I had hoped the Galaxy Note 7 would be a powerhouse of a handset, but watching the launch of the phablet yesterday made it clear that Samsung’s latest handset is no longer at the top of the tree. It’s an important handset, but it’s no longer number one.
Rather than being ‘the best phablet that Samsung could make’, this year’s Note is a curious mix of the Galaxy Note 5 and the Galaxy S7 Edge. Many of the features of 2015′s Note 5 (including the S-Pen and the software features tied to the larger screen) have been smashed into the design cues and the waterproofing of the Galaxy S7 Edge.
That’s led to a package that misses the key historical benefits of the Note range and shackling the phablet closer to Samsung’s flagship smartphone handset.
Putting the specifications of the Note 7 next to the S7 Edge and there is a significant level of crossover – the same choice of processors depending on the region (Snapdragon or Exynos), 4GB of RAM, same quick charge circuitry, same wireless charging potential, sam e support for microSD cards, same waterproofing, same camera lenses…
The Note 7 does bump up internal storage to 64GB, offers a physically larger screen and stylus support in the S-Pen. But it also makes a courageous choice for the battery. While the focus will no doubt be put on the increase to 3500 mAh from the Note 5′s 3000 mAh battery, that capacity is less than the S7 Edge’s 3600 mAh. It’s a cute sleight of hand in the marketing materials, but it confirms my suspicion about the Note 7′s place in Samsung’s portfolio.
The Galaxy Note 7 (Photo credit: Samsung)
I’ve said on numerous occasions that having the best specifications is not enough to sell a phone, and that’s true. But having the best specifications has always been part of the deal with the Note range of devices. The Galaxy Note 7 trades away that trend and weakens the marketing story around the device.
It feels like a demotion for the Note range after last year’s poorly received Note 5. If so, that is by design.
This hasn’t happened by accident, Samsung is well aware of how the Note has been perceived. It’s also well aware of the costs involved in designing, manufacturing, marketing, and selling the large device. Beyond the ‘hot take’ of what happened to the Note 7 lies a more interesting question. What do these changes to the Note say about Samsung’s strategy and device positioning as a whole?
For me the answer is the supremacy of the Galaxy S7 Edge.
Samsung’s mobile division is going through a renaissance at the moment. DJ Koh took over from JK Shin in December 2015. Given the various lead times, he was committed to tweaking Shin’s chosen path through the launch period of the Galaxy S7, although as the former head of the R&D unit he would have had input into the portfolio.
Koh’s style has been one that has been unafraid to take risks, to think strategically about how to weaken the competition with the resources he has available. There is a focus on strong messages of innovation and excellence, and a willingness to change the approach that has typified the corporate approach to selling smartphones. How does that match up with the dulled edge of the Note 7? Under Shin, the Note range was seen as a second flagship – the Galaxy S handsets would arrive in March, the Note handsets would arrive in September, and Samsung would update its flagship every six months.
I don’t think that’s the case under Koh.
DJ Koh at the launch event for the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images).
I think Koh wants Samsung to have one flagship, a singular hero, and every other device will be derived from and support the chosen one. In turn the anointed handset will pack in as much innovation, design excellence, updated software, and the focus of the company. The trickle-down economics around that handset will left every other handset in general.
The secondary handsets can then go off and be champions in their own niches – for the Note 7 that means in the enterprise space – picking up the benefits of the hero halo and then giving it a specific dash of flavour.
The internal head-to-head of the Galaxy S smartphones and the Note phablets to be seen as the flagship has been won by the (slightly) smaller device with the larger sales and the higher public perception. The Note 7′s job now is to be the strongest phablet possible that will back up the main smartphone line.
The Note 7 is well-equipped to do that job, but I can’t help feeling that sacrificing the Note’s individual story to support the single hero handset of the S7 Edge is one of the riskiest moves that DJ Koh has made.
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