attempts all needed cables - big turn off. Now have wireless, 4/8 core low powered processors, battery tech to suit and light weight - headset can be a plastic moulding with a few sensors and top end smart phone. Will need to carry along the games developers though, that is the key. Currently the games developers are not havign a great time on the trad games machines, PC games or mobiles (which is tailing off rapidly apart from the top few titles), hence I think they will jump at any chance for a new market primed for growth.

I guess I'm hoping/expecting for something more immersive touch wise and that has wider applications than gaming.

[The Knimbies who say No]

Samsing have had a good rin, it wasn't all that long ago that they were an also-ran, the transformation into a company whos own brand goods are market leaders or close to it in tellies, phones and DVD players is pretty impressive. But they are now there to be shot at and and maybe discovering that being a dominant player brings different challenges than those faced by an improving brand gaining traction.

[Dorkins]

They arent rentiers. I am using a Samsung galaxy 3 tablet right now, its brilliant. I dont need to upgrade for a long time.

A drug company will make a drug that manages the symptoms, month after month, year after year, theres no money in a cure.

That's pretty silly, of course there's money in cures. If all your competitors are selling drugs that treat symptoms and you are selling a drug that cures and so will cost less over the lifetime of the patient, which one do you think the NHS is going to buy?

[Andy T]

Personally, I have just jumped back to Apple as I picked up a secondhand 32GB iPhone 5 for under £100 on eBay. It has a far better camera than any of the rivals, even the new ones, at that price - and that was the thing I realised I wanted most - a smartphone which does the basics well enough but has a great camera.

That's the way to do it. I have a used HTC bought on ebay 3 years ago, does the job fine.

I think its the minority approach though, my 18 year-old niece, who already had an Iphone 5 on contract, spent her new student loan on a gold iphone 6, £200 upfront then £50 a month for two years. First weekend out, a pickpocket steals it from her bag, she thinks. Turns out the phone is not insured - I always assumed insurance was included and had to be taken on these contracts(?) Obviously the phone shop, and police are not interested in her plight, so she'll be paying £1400 over two years for nothing, kids eh?

[Errol]

I think its the minority approach though, my 18 year-old niece, who already had an Iphone 5 on contract, spent her new student loan on a gold iphone 6, £200 upfront then £50 a month for two years. First weekend out, a pickpocket steals it from her bag, she thinks. Turns out the phone is not insured - I always assumed insurance was included and had to be taken on these contracts(?) Obviously the phone shop, and police are not interested in her plight, so she'll be paying £1400 over two years for nothing, kids eh?

A very good lesson, and one she'll be glad to have paid for in the years to come. She will learn more about money through this episode than through years of normal living.

[interestrateripoff]

That's the way to do it. I have a used HTC bought on ebay 3 years ago, does the job fine.

I think its the minority approach though, my 18 year-old niece, who already had an Iphone 5 on contract, spent her new student loan on a gold iphone 6, £200 upfront then £50 a month for two years. First weekend out, a pickpocket steals it from her bag, she thinks. Turns out the phone is not insured - I always assumed insurance was included and had to be taken on these contracts(?) Obviously the phone shop, and police are not interested in her plight, so she'll be paying £1400 over two years for nothing, kids eh?

Wow £50 a month and no insurance!!!!!

Still only £1400. Although surely she can get a new sim issued, although that still means she'll have to buy a new phone.

[Corruption]

Ive just ordered a One plus One phone, similar spec as the Iphones but with a far longer battery life and at 269GBP is half the price.

Though i am aware that buying this expensive product is pretty much the sole reason on why i cant afford an ok house.

Edited October 8, 2014 by Corruption

[Andy T]

A very good lesson, and one she'll be glad to have paid for in the years to come. She will learn more about money through this episode than through years of normal living.

very true, even if she doesn't know it yet!

Wow £50 a month and no insurance!!!!!

Still only £1400. Although surely she can get a new sim issued, although that still means she'll have to buy a new phone.

She has got a replacement sim from the supplier, no joy doing a deal with them on a new handset so far, and I doubt she will settle for something second hand!

What do phone thieves do with them anyway, the handset becomes blocked/disabled when reported, do they sell them on the street soon after, or do they sell them on ebay without being traced and get away with it? or do they hope that the owner doesn't have the phone blocked?

[Ash4781]

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/oct/30/samsung-smartphone-overhaul-profits-plunge

These fast moving consumer goods markets are breathtaking to observe. (Remember Nokia and BlackBerry). No wonder Apple came out said they would never make a cheap iphone. It looks like the Chinese production will cause margins to implode and presumably Samsung need a change in strategy as they are reported to be overhauling their lineup.

[StainlessSteelCat]

That's the way to do it. I have a used HTC bought on ebay 3 years ago, does the job fine.

I think its the minority approach though, my 18 year-old niece, who already had an Iphone 5 on contract, spent her new student loan on a gold iphone 6, £200 upfront then £50 a month for two years. First weekend out, a pickpocket steals it from her bag, she thinks. Turns out the phone is not insured - I always assumed insurance was included and had to be taken on these contracts(?) Obviously the phone shop, and police are not interested in her plight, so she'll be paying £1400 over two years for nothing, kids eh?

I'm sorry for her obviously. But quite cheap as such lessons go, and a good age to learn it. I lost a portable CD player at a similar age. Turned around to help a mate for a few minutes, and the scrote opposite carefully unplugged it and buggered off with it. Two days old, and £100 gone (which was worth a lot more in the early 90s). Basically, no good deed goes unpunished as there is always some green eyed scumbag ready to take advantage.

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/oct/30/samsung-smartphone-overhaul-profits-plunge

These fast moving consumer goods markets are breathtaking to observe. (Remember Nokia and BlackBerry). No wonder Apple came out said they would never make a cheap iphone. It looks like the Chinese production will cause margins to implode and presumably Samsung need a change in strategy as they are reported to be overhauling their lineup.

I'm not quite sure I agree with Samsung's analysis of people waiting to buy the iPhone in lieu of Samsung's latest. People don't tend to jump ship from Android to iOS on a whim.

I think unless you own the entire ecosystem (which no Android manufacturer except Google does) profits on hardware are going to trend towards zero due massive extra capacity in China (as well as a large market). Samsung's had a good run - but if I were them I'd be considering my exit strategy from mobile as it's a war of attrition from here on. Apple too probably have cause to worry over the slightly longer term as the price difference between them and the Android equivalent grows larger.

Edited October 31, 2014 by StainlessSteelCat

[Ash4781]

Wall street journal are reporting S5 sales are 40% off internal expectations and they are planning change at the top of the mobile division. Also reports off massive stock inventory buildup.

[bendy]

Wall street journal are reporting S5 sales are 40% off internal expectations and they are planning change at the top of the mobile division. Also reports off massive stock inventory buildup.

That’ll end up in landfill!

The financier/legal elite need to stop these pesky technical science folk from finding ever more efficient materials and processes. What use is planned obsolescence if there’s a team of nerds always trying to outwit you? Those consumer groups are similar as well – the plebs should realise that if an item breaks after it’s been opened then there’s no reason to expect a refund, it’d make profit forecasting and achieving bonuses so much simpler for the execs!

Edited November 25, 2014 by bendy

[interestrateripoff]

That’ll end up in landfill!

The financier/legal elite need to stop these pesky technical science folk from finding ever more efficient materials and processes. What use is planned obsolescence if there’s a team of nerds always trying to outwit you? Those consumer groups are similar as well – the plebs should realise that if an item breaks after it’s been opened then there’s no reason to expect a refund, it’d make profit forecasting and achieving bonuses so much simpler for the execs!

Now a product can be obsolete before it's even in the shops....

It would appear the S4 mini is now being reduced in price, seems to have come down about £100+ in 4 months since I last looked.

[Ash4781]

Thatll end up in landfill!

The financier/legal elite need to stop these pesky technical science folk from finding ever more efficient materials and processes. What use is planned obsolescence if theres a team of nerds always trying to outwit you? Those consumer groups are similar as well the plebs should realise that if an item breaks after its been opened then theres no reason to expect a refund, itd make profit forecasting and achieving bonuses so much simpler for the execs!

It appears Amazon have mountains of stock of their Fire phone. Massive discounts to consumers and a writedown of 170mn US dollars due to unsold stock. The reports are that in the Black Friday deal will put phone at 199 $. Seem to also be collapsing tablet prices.

[MarkG]

I think unless you own the entire ecosystem (which no Android manufacturer except Google does) profits on hardware are going to trend towards zero due massive extra capacity in China (as well as a large market).

I recently got a new Samsung phone for work. The biggest problem with it is all the crap Samsung slap on top of Android to try to lock in users.

The other big problem is that Google still refuse to give users any useful control over Android app permissions, so most of them ask for access to everything and you can only accept it or not install the app. If I was buying a phone for myself, it would have to be an iPhone or Blackberry for that reason alone. I'd have done that anyway, but need some special Android apps for work use.

Edited November 26, 2014 by MarkG

[The Masked Tulip]

Wall street journal are reporting S5 sales are 40% off internal expectations and they are planning change at the top of the mobile division. Also reports off massive stock inventory buildup.

I have an S2 which has something like 1GB Memory and about 12GB of free disk space - nothing on the latter. However, the Memory is where all the apps install by default and you cannot move them to the free disk space.

This is a problem that slows down your phone and which many Samsung users complain about online. However, between the S2 and the S5 the problem appears to not have been addressed. The problem persists to this day.

So you buy a phone with seemingly loads of disk space but you are actually limited to what comes in the Memory. Yes, you can buy a microSD card and transfer the apps to it but why should you have to do that when you have bought a phone with loads of disk space.

You are paying a premium for a Samsung phone and yet you appear to have much less options than if you buy a £100 Motorola.

Rant over.

[PricedOutNative]

I have an S2 which has something like 1GB Memory and about 12GB of free disk space - nothing on the latter. However, the Memory is where all the apps install by default and you cannot move them to the free disk space.

Are you sure about that, I thought there was an option to move most apps, some may not allow it though..

[interestrateripoff]

I recently got a new Samsung phone for work. The biggest problem with it is all the crap Samsung slap on top of Android to try to lock in users.

The other big problem is that Google still refuse to give users any useful control over Android app permissions, so most of them ask for access to everything and you can only accept it or not install the app. If I was buying a phone for myself, it would have to be an iPhone or Blackberry for that reason alone. I'd have done that anyway, but need some special Android apps for work use.

I have to admit I don't like the fact I can't uninstall the preinstalled crap that I'm never going to use and is effectively junk files taking up space.

Ebay

Game hub

Voice Hub

Music Top 40

Google+

The default internet app

Play Movies & TV

Hangouts

Play newstand

Chat on

Flipboard

All crap that I don't need and want to remove but can't because of google. If I want it I'll download and install it from play.

[NuBrit]

I don't understand the mania for iphones at all. My sister in law upgrades every year without fail. Same situation as your niece. A small amount upfront, but then followed with a whooper of a 2 year contract. I don't know how she gets by. She has a mortgage, a full sky tv subscription and god knows what else on credit cards. I tried to tell her, she can get a Moto G and a £10 GiffGaff goodie bag for a fraction of what she's spending, but she won't have it. From what I can see, owning an iphone is really just about making a fashion statement.

I have no idea how she gets by. She has the iphone, a mortgage and a full sky tv subscription.

[longgone]

I like Samsungs but I can buy a Moto G for 150.00 which does 95% of what a 600.00 Samsung does. No brainer.

Samsungs are too expensive even if they dropped in price by 50 percent.

indeed i have a moto g 2nd gen 5" £130 giffgaff £7.50 a month and use the cloud when i am out, and it is just as good as samsungs overpriced tat

Edited November 26, 2014 by longgone

[Bruce Banner]

Samsung phones seem to be ahead of their time. I had a Galaxy S2 for three years and recently replaced it with an S3 that I managed to get for £89 as a PAYG upgrade from Carphone Warehouse. Actually, I think they made a mistake as I had the devil's own job getting it at that price and the offer disappeared from their website the next day.

Anyway, the S2 did everything that I needed it to do and is now doing it for my wife as it is still streets ahead of the latest model Huawei phone I got for her earlier in the year, for running navigation apps.

The S4 or S5 would not be of any great benefit to me as I don't need 4G and only use the phone for phone calls, navigation, skype, camera (which is not bad), and as a modem for my laptop when out and about in the UK.

Perhaps I'll upgrade to an S4 when they bring out the S6, which will be good for me but not for Samsung. Therein lies their problem.

[interestrateripoff]

Perhaps I'll upgrade to an S4 when they bring out the S6, which will be good for me but not for Samsung. Therein lies their problem.

As I said earlier I think I'm going to get the S4 mini and give my S3 mini to my daughter, I'm not paying the premium for the S5 mini. I'd rather wait 12 months for the price to drop when the s6 mini gets released. To be honest I'm quite happy with the S3 mini but my daughter obviously needs a "better phone".