Samsung had us spoilt for choice over the past few years. It felt like every quarter, fans were looking forward to a big new device launch from the company. You had the Galaxy S flagships at the start of the year, following by the Galaxy Note and foldables in the second half and the “Fan Edition” models of that year's Galaxy S flagship towards the end of the year.
This doesn't include the plethora of premium mid-range, affordable, and low-end devices that the company released throughout the year. It also doesn't include the smartwatches, earbuds, and tablets that the company released from time to time. Samsung has made some major changes to its lineup over the past year, and one major change is leaving a significant gap that may be difficult for Samsung to fill.
We exclusively reported earlier this year that the Galaxy S22 FE is being cancelled. This came as a surprise since the Galaxy S21 FE did very well. Samsung had previously said that it would now be launching a new Fan Edition model every year. However, the company decided that this won't be the case for the Galaxy S22 FE.
A subsequent report out of South Korea suggested that this may have something to do with the global chip shortage. Apparently, the company had to choose between increasing production of the Galaxy S22 Ultra that was selling very well or launch the Galaxy S22 FE. Since profit margins are higher on the Ultra, Samsung chose to utilize those chips for the Galaxy S22 Ultra and ditch the Galaxy S22 FE launch for this year.
The supply of chips for the Galaxy S22 series has reportedly been tight to begin with. Samsung had initially planned to produce 3 million units of the Galaxy S22 FE but decided to use those chips for the Ultra instead. This meant that there wouldn't be any chips left for the Galaxy S22 FE and the model had to be cancelled.
Whether that's actually the reason why this device won't see the light of day remains a mystery. These assumptions are based on reports from local Korean media. Samsung hasn't said anything officially about the fate of the Galaxy S22 FE or indeed the future of the FE models. Another report did claim that Samsung will be back with the Galaxy S23 FE in 2023 but it's too soon to be sure about that for now.
The problem that Samsung now has is that there's no significant launch in the pipeline now for at least a good six months. Its FE models attracted a lot of customers due to the fact that they provide near flagship-level specs at a very aggressive price. Customers who purchase devices in that price bracket have few viable options now.
They won't be buying Samsung's latest foldable smartphones. They may not be willing to wait until the Galaxy S23 series arrives, and even then the base model may cost more than what they'll be willing to spend. So either they buy a device that's a generation old, the Galaxy S21 FE, or just keep waiting for deals on the base model Galaxy S22 to pick one up at a more appropriate cost.
This impossible situation might give some customers a reason to switch to other brands, an outcome that Samsung certainly won't appreciate. However, there's not much that Samsung can do here. The company is entirely focused on selling as many of its new foldable smartphones as possible in the coming months. The job of selling the Galaxy S23 series won't start until early next year, so it can be fully focused on the foldables.
Not everyone is going to buy a foldable smartphone, though. Even if they believe in the idea, the cost remains a barrier of entry for many customers. The difficulty Samsung now has to navigate is that there's not much in its lineup that can serve as a replacement for the Galaxy S22 FE. The mid-range devices don't offer similar specs so they can't command a similar price. Samsung can't cut prices of its Galaxy S22 models far enough to lower that barrier of entry, so it's basically stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Perhaps this sabbatical that it has sent the FE model on will provide Samsung with the data to make up its mind for next year. For example, if it's able to offset the losses from the lack of a Galaxy S22 FE by selling more of its higher priced units, then the company may not wish to bring it back. However, if there's a clear hole in the numbers that too big to plug, the company might come to the realization that it needs to find a way to make it work with the FE models.
So can Samsung do in the meantime? It can continue to sweeten the deal for customers who are picking up the Galaxy S22. Everyone knows that the best deals are found on Samsung.com. The company should continue to offer great incentives on current flagships so that customers who are missing the Galaxy S22 FE have an alternative, and Samsung doesn't start bleeding customers to its rivals.
