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Report: Samsung producing fewer Galaxy Note 20 devices than expected

Is this a response to lower-than-expected sales, or is Samsung ramping up the Galaxy S30 series production?
By
November 3, 2020
samsung galaxy note 20 review camera
Oliver Cragg / Android Authority
TL;DR
  • Samsung produced far fewer Galaxy Note 20 devices than expected in October, per a report from Korea.
  • The smartphone giant produced around 67% of its projected units in the month.
  • The slowdown could be indicative of the Galaxy Note 20 line’s dwindling demand or lend further credence to an earlier Galaxy S30 debut.

We’re three months into the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 series’ life and already the Korean OEM is apparently missing projections. According to a report by The Elec, Samsung’s production of its Galaxy Note 20 series is already slowing by a fair margin.

The Korean publication says the smartphone maker produced just 600,000 of its projected 900,000 Note 20 series units in October. Samsung’s also producing more Galaxy Note 20 Ultra devices than standard Note 20 models, with the publication saying the drop in production was worse for the vanilla model. The ratio is reportedly 2:1 in the larger phone’s favor, possibly indicative of the Galaxy Note 20’s questionable value.

Read more: The best Samsung phones you can get

It’s unclear why Samsung is slowing the production of its current flagship. The Note 20 series, which launched in August, may have been impacted by sputtering production and lower global shipments during the global pandemic.

Samsung to scale up Galaxy S30 production

The slowdown may also suggest the phone line’s sales aren’t impressive. Samsung’s Galaxy S20 sales haven’t been remarkable, either. The early 2020 flagship line saw far fewer shipments in the first quarter of this year than the Galaxy S10 in Q1 2019, although COVID-19 had a part to play. It’s possible that the Galaxy Note 20 is being overshadowed by the Note 10, which saw even stronger sales figures than the Note 9.

Samsung may also be preparing to scale up the Galaxy S30 series production. The firm’s next flagship line is reportedly due in January 2021, nearly a month ahead of what was initially expected. With a rumored launch just over two months away, it’s likely the new devices will wrestle production priority away from the Note 20 line.

The Elec says Samsung expects an initial shipment of two million Galaxy S30 devices next year.