The Corporate Struggle Between Two Giants
Written by- Zenkar Kollurmath
Consumers in the current smartphone market are perplexed. They are confused between two brands that have taken over the market. These companies themselves are confused as to why they are losing sales. The two in question are Samsung and Apple. While both companies have released new products into the market in the last month, the iPhone 7 by apple and the Galaxy Note 7 by Samsung, neither of them have been nearly as successful as the markets would have hoped for.
Apple sales have not nearly matched what they were, last time an iPhone was released. In the first week of being on sale, the iPhone 7 accounted for 1% of overall iPhone market share, whereas the iPhone 6 accounted for 2% back in 2014. This drop was expected by apple, as they produced fewer phones and were out of products quite early. This is not unlike expected as Apple have cultivated a huge following with their products. But why did apple account for low sales in the first place? This question’s answer can be credited to the exchange of various aspects on the iPhone. For example the exchange of the headphone jack for a slimmer design. This was a huge blow to many fans of the company as they didn’t see it coming. Overall, the new design of the iPhone may be subject to criticism but even apple’s major fan following can’t pick up sales.
Samsung, on the other hand, has a totally different problem. Plain and simple, the Note 7 tends to explode into flames. This “battery problem” has forced the government to order a complete recall of the product. With at least 92 reports of batteries overheating, which includes 26 reports of burns and 55 reports of property damage, the Note 7 is considerably worse off than the iPhone. One would think so, but consumers still continue to purchase the Note, as represented by the graph below. So one would ask how will Samsung cope up to this massive humiliation of unpreparedness. And to be honest, I have no idea.
Such drastic unpreparedness has forced customers to look at other options. Companies such as LG and OnePlus are heavily benefiting from the increased sales. What would you do if offered a choice between Apple or Samsung? Would you take your chance or explore?
Works Cited
Carpenter, Shelby. "Government Issues Official Recall Of Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Government Issues Official Recall Of Samsung Galaxy Note 7." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 16 Sept. 2016. Web. 20 Sept. 2016.
Reisinger, Don. "Here’s How Well IPhone 7 Sold In Its First Weekend." Fortune Heres How Well IPhone 7 Sold In Its First Weekend Comments. Fortune, 19 Sept. 2016. Web. 20 Sept. 2016.
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ReplyDeleteWhile reading your piece I found it interesting that the new iPhone isn’t doing as well as it should be. However, I wasn’t surprised since many people are upset that it doesn’t have a headphone jack. When reading about Samsung, I found that interesting as well since I didn’t know that their batteries were overheating that resulted in burned or damaged phones. Also making it worse than the iPhone was another surprise, but I see why that is.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense that the Iphone 7 is not doing as well as it should due to the large opportunity cost of not having a headphone jack. However, I feel that many people will not switch from apple to samsung. Many people who are “apple” people have many different apple products that work together, and switching over to samsung would create even more money and problems than just accepting the fact that there is not a headphone jack. This works for samsung as well. People who swear that samsung is the better phone and company also have other samsung products that would make switching over to apple a large opportunity cost as well. I feel that this is why even though the phone had a call back the customers are still loyal to the company. For apple it may take some time for people to accept the fact that there is not a headphone jack, but eventually their customers will give in, and have to buy a new apple phone.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your article I reflected and thought it was very interesting how these big companies are losing support instead of gaining more with each new release but poor technology decisions on these new designs have brought down sales for both Apple and Samsung. These huge problems such as exploding batteries and no headphone jack have caused many consumers to lean towards other phone companies, which I found cool because this slip-up by Apple and Samsung has allowed these smaller companies to make a come-up and benefit and equalize the revenue in the phone industry.
ReplyDeleteIt’s really not surprising that these huge companies are starting to get sloppy. I think they’re getting comfortable with the profits that they’re making, and they’re trying to innovate their products by adding features that their consumers don’t really care about, and taking away key components like a headphone jack or a properly working battery in the name of aesthetics. Hopefully with both of these new products tanking, other smaller cell phone companies can have a chance to make their mark in the industry.
ReplyDeleteI'm not surprised by the fact that apple's sales for the iPhone 7 were not as great as the sales for the iPhone 6. Although I'm sure this is partly due to the headphone jack, I don't think that is the main reason. If you look at the differences between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 7, that is one of the only major ones. I think the reason Apple prepared less product, is because they know that the phones are similar. With the transitions from 4-5, and 5-6, the entire aesthetic of the phones changed along with many features. Especially since everyone that already has an iPhone can access iOS 10, there were not enough upgrades to convince people to buy.
ReplyDeleteIt is not surprising at all that the sales on the iphone 7 aren't the greatest. I feel like the loyal apple customers will stick with apple and won't buy the 7 because the current iphone they have has a headphone jack. This will be true until their phone becomes out of date and they are forced to buy a newer iphone. And same thing for Android; people who are loyal to the company will stick with their phones.
ReplyDeleteTo answer the question, at this point the smartphone debacle might be comparable to choosing between the two major candidates this November. Both are coming under scrutiny for their actions, yet they are supposed to be the premium offers for voters (in the Phone case, consumers). From listening to conversation among young millennials, which is the target age group for these smartphones, a large number of them are tired of the same phone, essentially being updated year after year. The confirmation of the lack of a headphone jack is the source of satirical material on social media, but others are genuinely upset by this "innovation", which is a stunt to force Apple consumers to buy their proprietary products (wireless "Ear Pods", and Beats, which is parented by Apple).
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense to me that these large companies such as Apple and Samsung are seeing their sales drop. In life, if you have a lot of power, you tend to get very cocky. Apple and Samsung have a lot of power, so therefore they got very cocky. With their products lacking in quality, obviously Apple and Samsung will have trouble bringing in new consumers. But on that same token, I feel that if you have Apple or Samsung products, people will be reluctant to switch from their provider only due to the fact that they have the charger, the headphones, etc. from the company that switching phone providers would be even more costly than staying with their own company, even if the phone costs a little less.
ReplyDeleteI used to be a Samsung fan and every phone I owned was Samsung. IPhone’s were confusing to me and I didn’t understand how to quite work one. It wasn’t until this past summer that I traded in my Samsung Galaxy 6 for an iPhone 6S and since that day, I don’t regret the decision one bit. When I had my Galaxy, it actually did what is explained about Samsung's new product with the overheating of the battery. Often, while charging my phone, I would notice the temperature increased significantly and my charger began to actually burn. This must be a common flaw within the Samsung world where the iPhone has never burned me; however, I’m not interested in the new iPhone 7 because of the removal of the headphones hole. That irritates me that Apple would get rid of something so important just to make more benefits for themselves. Obviously a lot of people are also upset with this decision as it’s costing them to loose more customers. If Apple continues to create new iPhones with not as useful gadgets, I may have to switch back to Samsung even though the battery isn’t as strong, I can at least listen to my music in silence.
ReplyDeleteThe way I see it, the big league companies are just getting out played by the little ones. The smaller companies are producing quality, inexpensive phones that aren't defective and have headphone jacks. Samsung and Apple have made mistakes and companies like LG are keeping things constant, which is greatly benefiting them and will continue to do so.
ReplyDeleteIt is rather interesting how both of the big smartphone companies find themselves in predicaments at the same time. The problems are very different but both are causing the companies to worry about a decrease in sales. The Iphone 7, isn’t doing as well as it should due to the opportunity costs that come with this new phone. I wonder if the iphone six sales are increasing because people who were waiting for the seven came to a conclusion that the opportunity cost was too much. However I feel that people who are Apple users right now won’t switch to Samsung due to Apple's large following.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense that both Samsung and Apple are struggling to dish out new and improved ideas to their customers, simply because there isn’t much to improve. Prior to the iPhone 7, there was always something that drew consumers in to spend the big bucks. However, with only a slimmer design and cordless headphones being the main focal point in the sale of the new iPhone, sales should’ve been expected to be lower than previous releases. Samsung is dealing with a similar issue, they have made Galaxy phones very, very large in prior years, now they are to the point where size cannot be expanded further. On top of that, the battery issue are a major concern for personal well-being. Even though we recognize some of these issues, we continue to spend money just because of the brand and “new” product.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't surprised at all when you stated that the Apple iPhone 7 sales have dropped, hence it doesn't have a headphone jack. I mean who would wanna buy an phone without a headphone jack? Instead you would have to use wireless Bluetooth earbuds that you could lose easily and the only way to replace them is if you buy the same pair again which costs way more money than just buying a normal set of cheap earbuds. So I totally understand why people aren't buying the iPhone 7. Besides that, I was actually surprised when I found out that the new Galaxy note 7 has been overheating due to the battery. That kinda sucks for Samsung because they could have sold lots of their new Galaxy note 7's since not many people want to buy the iPhone, although sadly, they have a big problem with their phone as well.
ReplyDeletePersonally, i have an LG and im very glad ive made the switch from apple to LG. I feel as if apple feels like there in a good spot with there consumers and they dont have to try as hard because of the fan base they've established. While on the other hand samsung tries really hard to make these really cool complex phones to over shadow apple, yet it blew up in there face literally. What are we doing with technology? is it going to far? are we pushing technology and not taking the proper precautions just to produce a product that is better than the competitors? or are we money driven, taking essentials out of technology to make you spend more money? Either way these two phone companies have been exposed and need to step up there phone game before the underdogs take over. I feel like change is good however, if we dont change well never be able to progress.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was interesting how the two dominate smart phone companies are both struggling with new releases. Although I do think this situation is similar to Play Station and Xbox. Similarly many new changes left users upset and refusing to purchase the PS4 and Xbox1, until eventually, the market went big. Although it seems like these two major companies are suffering, I think they are too big to not succeed.
ReplyDeleteI, and I don't think the rest of the world finds it surprising that both Samsung and Apple sales are down. There have been many complaints that I have heard about the new iPhone design. The biggest complaint being there is no headphone jack. Almost everyone with an Apple product has already bought another set of headphones or earbuds and don't want to spend additional money on buying earbuds on top of the fact that they just spent about $700 on a new phone. Samsung's sales being down is obviously self-explanatory. Next time that Samsung comes out with a new phone, they should test it out before they put it on the market to reduce dangerous situations that they are putting their customers in.
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