The COVID-19 pandemic, the ensuing chip shortages, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, increasing inflation and a host of other factors have played a massive part in restricting the performance of the mobile industry in terms of customers picking up new devices, and also manufacturers keeping up with the demand in some cases over the past few years.
As manufacturers were finally leaving behind the disruptions of Covid-19, increasing inflation has effectively lowered the purchasing power of the middle class. The result is that Samsung, one of the major smartphone makers, has 50 million unsold smartphones in its warehouses.
However, despite this challenge primarily facing the entry-level and middle-range category of the market, the very top end of Samsung’s market seems unaffected by the external factors and given the sales figures of Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra, the South Korean company is poised to have a very good year in this sector.
According to reliable tipster Ice Universe, who took to Weibo to publish the interesting news, the Galaxy S22 Ultra is on track to hit 10.9 million sold units before the end of the year.
10.9 million units will be a huge jump in sales figures, especially compared to the last five years’ performance of the Note line-up. The Galaxy Note 8 which shipped just slightly more than 10 million units in its first year is the current best performer, followed by its successor the Galaxy Note 9 which recorded slightly lower figures at 9.6 million.
The downward trend was also seen in the Galaxy Note 10, shipping 9.5 million units, with the lowest performer of the past five years being the Galaxy Note 20 Series, which shipped a disappointing 7.5 million units in its first year.
However, the Galaxy Note 20’s performance can be marked as an anomaly as it was released in 2020, immediately after the heights of the Covid-19 lockdowns.
This makes the figures being posted by the Galaxy S22 Ultra even more impressive, as the market is not yet back to what it was before the pandemic struck two years ago, not to mention the increased competition from other devices made by other OEMs that are now offering the same form factor the Galaxy Note is famed for, complete with a stylus and large displays.
It is worth noting that Samsung failing to release a smartphone with a stylus pen in 2021 has definitely played a part in pushing the sales that could have been realized in that year forward into 2022.
Pricing is also another aspect to look at. The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra had a price tag of close to $1,400 (Kshs 164,000) in the middle of the pandemic. The Galaxy S22 Ultra on the other hand is currently retailing at around $1,199 (Kshs 140,000) which, although quite high by most standards, makes it easier for the buyers in this premium segment to justify an upgrade.
