Samsung confident of Note20 series smartphones performing well in India

Samsung is confident of its premium Note20 series of smartphones, which will be launched in the country later this month, doing well in India as reflected by the strong interest evinced by potential buyers in the past few days, a top official said on Tuesday.

Earlier this month, Samsung had unveiled its flagship 'Note20' series, 'Fold2' smartphone and three other smart devices. The Galaxy Note20 series will be available for customers in India from August 28.

"We are excited about the Note20. The launch comes at a time when the lines between work and play are blurring and we believe the Note20 line-up is the device to cater to user requirements around productivity, gaming etc," Samsung India Director, Mobile Business, Aditya Babbar said.

He added that the series has received good response and the pre-booking notifications, which opened last week, are double (at 5 lakh) than that of Galaxy Note10 last year.

Pre-booking notifications are indicative of potential buyers showing interest in procuring the device when it hits the market.

Babbar said the Note20 smartphones will be made in India, and will be available in retail stores from August 28.

The Galaxy Note20 features a 6.7-inch display, and has a 64MP+12MP+12MP triple rear camera set-up with a 10MP front camera. It comes with an advanced S Pen to help users capture, edit and share ideas. The Galaxy Note20 is priced at Rs 77,999.

The Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G, which is the most-expensive phone under the Note series till date, will be available for Rs 1,04,999. The company is also bringing in a slew of offers with the Galaxy Note20 phones.

Babbar said the company will continue to focus on strengthening its position in the premium segment.

"Right from Rs 40,000, all the way up to Fold (launched in India for Rs 1.65 lakh), which is our most premium offering, we have a wide range of devices.

"Customers are at the centre of what we do. We will continue to bring more premium products for our customers in India," he added.

Samsung competes with Apple and OnePlus in the premium smartphone category in India, which is among the world's largest smartphone markets.

The premium smartphone market (Rs 30,000 and above) in India is also witnessing growing interest from players like Vivo and Xiaomi, as they try to make inroads into the segment that saw shipments of over 1 million devices in June 2020 quarter, as per Counterpoint Research.

OnePlus regained its top position in the premium smartphone market in India with a 29 per cent share in the said quarter, just nudging out Samsung.

Apple fell to the third spot in premium shipments share during the quarter due to intensifying competition, the report said.

While the segment saw over 32 per cent decline in shipments in the June 2020 quarter on account of COVID-19-related lockdown, it was one of the least-affected segments and reached its highest-ever share in the overall India smartphone market, contributing more than 4 per cent in total smartphone shipments.