Samsung unveils low-end 5G phone to rival China’s cheap models

Samsung Electronics Co. on Friday launched a low-end 5G smartphone in overseas markets amid intensified price competition initiated by Chinese mobile phone manufacturers.

The Galaxy A22 5G, the latest in Samsung’s 5G lineup, starts at 199 euros, or 270,000 won, in the UK but features specification and function improvements beyond its more expensive A32 5G model.

“The Samsung Galaxy A22 5G is an impressive device at excellent value that builds on our growing Samsung Galaxy A Series portfolio,” Conor Pierce, corporate vice president of Samsung Electronics UK & Ireland, said in a statement.

“Featuring super-fast 5G connectivity, an immersive display and a versatile camera, our customers can experience next-generation speed and performance.”

Powered by the Dimensity 700, an application processor developed by Taiwan’s MediaTek Inc., the latest model starts with 4 gigabytes (GB) of RAM and 64 GB of storage. There is also a model with 128 GB of storage that can be equipped with 4 GB, 6 GB or 8 GB of RAM.

The new smartphone has a microSD slot that can expand the storage capacity to 11 TB.

Samsung said the phone boasts a 6.6-inch FHD+ Infinity-V display with a 90 Hz refresh rate and a 5,000 mAh battery.

The A22 5G comes in three colors – grey, white and violet.

LATEST PHONE TO COUNTER CHINESE OFFENSIVE

Samsung is launching the low-end 5G model as it faces a mounting offensive by Chinese makers such as Xiaomi, Realme and POCO, which have unveiled cheap models in the 200,000-400,000 won ($179-$359) price range in the global market.

According to market researcher Strategy Analytics (SA), Samsung ranked fifth in global 5G mobile phone shipments, taking only 12.7% share in the first quarter. The Korean tech giant was the top 5G phone maker in the first quarter of 2020 with 34.6%.

Analysts said Samsung’s falling market share was partly owing to strong sales of Apple Inc.’s first 5G phone, the iPhone 12, but also due to heavy shipments of low-end models by Chinese phone makers.

The combined 5G phone market share of China’s Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo stood at 43% in the first quarter, up 10 percentage points from the year-earlier period, according to SA.

Samsung hasn’t revealed details on its launch of the Galaxy A22 5G in the Korean market, but industry watchers expect the company to begin selling the model with mobile carrier LG Uplus in August.

Write to Sung-Soo Bae at baebae@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.