Samsung Speeds Up Smartphone Race Against Apple

Samsung’s new Galaxy Note model will be released a few weeks earlier than expected, sources familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

The South Korean company reportedly decided to move the release date from September to mid-August, leaving a few weeks between the launch of the Galaxy Note and the anticipated release of Apple’s new iPhone.

Last September’s events probably had something to do with the decision, since the release of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus overshadowed the Galaxy Note 4. Apple competed against the Note 4 by creating the biggest iPhone yet; with a 5.5-inch screen, the iPhone 6 Plus was only 0.2 inches smaller than the Note. Timing was also a crucial factor, since the Galaxy Note 4 was unveiled on Sept. 3, only six days before the new iPhones went on sale.

But this year, Samsung is willing to change its release schedule to avoid the buzz of the new iPhone — which, in recent weeks, has become a particularly loud buzz.

Since the IFA Berlin conference that took place in September 2011, Samsung has kept up a rather punctual release rhythm, introducing the Galaxy S in February and the Galaxy Note in September. It is almost tradition for Samsung to unveil the new Note model at the Berlin trade show, since that is where the first Galaxy Note was launched.

With the release of the first Galaxy Note, Samsung created a new category of phones known as “phablets.” It took the Berlin conference by storm.

Because of this year’s change of plans, the new Galaxy Note will not be introduced in Berlin, but in a major U.S. city that is yet to be decided.

By moving the release date, Samsung is hoping to revive its earnings estimates, especially since its second quarter projections showed an 8-percent decline in revenues from last year. The weak earnings estimates were probably caused by Galaxy S6 sales, which failed to meet the company’s expectations.

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