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Samsung Proves Its Business Remains Sound Despite Note 7 Fiasco (bloomberg.com)

Posted by msmash on from the things-panning-out dept.

Samsung underscored the resilience of its business when it reported its best operating profit in three years, weathering the death of its fire-prone Galaxy Note 7 with the help of its workmanlike chip and display divisions and cheaper smartphones. From a report on Bloomberg: The world's largest maker of mobile devices posted a 50 percent surge in quarterly operating profit after demand from Chinese smartphone brands pushed up memory chip prices and buoyed the unit that makes organic light-emitting diode screens. Samsung also touched up an older phone line-up with new colors and features, helping tide it over in the Note 7's absence. Samsung is emerging from its biggest corporate crisis, when reports of incendiary Note 7s forced the Korean company to kill its most profitable gadget. It still hasn't revealed the results of a subsequent investigation into an episode that cost Samsung more than $6 billion and assured Apple of the lead in premium devices over the holidays. It's now counting on its next marquee phone to repair its reputation. "Despite the Note 7's vacuum, Samsung acquitted itself well on the back of sound S7 sales," said Lee Seung-woo, an analyst with IBK Securities Co. in Seoul. "After a softer landing in the first quarter, Samsung is on track for record June quarter profit with the new S8 coming to market."

35 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. The company may be sound by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    But I will never buy anything from them again and will recommend against Samsung to anyone that asks.

    It not only the Note fiasco, it's the way they treat android and updates. Either provide vanilla android, on time, or move to something else.

    1. Re: The company may be sound by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      They hate Google more than Apple.

      They who?!

    2. Re: The company may be sound by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      I've got it now :P

    3. Re: The company may be sound by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Their stupid "ecosystem" with tons of bloatware, unusable keyboard, spyware and shit will not survive on its own. If they offered S7-8 with pure android or other pure platform I'd consider that.

    4. Re:The company may be sound by GuB-42 · · Score: 2

      Provide vanilla android and compete with Chinese manufacturers selling similar speced phones for half the price. I don't see it happen.
      Samsung don't sell Android devices, they sell Samsung devices. They want to keep their brand identity and I think it is a good thing.
      First, Samsung introduced plenty of useful features, a lot of useless ones too. Some of the good ones ended up in vanilla Android, that's a win for everyone else.
      Second, it helps keeping Google in check. Because Samsung is not vanilla Android, it doesn't depend as much on Google as the others, it helps creating a healthier relationship.

      Of course, if you don't like the way Samsung treats Android, don't buy Samsung. In fact I don't recommend them anymore but I am still glad they are here.

    5. Re: The company may be sound by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      The 'They' in the previous comment was clearly a reference to Samsung

      Not so clear: I was thinking of the users of the devices (the OP talks about them, you know...), not the company

      * it's a matter of text interpretation: and you, speak English?

    6. Re: The company may be sound by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      I miss cyanogenmod.org :/

    7. Re: The company may be sound by PCM2 · · Score: 2

      I have an S7 and I quite like it. They've dialed back the TouchWiz silliness to the point that I had very little difficulty transitioning from stock Android. The keyboard is eminently usable; I have Swype installed but find myself not using it. There's some bloatware but it's easily ignored, and some of it I actually use. On the whole it doesn't bother me at all, in fact it's probably the best phone I've owned.

      --
      Breakfast served all day!
    8. Re: The company may be sound by hey! · · Score: 1

      Do you mean
      (a) Samsung hates Google more than Samsung hates Apple,

      OR do you mean:
      (b) Samsung hates Google more than Apple hates Google?

      Keeping in mind both could be true, of course.

      --
      Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
    9. Re:The company may be sound by thegarbz · · Score: 3, Insightful

      So you recommend against Samsung for a reason that would disqualify every other Android as well.

      Thankyou for your thoughtful and insightful post. We are all better for it.

    10. Re: The company may be sound by thundercattt · · Score: 1

      I'll never buy from them again. Their products are rubbish. Their tv at Boxing day was the same price as a no name brand. I opted for no name over Samsung.

    11. Re: The company may be sound by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

      Samsung loves both Google and Apple. Google makes them rich with Android and Apple buys chips from them.

      --
      When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
    12. Re: The company may be sound by advocate_one · · Score: 1

      actually, I'm having trouble identifying the 'bloatware' as you call it, on my S7 Edge

      --
      Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
  2. including a bang up year for top loading washers! by OffTheLip · · Score: 1

    Mine hasn't exploded yet so I have that going for me I guess.

  3. Samsung is hot! by ls671 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Damn, Samsung is so hot!

    --
    Everything I write is lies, read between the lines.
    1. Re:Samsung is hot! by fbobraga · · Score: 1

      it's basic on fire!

    2. Re:Samsung is hot! by blahbooboo · · Score: 1

      Damn, Samsung is so hot!

      I first thought you were making a Zoolander reference. Then thought you were making light of their fire Note 7 issue. Then lastly, i realized you were doing two jokes -- both Zoolander reference and Note 7.

    3. Re:Samsung is hot! by blahbooboo · · Score: 1

      Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    4. Re:Samsung is hot! by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Spokesman: "Our business is doing fine, in fact we are booming ... Uh, I mean we are NOT booming, I mean ... we are doing fine. Have a great day, thank you, bye."

      --
      Table-ized A.I.
  4. Re:including a bang up year for top loading washer by NoNonAlphaCharsHere · · Score: 1, Informative

    Good grief. The 7 was too thin and too flexible by NANOMETERS - some battery fires resulted. Get over it.

  5. Samsung is a huge company by foxalopex · · Score: 1

    Samsung is a gigantic company with its hand in hundreds of products. The unfortunately Note 7 incident won't be enough to sink the entire company. They're so diverse that even a non-Samsung brand phone may have Samsung parts. And some of their products like their SSD have been outright stellar compared to the competition for performance and value. So yes a small bump in the road for the Samsung bus, not a house swallowing sinkhole.

    1. Re:Samsung is a huge company by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      So will the next note have an end user replaceable battery or are they going to gamble another $6 billion to save maybe $50 million in battery costs (nothing to do with design and everything to do with cheaper batteries and designed product failure to ensure replacement). PS Samung calling people who prefer user removable batteries fanboys just makes Samung a bunch of fuckwit marketing dickheads https://www.sammobile.com/2016....

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
  6. Re:Peak Slashdot by NoNonAlphaCharsHere · · Score: 1

    Not sure what you're talking about, OP was snarking that his washing machine hasn't exploded (yet) - as if it would simply because it's made by Samsung. This wasn't Apple saying "you're not holding it right", Samsung fessed up that their state-of-the-art engineering was a little too overoptimistic.

  7. Re:Peak Slashdot by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

    Not sure what you're talking about, OP was snarking that his washing machine hasn't exploded (yet) - as if it would simply because it's made by Samsung. This wasn't Apple saying "you're not holding it right", Samsung fessed up that their state-of-the-art engineering was a little too overoptimistic.

    Except that a Samsung washing machine WAS prone to "exploding". Or rather, an unbalanced load would shake it apart (and given the violence of the shaking, fling said pieces outward in an apparent explosion).

    So yeah, Samsung washing machines also exploded. And it happened just around the time of the Note 7 recall, too.

  8. Couldnt even push a free samsung 7 on me. by BrookHarty · · Score: 1

    Most phones are downgrades, no sd card slot, no headphone jack, no removable battery. I can't see ever buying a samsung again, when dozens of other vendors are offering uncrippled phones for less money. Samsung just isnt worth it.

    1. Re:Couldnt even push a free samsung 7 on me. by DarenN · · Score: 1

      Er, what?

      S7 has an SD card slot and a headphone jack. The battery is not removable but it is a good sized battery that lasts well. The phone is also waterproof and sturdy, feels solid (if a little slippy) and performs very well. Perhaps you were thinking of the S6 (which had a diabolical battery and no SD card slot)?

      --
      Rational thought is the only true freedom
  9. Of course their business is sound! by uCallHimDrJ0NES · · Score: 1

    They sell devices that spy on people. SO many customers to pay for that, and those customers pay in ways SO much more valuable than currency. Duh.

    --
    Cloudiot: A person who does not see offsite storage as a way to lose control over access to his or her own data.
    1. Re:Of course their business is sound! by uCallHimDrJ0NES · · Score: 1

      Ha. I'm not going to make a list, but I don't think all tech companies do things like ship hidden front-facing cameras in televisions without calling attention to it.

      --
      Cloudiot: A person who does not see offsite storage as a way to lose control over access to his or her own data.
    2. Re:Of course their business is sound! by D00MSlayer · · Score: 1

      They only do that so that they can watch you masturbate. They're just lonely is all. So why don't you throw them a bone(r) already?

    3. Re:Of course their business is sound! by farble1670 · · Score: 1

      They only do that so that they can watch you masturbate.

      Sheesh, get over it people. If someone wants to watch you masturbate, what you should do is feel flattered by the gesture.

  10. Re:Peak Slashdot by msauve · · Score: 1

    Whoosh.

    "Since early last year, there have been 21 reports to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) about the exploding washers..."

    --
    "National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
  11. the new Note 8! by Lumpy · · Score: 1

    Thermal runaway is now instantaneous! that way no witnesses will be left behind.

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
  12. Re:Peak Slashdot by SirSlud · · Score: 1

    You're very sensitive.

    --
    "Old man yells at systemd"
  13. Re:Peak Slashdot by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

    Apple cultists are so entertaining, especially when they flock.

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  14. Re:What fiasco? by Maritz · · Score: 1

    Oh I think I see what you did there. Subtle.

    --
    I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.