Galaxy S21 Strong First Month Sales... Will It Set a 'Daebak' Record After 4 Years?

Strong First Month Sales of Galaxy S21
Over 1,000 Nationwide Dealerships and Retailers
Population Estimate Based on Sample Survey

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] Samsung Electronics' flagship smartphone Galaxy S21, launched last month, has achieved initial sales performance comparable to the historically high sales of the Galaxy S8.

ICT market intelligence firm Atlas Research & Consulting conducted a sample survey of about 1,000 nationwide dealerships and retail stores, and on the 5th announced that the total cumulative sales of the Galaxy S21 series up to the 4th week after launch this year are estimated to be 590,000 units. The confidence level is 95%, with a margin of error of ±4.4%.

As the domestic smartphone market has experienced negative growth in recent years, sales of flagship models have also shrunk, but the Galaxy S21 has recovered to the first-month sales level of the flagship Galaxy S8 model released four years ago.

The strong sales are mainly attributed to aggressive marketing by telecom operators pursuing the expansion of 5G subscribers and increased replacement demand from users of models prior to the LTE model Galaxy S9.

Efforts to lower the base price below 1 million won compared to the previous model are also analyzed to have had an impact. The base model of the Galaxy S20 was priced at 1,248,500 won, while the base model of the Galaxy S21 was set at 999,900 won. However, the Galaxy S21 excluded chargers and other accessories from the main package.

This price reduction effect is also clearly reflected in the sales proportions of the Galaxy S21’s detailed models. For the Galaxy S21, the base model accounted for nearly half of total sales at 49.5%. The Ultra model, priced at 1,452,000 won (for the smaller capacity), accounted for 28.9%, and the Plus model, priced at 1,199,000 won, accounted for 21.7%.

Jung Geun-ho, director of Atlas Research & Consulting, said, “The Galaxy S21 has overcome the previous model’s sluggishness and shown a significant increase in sales,” adding, “With the start of COVID-19 vaccinations and growing expectations for economic revitalization, the domestic smartphone market is expected to grow significantly in 2021.”