Samsung Electronics will launch a new budget tablet for the first time in over five years. While Chinese companies have shown a double-digit increase in shipments in the second quarter of this year, capitalizing on value for money (price-to-performance ratio), analysts suggest that Samsung, which experienced negative growth, hurried to release a new budget product as a means to reverse the current trend.
◇ Samsung, pressed by Chinese value-for-money offensive… launching budget new products for the first time in five years
According to industry sources on the 4th, Samsung Electronics will release the budget tablet model 'Galaxy Tab S10 Lite' on the 5th. It will be the first time in 5 years and 5 months that Samsung Electronics has launched a new budget tablet model since the release of the 'Galaxy Tab S6 Lite' in April 2020. Samsung plans to launch the Galaxy Tab S10 Lite in major countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union (EU), Vietnam, India, and Korea, and will begin extensive marketing activities.
The background for Samsung Electronics' entry into the budget product market is due to the fierce competition from Chinese companies in the global tablet market. According to market research firm Canalys, in the second quarter, Samsung Electronics maintained its second place with a market share of 17.1% based on shipment volume, but this was a 2 percentage point decline from the previous year (19%), resulting in negative growth. The gap with first place Apple (38%) has widened to over 20 percentage points. Notably, companies ranked 3rd to 5th are all Chinese firms. Huawei (7.0%→8.3%), Lenovo (7.0%→7.9%), and Xiaomi (6.0%→7.8%) have all increased their market shares compared to a year ago.
In terms of actual shipments, the rise of Chinese companies is striking. In the second quarter, Huawei's tablet shipments reached 3.23 million units, a roughly 29% increase compared to the same period last year (2.5 million units), while Lenovo shipped 3.09 million units, marking a 25% increase compared to the second quarter of last year (2.48 million units). Xiaomi's tablet shipments for the second quarter were 3.05 million units, a 43% surge compared to the second quarter of last year (2.14 million units). Apple also shipped 14.1 million units in the second quarter, an increase of about 2.4% from last year (13.77 million units). In contrast, Samsung Electronics recorded 6.65 million tablet shipments in the second quarter, marking a 1.8% decrease compared to the same period last year (6.77 million units). An industry source said, "Due to the global economic downturn, competitively-priced Chinese tablets are selling like hotcakes, and Samsung's budget tablet product has already been released five years ago, meaning it has been eclipsed by the aggressive strategies of Chinese companies that release new products every 1-2 years."
◇ Playing the game with a value-for-money tablet featuring AI capabilities
Samsung Electronics is expected to strengthen its strategy to capture the mid-to-low-priced tablet market by emphasizing that it is a value-for-money product equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) features. To this end, it is reported that the price of the new budget product has been set to be about 20 euros (approximately 30,000 won) higher than the previous model (starting at 379 euros). According to industry sources and GSM Arena reports, the price of the new budget tablet (Galaxy Tab S10 Lite) is set to start at €399 (approximately 650,000 won) in Europe and $470 (approximately 650,000 won) in the United States. The launch price may vary by European country, so it cannot be predetermined; however, the currently announced price in Germany starts at €399. This is more than 60% cheaper compared to the premium tablet model 'Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra (starting at 1.59 million won)." An industry source noted, "Considering the inflation rate, the price of the new product being released after five years is not high. Samsung may have added AI capabilities, but it seems they have kept the price as low as possible."
According to Samsung Electronics, new features added include 'Circle to Search,' an AI-based real-time search function provided in Galaxy devices, AI-based spell and grammar correction, and the ability to recognize mathematical formulas. The battery capacity has also increased by about 1,000mAh to 8,000mAh compared to the previous model 'Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (7,040mAh).'
◇ Samsung has only launched ultra models each year… "Budget models need more new releases"
Unlike smartphones, Samsung has not released new tablet products every year. The basic and plus models of the Galaxy Tab have been released every 2-3 years without a fixed schedule. It is reported that the plus model, which launched a new product last year, will be absent from the new tablet lineup to be unveiled at the IFA 2025, Europe's largest electronics fair, on the 5th.
Samsung has maintained a strategy of releasing new products annually for the high-end model, 'Galaxy Tab S Ultra,' since 2022. This marketing strategy was aimed at the high demand for premium products in the U.S. and European markets.
Kim Kyung-won, a chair professor at Sejong University, stated, "Since the global market is experiencing an economic downturn, there is a growing need to diversify the budget product lineup rather than focusing on expensive high-end products, pointing out that it is necessary to shorten the release intervals for budget products in the tablet market, similar to the smartphone market."