Samsung guns for wider market with cheaper Note 10, S10 models

MANILA, Philippines – Samsung’s taking a sharper aim at the midrange market with the recent announcement of the Note 10 Lite and the S10 Lite – cheaper versions of their flagship lines. 

The phones have some solid specs. The S10 Lite has the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset as the standard S10 while the Note 10 Lite will reportedly either have Samsung’s in-house Exynos 8895 or 9810 chip, found in the Note 8 and Note 9 respectively. These aren’t the latest processors, but for most, they’ll likely more than suffice. 

If you’ve been looking at the Note for its stylus, you’ll be glad to know that the Note 10 Lite will have one. Some early reviewers though have noted that one difference is that the Lite stylus will not have the Harry Potter-like air gestures found in the standard Note 10’s. They’ve also noted that the bezels are pretty slim and the phones have a nice, if slightly below flagship-level build. 

Both have a triple-camera setup on the rear: an ultrawide-standard-tele on the Note 10 Lite, and an ultrawide-standard-macro on the S10 Lite. These are set-ups that are par for the course for midrange and budget flagship phones. 

Both will also have the Super AMOLED displays that Samsung flagships have been known for, measuring at 6.7 inches – smaller by 0.1 inch than the Note 10+ and bigger than the S10+’s 6.4-incher. The Lite phones will have a lower max resolution of 2,400 x 1,080 as opposed to the 3,040 x 1,440 of the premium flagships.  

Samsung’s bringing their flagship brands to a wider market with these cheaper phones. The company has been facing stiff competition from newer brands that bring high-end specs at prices that’s more than half of their flagships’. These phones are usually in the P20,000 to P30,000 price range. 

If Samsung can price these budget Note and S phones in the P30,000 to P35,000 price range, they just might give consumers pause – although, realistically, P35,000 to P36,000 might be more likely.  It’ll be a test of the equity the Samsung’s flagships have built over the years. “Should I go with the cheaper, lesser-known brand or do I spend just a little more to get a model that, at least by branding, is derived from a premium flagship?” a buyer might ask himself.

Samsung already started with the S10e last year, launched at P40,000, to attract a wider market. The Lite phones represent the continuation of that effort. And it’s all going to boil down to how low Samsung can go. Check out the full specs at Samsung’s website.

Expect more details at Samsung’s keynote address at CES 2020 on Tuesday, January 7, Philippine time. – Rappler.com