Samsung is ready to spend big on the Galaxy S23

Samsung is a couple of months away from the Galaxy S23’s series launch, a smartphone that Samsung fans should already be excited about. That’s because Samsung will use only Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon chip to power the phone after the Exynos performance disaster with Galaxy S22 series.

A new report out of Korea says that Samsung is indeed looking to focus on quality instead of cost-cutting. The company wants to compete better against Apple’s iPhone, which means no more cost-saving measures. If the information is accurate, then Galaxy S enthusiasts have one more reason to be excited about the upcoming Galaxy S23 series.

Earlier this year, Samsung critics said the Korean giant had cut costs to improve profitability. This directly hurt the Galaxy S22’s performance, leading to a massive scandal. Samsung defended against such speculation, saying it hasn’t been cutting costs for the S22 flagships.

But the company did ditch the Exynos chips from its Galaxy S line, announcing that it plans to build a new application processor for high-end phones.

Korean media outlet Hankyung reported on Samsung’s shift in strategy. The Korean handset maker wants to avoid profitability-oriented development and cost-reduction strategies next year. Instead, Samsung wants to focus on improving high-end smartphones.

Such a move would help Samsung reduce the gap with Apple in the premium smartphone segment of the market. That’s where Apple has been making its money with the iPhone for years. The strategy change will also help Samsung regain consumer trust.

The report doesn’t mention the Galaxy S23, Z Fold 5, and Z Flip 5 phones by name. But these are the flagships that Samsung should launch next year. The new strategy should apply to these devices.

The story indicates that Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Han Jong-hee ordered the DX (Device Experience) division management that “all departments should think about ways to strengthen the competitiveness of smartphones without getting caught up in cost reduction.”

It’s unclear what that means for the upcoming 2023 flagship phones. Not to mention that the policy might impact Samsung’s mid-range phones. The Galaxy A handsets are selling better than Samsung’s flagships, but that’s because they’re more affordable.

The report notes that Apple is Samsung’s main adversary in the premium market. A Counterpoint Research report showed that Apple has a 57% share of the global premium phone market. That’s devices that cost more than $400. Comparatively, Samsung’s share stood at 19%.

Hankyung adds that analysts expect Apple to overtake Samsung in the fourth quarter when it comes to overall smartphone share (24.6% vs. 20.2%).

Does that mean the Galaxy S23 will be the perfect iPhone 14 alternative? We’ll have to wait until March to find out. But leaker Ice Universe indicated on Twitter that Samsung might cut costs for the phone’s cooling system. In turn, this would impact the phone’s overall performance.