Has Samsung committed the ultimate sin in today’s corporation world: making a good product that will last?
I’m talking about the Galaxy S24 line – a phone that’s so popular, it even managed to get itself through the portal to the normies’ world (you know, those who are not yet avid readers of PhoneArena).
I’m not being metaphorical here: I remember how, almost half a year ago, people were passionately telling me about the Galaxy S24 that just got out. It was well over a week after it was unveiled and they were fascinated with the thing. So they felt the need to share with me about the Galaxy S24 (people often forget what I do for a living).
Here’s the conversation (with the correct punctuation on my side):
– You know what it can do?
– What.
– It can translate live calls!
– Really.
– And it can search for drawings.
– Many other phones can do that thanks to AI algorithms and contextual machine learning models that enable precise image-based queries.
– What?
– Never mind. Oh, look, a stray dog on the street, let’s pet it!
The Galaxy S24 shapes into a big hit | Image credit – Samsung
After all, the Galaxy S24 line was marketed so heavily – remember the whole “AI phone” slogan thing in the weeks before the premiere? – that, ultimately, the product turned out to be a market success.
Not that it hasn’t got its fair share of problems, with complaints and fault-findings that piled up as early as February 2024.
Even the Galaxy S24 Ultra managed to drive people out of their minds with its own issues.
However, the 2024 flagship line is a major business success: Samsung just keeps on selling more S24 phones than it expects.
As the report goes, Samsung’s camera and component suppliers have been instructed to provide parts for nearly 50 million handsets by the end of the quarter.
This surge follows a significant 22% rise in orders in the first quarter, surpassing Samsung’s initial projections and resulting in a 17% overall increase in potential sales for the first half of the year.
Samsung’s phone division is experiencing a boom!
That’s because of – I’m repeating myself here – people enjoyed and bought the AI presentation.
And the success of the Galaxy S24 could very well be the downfall of the Galaxy S25.
Why? Because:
- AI won’t be as hot in 2025 as in 2024 (people will get used to it)
- The Galaxy S24 comes with a promise of seven (!) years of updates and support
- A possible price hike next year (remember that transitory thing charade the big heads on TV said wasn’t going to last?)
Also, you can’t get to claim that the Galaxy S24 is the AI phone and then just announce the Galaxy S25 to be the same. You don’t do the same trick twice, you move on to the next one. Whoa, for a moment there I forgot that this doesn’t apply to the smartphone industry which (more or less) just spits out the same device every year and the real innovations are rarer than an honest bureaucrat.
Let’s see how other brands are approaching and exploiting the AI opportunities.
The Apple’s way: AI is a private club
Apple’s AI is an elitist club | Image credit – Apple
At this year’s WWDC event, Apple announced something called Apple Intelligence that’s to come with iOS 18 in some months’ time: it’s the Cupertino giant’s new AI initiative and it’s limited to the upper echelon phones.
The vanilla iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus won’t support it. Apple Intelligence is reserved for the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max. Also, the iPhone 16 line is expected to get it once it materializes this Fall.
This move – limiting the full AI package to just a handful of phones – raised some eyebrows in the industry, but then again, it’s Apple we’re talking about here.
They’ll do as they please, if that results in the stocks going up. And up they did go, as Apple shares hit record high following WWDC Keynote and unveiling of Apple Intelligence.
The Oppo way: AI for you and me
(and everyone else)
Oppo does things differently | Image credit – Oppo
On the opposite side of the spectrum, there’s Oppo: a Chinese brand that’s responsible for the Find X7 Ultra, one of the best camera phones of 2024. Also, if you enjoy OnePlus, you can thank Oppo, but that’s off-topic.
See, Oppo vows to democratize AI and to disseminate it to all phones, not keep it exclusive for its maxed-out flagships.
By the end of the year, features like AI Summary, real-time Translation, and AI Eraser will be available on Oppo’s Reno mid-range and budget A- and F-series phones. This initiative, in partnership with industry giants like Google, Microsoft, and MediaTek, aims to bring generative AI to approximately 50 million users.
Oppo’s collaboration with Google will integrate the Google Gemini family LLMs into the Reno 12 series and next-gen Find X flagships, enhancing features such as the AI Toolbox. According to Oppo’s President of Overseas Marketing, Sales and Services, Billy Zhang, this marks the first time generative AI will be accessible across all product lines, setting a new industry standard.
Not bad, eh?
Okay, should I get the Galaxy S25 at all?
That’s up to you. I mean you! Okay, let me paraphrase: don’t let others choose for you.
My advice is: if you find what you’re looking for in the Galaxy S25, but you’re the kind of person who buys only after everyone else buys, don’t be that person. The Galaxy S25 won’t be as popular as the S24, but that shouldn’t stop you from getting it, if you like it and it suits your needs.
Or, if you really want to prove that nothing can actually stop you, get the Hotwav W11: a rugged phone with a 20,800mAh battery that offers 100 days on standby. I can hear Mad Max heavy breathing.