Samsung's More Affordable Galaxy S10e Compared to iPhone XR

[Abazigal]

Actually Samsung sales for the S series is up from last year. Pre orders were up 30% from last year. Given how the market is it’s rather impressive given how everybody expects upgrades to be worse and worse throughout. Iphone sales are only going to get worse each year until they sort out their terrible pricing structure.

https://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-galaxy-s10-sales-962917/

Preorders are up (likely because of all the freebies that Samsung threw in), but total activations appear to be lower compared to the S9 from last year.

What I predict will happen this quarter is that we will see iPhone sales being buoyed by improving iPhone XR sales (which makes sense, it’s not a phone that people will run out to buy, but rather, when they are ready to upgrade, whenever that is).

The biggest competitor to the iPhone is other older iPhone models, so I am not really worried about other companies such as Samsung and Huawei.

Apple will do just fine. I will enjoy watching Samsung and Huawei ripping each other’s throats out.

 

[brofkand]

Apple discontinued the “x” because the Xs is a major upgrade over the “x”. Not a minor upgrade as you noted. (As a side note all “s” upgrades were fairly major updates)

One can still buy the iPhones 8 and 7 if one doesn’t want the latest tech.

As far as your declaration about “profits first”, I’m still waiting for the buying public to wake up and smell the roses. It’s not going to happen, because while Apple does sell to a certain demographic, a profits first motive is a path to failure.

The CPU upgrade was huge, but that was the only upgrade and is entirely invisible to an end user.

 

[Mr. Donahue]

I have the XR. Thanks I hate it.
I wish they made an SE 2. I would’ve upgraded to that from my launch day 6.

 

[Jack Neill]

I am thinking about paying off my iPhone 8 with Next and getting a S10E. Played with one at Worst Buy and it seems liek a great phone.

 

[Abazigal]

Why wouldn't the capability to customise any product one buys to suit ones preferences not be be a selling point to a free thinking individual?

A feature is only as valuable to the customer as much as he or she will end up using it.

That’s why I think all this talk of “free thinking individuals” is way off the mark. It’s a phone, not the government we are talking about here. Do people complain about not being able to flash the software on their microwave oven or customise the colours of the lights on their washing machine?

The way I see it is - each product is a package of features and compromises. Each customer weighs the pros against the cons, and ends up settling for the option he feels best suits his needs. What this means is that for each individual, some features are going to matter more, some aren’t going to matter as much, and some features simply won’t matter at all.

So back to your point, it’s not that the option to be able to say, customise your phone icons, or having a headphone jack, or being able to swap in expandable storage isn’t valuable relative to not having these options, but that they don’t matter to Apple customers by and large.

That’s the reality of the duopoly we are seeing in the smartphone market today. People like myself are iphone users because we value what Apple does offer us (integrated solutions which work out of the box), while not missing what Apple doesn’t offer.

Conversely, for the people who do value such things, they would have gone with android smartphones. So the problem pretty much solves itself, through consumers buying products that best suit their needs.

Apple doesn’t need to offer a choice here, because that choice has already been made (by people voting with their wallets and opting to buy an iphone over the next best alternative), and that decision indirectly tells Apple that their design choices leading up to this point have been the right ones.

Whether that means I am a free-thinking individual or not is besides the point. It’s a phone, not a representation of a way of life.

 

[dan110]

I really like the S10e, even considered buying myself to give Android a try, but I found the switch would just be way too much work and I would lose more than I would gain. Great phone though and probably the one I would choose if I wanted a Samsung/Android. I am looking forward to going back from the 6.5 iPhone to the 5.8. I think it's the perfect size.

Here's one tip from my switch experience.

Start small. First, move your most basic mobile app use cases out of Apple to an agnostic app. For example, instead of mail, try G Mail or Proton Mail. Then proceed to other apps. It'll feel weird at first like learning a new language, but after a few weeks, you'll enjoy taking the Apple "handcuffs" off.

The only thing I havent figured out doing a clean 1:1 changeover is my music. I've built up a collection for the past 30 years. iTunes solved it back in the early 2000s, but now I want another seamless way to carry ALL of MY music on my non Apple mobile devices.

 

[I7guy]

The CPU upgrade was huge, but that was the only upgrade and is entirely invisible to an end user.

Camera, hdr, smart hdr, dynamic video, max, 4x4 mimo. I’m sure I’m missing some, but these are very visible to the end user. Whether or not they matter is another story.
[doublepost=1552791609][/doublepost]

Here's one tip from my switch experience.

Start small. First, move your most basic mobile app use cases out of Apple to an agnostic app. For example, instead of mail, try G Mail or Proton Mail. Then proceed to other apps. It'll feel weird at first like learning a new language, but after a few weeks, you'll enjoy taking the Apple "handcuffs" off.

The only thing I havent figured out doing a clean 1:1 changeover is my music. I've built up a collection for the past 30 years. iTunes solved it back in the early 2000s, but now I want another seamless way to carry ALL of MY music on my non Apple mobile devices.

why would I want gmail, it’s a google handcuff instead of an Apple handcuff. Of course if one wants any handcuff but Apple, then a google handcuff is fine.

 

[mi7chy]

Ok, but that isn’t a selling point for people like me, and millions of other iPhone users.

It's personalization like adjustable car seats. Do you like adjusting the car seat to accommodate you or have a fixed setting? One basic personalization that iOS really needs is home screen decluttering so that you can put only most often used apps instead of everything and be able to place them anywhere like towards the bottom where it's easier to reach one handed.

 

[AustinIllini]

Camera, hdr, smart hdr, dynamic video, max, 4x4 mimo. I’m sure I’m missing some, but these are very visible to the end user. Whether or not they matter is another story.

Most of that is pretty invisible to the user. I mean, yeah, the camera is a little better but it's an iterative upgrade.

That's part of the reason the iPhone XR doesn't that badly outperform the Galaxy S10e. While the A12 is a better chip, both it and the 855 can handle almost all the operations of their current devices.

The difference will come two or three years down the road when people still have the XR and the S10e is unsupportable.

 

[preyan]

All innovation died when Steve Jobs died. I like Apple but make no mistake, I am not faithful to any company. I have not been impressed with apple for the past 2 year releases. I don’t want a faster chip and a bigger screen size. Give me user functions like charging another device using your battery etc.

 

[pika2000]

Ok, but that isn’t a selling point for people like me, and millions of other iPhone users.

Android fans talk big about customizations, but then they criticized skins like MIUI and want everybody to be using stock Android instead. It’s a weird contradicting fetish.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

The S10e certainly offers much more and is a nicer looking device but the Android OS puts me off. I hope it kicks Apple up the backside to try harder and stop ripping us off though.

 

[borntrouble]

Apple discontinued the “x” because the Xs is a major upgrade over the “x”. Not a minor upgrade as you noted. (As a side note all “s” upgrades were fairly major updates)

One can still buy the iPhones 8 and 7 if one doesn’t want the latest tech.

As far as your declaration about “profits first”, I’m still waiting for the buying public to wake up and smell the roses. It’s not going to happen, because while Apple does sell to a certain demographic, a profits first motive is a path to failure.

Major upgrade? I seriously cannot tell right now if you're being sarcastic or not.
If not, you dont have a clue what the hell you're talking about.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

It still baffles me that Apple went out of their way and spent all of that R&D money to purposely develop an inferior phone to fill the "affordable" price point. And LCD screen. In 2018. For $750. Are you kidding. They didn't even keep the X around and sell it cheaper.

Does anyone have any evidence as to if the XR was created (with an LCD screen) due to display panel supply concerns or was it just total greed?

I personally don’t think there is enough of a difference between OLED and LCD to draw people to spend more. All the rumours are suggesting the XR is Apples best selling new iPhone and considering its internals are much the same as the more expensive XS, I think it demonstrates people will go for value for money ultimately. I think they need to lower the price by £50 though as you can buy equivalents with much more on them for less.

They couldn’t sell the X alongside the XS as they are too close in spec. People would just opt for the cheaper of the two and get the look they desire.

 

[Abazigal]

why would I want gmail, it’s a google handcuff instead of an Apple handcuff. Of course if one wants any handcuff but Apple, then a google handcuff is fine.

Not only that but the gmail app is pretty horrible on iOS. I am using it because it's the only way to access my school's email outside of the browser, and it's shocking how slow Google is to implement new iOS APIs. For example, I can only attach files via google drive. Which in turn means having to first upload a file there. Compared to other mail apps such as Mail or Spark, which make use of the files app.

That brings me to my next issue - the best apps are on iOS. Switching to an agnostic app means a step down in user experience.

 

[yakapo]

6 months from now this phone is going to be about $400. At that price it will be an absolute steal. The 10e could be a flagship phone for a number of other Android OEM's. They didn't skimp on this phone. I think it has a better screen than the 10 and 10+ since I am not a fan of the signature curve on Sammy's flagship screens. I was gonna pick up an S9 since it's about $450ish right now. I think I might snag a 10e around the time of the Note 10 debut.

Yup. At that price ($400-$450), it’s by far the best bang for your buck. Oled+micro sd storage + fingerprint unlock (yes I prefer it), etc. I’d rather have iOS but, Android is much more friendly for old eyes.

 

[Shanghaichica]

https://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-galaxy-s10-sales-962917/

Preorders are up (likely because of all the freebies that Samsung threw in), but total activations appear to be lower compared to the S9 from last year.

What I predict will happen this quarter is that we will see iPhone sales being buoyed by improving iPhone XR sales (which makes sense, it’s not a phone that people will run out to buy, but rather, when they are ready to upgrade, whenever that is).

The biggest competitor to the iPhone is other older iPhone models, so I am not really worried about other companies such as Samsung and Huawei.

Apple will do just fine. I will enjoy watching Samsung and Huawei ripping each other’s throats out.

Samsung throw in lots of freebies every year. This is not a new thing. I guess sales are up because more people seem interested in the phones. Outside of the US the freebies are by redemption. You have to activate the phone before you can put in a claim for the freebie and wait about 30 days before you get the items.

However I do agree I think Apple will be fine although smartphone sales are on the decline. This is going to effect everyone.
[doublepost=1552811337][/doublepost]

Not only that but the gmail app is pretty horrible on iOS. I am using it because it's the only way to access my school's email outside of the browser, and it's shocking how slow Google is to implement new iOS APIs. For example, I can only attach files via google drive. Which in turn means having to first upload a file there. Compared to other mail apps such as Mail or Spark, which make use of the files app.

That brings me to my next issue - the best apps are on iOS. Switching to an agnostic app means a step down in user experience.

Never seen the gmail App on iOS. Apparently it’s supposed to be better on iOS than android. The android one looks nice but it was too complicated/messy. Too many different folders. Your emails are all over the place. Even my husband is forever not being able to find his mails. I prefer the stock iOS mail app or even the stock Samsung app which is similar to the iOS app because they are straight forward.

 

[Abazigal]

However I do agree I think Apple will be fine although smartphone sales are on the decline. This is going to effect everyone.

I am willing to bet that it will affect the android handset market more severely than it will Apple. Apple at least still has the differentiation stemming from their custom OS and integrated platform to help retain users, plus a healthy 2nd hand market which is actually doing an excellent job of adding new users to the Apple ecosystem (which is how Apple can now have 900 million active iPhone users despite selling fewer iPhones).

Moving forward, Apple can focus on trying to further monetise this user base via accessories (AirPods, Apple Watch, HomePod) and services (iCloud, Apple Music, apps), so they will still have additional revenue streams even as iPhone sales decline.

When everyone else is essentially running the same OS, sports the same preinstalled apps and specs are more or less good enough, where do you go from there? Especially when these companies are unable to profit from the sales of services and software (eg: if I bought a 2nd-hand S9 phone and downloaded some apps, Samsung doesn't see a cent).

 

[Shanghaichica]

I am willing to bet that it will affect the android handset market more severely than it will Apple. Apple at least still has the differentiation stemming from their custom OS and integrated platform to help retain users, plus a healthy 2nd hand market which is actually doing an excellent job of adding new users to the Apple ecosystem (which is how Apple can now have 900 million active iPhone users despite selling fewer iPhones).

Moving forward, Apple can focus on trying to further monetise this user base via accessories (AirPods, Apple Watch, HomePod) and services (iCloud, Apple Music, apps), so they will still have additional revenue streams even as iPhone sales decline.

When everyone else is essentially running the same OS, sports the same preinstalled apps and specs are more or less good enough, where do you go from there? Especially when these companies are unable to profit from the sales of services and software (eg: if I bought a 2nd-hand S9 phone and downloaded some apps, Samsung doesn't see a cent).

They seem to have a good strategy going forward to rely less on the hardware sales and more on services. Whilst I would like Apple to add more cutting edge features in their products it won’t really effect sales in the long term. The market is simply saturated. So it’s good that they have another strategy going forward. I will probably subscribe to the newspaper/magazine sub if it’s a reasonable price and has a good selection of publications. The Apple news app has been surprisingly good so I’m expecting good things from that. The tv subscription depends entirely on what it is. However I already subscribe to iCloud storage and Apple Music and I subscribe to YouTube premium, pigment premium and a no adverts subscription of one of our TV stations in the UK, all via in app purchases.

I think Apple will have steady sales as they built up a strong customer base. I think on the android side mid range companies like one plus and Xiaomi will probably benefit the most from the current state of the smartphone market.

 

[Substance90]

I stand by my original stance – Samsung has managed to build a better iPhone than Apple themselves and they deserve kudos for it.

 

[BigDO]

I honestly don't care about OS version updates, as long as security updates take care of business (which Samsung does). Also, I never have or never will keep a phone for more than a year so that "longevity" point is moot too (for me). Resale value is a cool bonus in case of an iPhone.

Stability and consistency is paramount though, and every time I tried Android in the past, it started to slow down and just act wonky as time went on - and every time people were telling me that it's a thing of the past just before I bought a phone.

This, coupled with the amateur hour apps on Android is why not even fantastic hardware such as this S10 would make me consider switching.

 

[Abazigal]

They seem to have a good strategy going forward to rely less on the hardware sales and more on services. Whilst I would like Apple to add more cutting edge features in their products it won’t really effect sales in the long term. The market is simply saturated. So it’s good that they have another strategy going forward. I will probably subscribe to the newspaper/magazine sub if it’s a reasonable price and has a good selection of publications. The Apple news app has been surprisingly good so I’m expecting good things from that. The tv subscription depends entirely on what it is. However I already subscribe to iCloud storage and Apple Music and I subscribe to YouTube premium, pigment premium and a no adverts subscription of one of our TV stations in the UK, all via in app purchases.

I think Apple will have steady sales as they built up a strong customer base. I think on the android side mid range companies like one plus and Xiaomi will probably benefit the most from the current state of the smartphone market.

What do you think are the odds that Apple's video streaming service will initially be offered free of charge to existing Apple Music subscribers in an attempt to quickly build up market share? Given that it only has a handful of shows at the moment (not all of which will be available at launch even), it doesn't seem like something worth paying for right away.

Give it another 3-4 years, when Apple has a full roster of original content in its stable, each with multiple seasons, and then maybe they can start considering charging their users.

I wonder if this will open Apple up to more accusations of monopolistic behaviour. One company offering a news, music streaming and video service under one bundle would be very hard for third party companies to beat, especially when Apple's own apps would presumably come preinstalled with every Apple device, and be integrated on a system level.

Given that I still don't have the news app or the TV app here in Singapore, I don't consider my chances very optimistic, but I am keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[Shanghaichica]

What do you think are the odds that Apple's video streaming service will initially be offered free of charge to existing Apple Music subscribers in an attempt to quickly build up market share? Given that it only has a handful of shows at the moment (not all of which will be available at launch even), it doesn't seem like something worth paying for right away.

Give it another 3-4 years, when Apple has a full roster of original content in its stable, each with multiple seasons, and then maybe they can start considering charging their users.

I wonder if this will open Apple up to more accusations of monopolistic behaviour. One company offering a news, music streaming and video service under one bundle would be very hard for third party companies to beat, especially when Apple's own apps would presumably come preinstalled with every Apple device, and be integrated on a system level.

Given that I still don't have the news app or the TV app here in Singapore, I don't consider my chances very optimistic, but I am keeping my fingers crossed.

I think Apple are the best at getting things out to other countries. They don’t abandon things when they loose interest. In the UK we also had to wait some time to get the news and TV app. I’m hopping that the news subscription will be ready to go at the event for the UK but I’m expecting to wait a long time for the TV services.

Apple not charging initially would be an interesting move but it would certainly keep people in the ecosystem or get new customers in.

 

[Gilligan's last elephant]

Whether that means I am a free-thinking individual or not is besides the point. It’s a phone, not a representation of a way of life.

But you previously claimed that a selling point of Airpods is that they are "cool" and people want to be seen wearing them. In other word, a fashion statement. Which is a representation of a way of life

 

[Abazigal]

But you previously claimed that a selling point of Airpods is that they are "cool" and people want to be seen wearing them. In other word, a fashion statement. Which is a representation of a way of life

I meant in philosophical and political terms here, not fashion terms (with regards to the Airpods example).