Samsung pushes harder into midrange market with Galaxy A52s 5G

Alongside the highest-end foldable smartphone series Galaxy Z, Samsung Electronics is making a stronger push in the midrange phone market, launching an upgraded version of the Galaxy A52 model.

The South Korean smartphone vendor on Thursday announced the release of the Galaxy A52s 5G in the domestic market at 599,500 won ($513) on Friday.

The newest A series model hit stores in India, the biggest midrange phone market for Samsung, on Wednesday, two days before the Korea launch.

The Galaxy A52s has been upgraded with water and dust resistance features from its predecessor Galaxy A52 that was launched in March this year. The 6.5-inch screen with a 120-hertz refresh rate, 64-megapixel high-resolution quad camera system and 4,500-milliamp-hour battery pack are maintained in the new model.

The Galaxy A52 was the first 5G phone with such high specs at less than $500 in the US market.

Samsung is expected to test the new phone in the Indian market, where it competes fiercely with China’s Xiaomi.

According to market researcher Canalys, Xiaomi remained the market leader in India in the second quarter of 2021, holding a 29 percent share and shipping 9.5 million units.

Samsung stayed in second place, shipping 5.4 million units for a 17 percent share, followed by other Chinese rivals Vivo in third and Oppo in fourth.

Samsung was previously the No. 1 phone vendor in India with around 25 percent share, until the first quarter of 2020.

In order to reclaim its market share, Samsung introduced the new lineup of the Galaxy F to the Indian market, in addition to the existing Galaxy M series. This year’s A series is viewed in line with the expansion strategy.

Samsung is planning to introduce the latest A52s model to other markets, including Southeast Asia, Latin America and Europe, gauging the timing of the launch.

Samsung is also to roll out more affordable models, including the Galaxy A22 5G and Galaxy F42 5G at around 300,000 won in the coming months.

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)