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China remains a tough market to stage a comeback for world’s former top smartphone vendor Samsung
- Samsung has shifted its focus to the high-end segment of the mainland’s smartphone market, particularly with its foldable handsets
- The company has closed various production bases in China, including its last smartphone plant in Huizhou and last personal computer factory in Suzhou
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Ann Caoin Seoul, South Korea
This article was first published by The Korea Times in a partnership with the South China Morning Post.
A resident of eastern Jiangsu province, 48-year-old Shen Ling used to own a number of Samsung Electronics smartphones in the 2010s, attracted by the devices’ well-designed appearance and popularity among consumers across mainland China.
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“It was once an age of glory for Samsung in China, when so many of my friends were using the brand for its high-end market standing,” Shen said. “I also chose to buy a Samsung phone at that time for the same reason.”
But Samsung’s strong run in the world’s largest smartphone market took a disastrous turn in late 2016, when the company permanently halted production of its Galaxy Note 7 handset amid increased concerns about the device catching fire. That followed widespread criticism from Chinese consumers after several incidents where the handset’s battery exploded. In January 2017, the South Korean electronics giant admitted that those incidents were caused by battery manufacturing and design issues after an internal investigation.
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“The harm to Samsung’s image was devastating,” Shen said. “It made me unsure if I could trust the quality of its future handsets.” Shen finally decided to switch to a Huawei Technologies smartphone in 2020.
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