What did Samsung Do Right with the GS3 and Note2?

[KnightMan]

With all the Android devices to chose from, what made the masses chose the GS3 over the comparable devices from Motorola, LG, HTC and Sony. The Note 2, a niche product, is selling better than other mainstream Android devices. The GS3 is the best selling device in the UK for 7 consecutive months now, and even outsold the iPhone 5 and 4S in the UK. So what is Samsung doing right in your opinion? I personally think it's that gorgeous screen that with it's vibrant colors, as well as the feature packed Touchwiz. Other Android devices don't have those features (direct call, smart alert, smart stay, etc...)

 

[3bs]

With all the Android devices to chose from, what made the masses chose the GS3 over the comparable devices from Motorola, LG, HTC and Sony. The Note 2, a niche product, is selling better than other mainstream Android devices. The GS3 is the best selling device in the UK for 7 consecutive months now, and even outsold the iPhone 5 and 4S in the UK. So what is Samsung doing right in your opinion. I personally think it's that gorgeous screen that with it's vibrant colors, as well as the feature packed Touchwiz. Other Android devices don't have those features (direct call, smart alert, smart stay, etc...)

Personally I got it because it was the top of the line Android phone at the time. It was either it or the HTC One X and the S3 had benefits like removable battery and expandable storage.

The fact that half of my friends also had it definitely persuaded me as well.

 

[F123D]

I went with the Note II because of its unique features. Screen, S-Pen, dual screen, etc.. Also, like 3bs said, the option for expandable storage and replaceable battery. Other devices you get one or the other, usually neither. Most users seem to be very happy with Samsungs Galaxy line and that helps with their reputation.

It also helps that theres a strong online presence for support and questions with these devices.

 

[2298754]

Marketing, marketing, marketing. Samsung pushed the S3 hard during the Olympics over the summer and now EVERYONE knows about the S3. I see S3 billboards everywhere, commercials, etc. Only phone I can think of post-iPhone that has matched its level of recognition and such.

Another thing is that it's basically the same device on every carrier. Makes it easier to ID. The Galaxy S2 was different between AT&T and the others. Same with Galaxy Note 2. Every carrier is getting identical version and Sammy is spending millions on marketing.


Samsung is the perfect great example of how to run a mobile company right.

 

[sentinelsx]

Not sure about other people, but for me samsung nailed it with ultra smooth performance even on stock touchwizz on S3 ICS and Note 2 JB. And respectable battery life. Plus better storage options (32 GB, and SD card options).

If they could put a non-AMOLED screen in their phones, i would probably buy the GS4 or NOTE3 in a heart beat. Right now my S3 is pretty good though. Loving it without any root or mod

 

[ChazUK]

Not sure about other people, but for me samsung nailed it with ultra smooth performance even on stock touchwizz on S3 ICS and Note 2 JB. And respectable battery life. Plus better storage options (32 GB, and SD card options).

If they could put a non-AMOLED screen in their phones, i would probably buy the GS4 or NOTE3 in a heart beat. Right now my S3 is pretty good though. Loving it without any root or mod

I've got to agree with the TouchWiz point. The first version of TW that I didn't want to replace with another launcher straight away.

Smart stay was a good feature in my opinion too.

 

[onthecouchagain]

They gave people what Apple wouldn't give. I guess.

 

[Zwhaler]

I got the Note 2 because of the specs, it has a very spacious display that I can actually present videos or movies on without feeling like getting a watered down experience. I can surf web pages without feeling like it's a watered down experience. The 1.6GHz quad core and overclocked GPU are amazing. It didn't even perform as well as the iPhone 5 in benchmarks, but I have yet to see any game stutter, or Google Earth with settings maxed out over 720p, or even TouchWiz with decked out live wallpaper and widgets .. something even the Galaxy S3 couldn't do (US version). Oh and 2GB of RAM is awesome as well, and expandable storage + user replaceable battery, the list goes on.

 

[mikegasol]

I've got to agree with the TouchWiz point. The first version of TW that I didn't want to replace with another launcher straight away.

Smart stay was a good feature in my opinion too.

Same here. I have had them all. Samsung, HTC, Motorola, LG and I think Touchwiz is the best UI out of them all. Samsung does market very well too and they make great devices.

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

I think they have taken off because #1, it's a nice sized screen...not too big, not too small...hits the sweet spot for most people in that regard. Then secondly the SG3 looks really really nice, especially the blue color. While the Note 2 is just a really unique device. Finally I agree with what was said earlier...marketing. And having it be on just about every carrier out there really helps. I have never understood exclusives. Yes I see how it benefits the carrier, but what do phone manufactures get out of it? I think they could make more money having their device in as many hands as possible and Samsung's strategy proves that out.

 

[matttye]

Samsung have been very innovative with their latest devices.

Three features that solve annoying problems: -

1. Smart stay. Stops screen going off while you're looking at it.
2. Smart rotation. Will only allow the screen to rotate if your head is upright, meaning if you lean/lay down with the phone, it should stop it auto-rotating. Haven't tried this so not sure how well it works.
3. One handed keyboard for the Note 2. Feature that enables you to type one handed on a massive screen.. no reason to stay small really is there

Obviously nobody would buy the phones for those reasons alone, but there are lots of nice little touches like that.

 

[3bs]

Not sure about other people, but for me samsung nailed it with ultra smooth performance even on stock touchwizz on S3 ICS and Note 2 JB. And respectable battery life. Plus better storage options (32 GB, and SD card options).

If they could put a non-AMOLED screen in their phones, i would probably buy the GS4 or NOTE3 in a heart beat. Right now my S3 is pretty good though. Loving it without any root or mod

I disagree about it being ultra smooth on stock. I might be biased because I rooted and flashed a custom ROM the day I got my S3 but when I tried going back to my stock ROM backup it felt a lot less smooth. The same thing goes for my friends GS3's which are stock. (all international models)

 

[zbarvian]

Definitely marketing. Where I live, there's more billboards/TV ads for the S3 and Note 2 than the iPhone 5.

 

[daveathall]

They built a superb phone, it is still number one smartphone in the top ten in both Stuff and T3 magazine. (UK Tech mags) I am having real difficulty in deciding which phone to sell between my SGS3 and my Nexus 4.

 

[2298754]

I disagree about it being ultra smooth on stock. I might be biased because I rooted and flashed a custom ROM the day I got my S3 but when I tried going back to my stock ROM backup it felt a lot less smooth. The same thing goes for my friends GS3's which are stock. (all international models)

This. Stock ICS/JB on my AT&T S3 are far from smooth

 

[Jibbajabba]

They gave people what Apple wouldn't give. I guess.

That ... Having the iPhone since the original one, all the way to 4S, I got bored of it and yes, Samsung ticks every single box (should have changed a long time ago tbh.

 

[nick_elt]

The s pen is great I bought the note 2 but thinking I wouldn't use the s pen much as I never needed a stylus with my iphone but it's so much more than just a Stylus. Battery life is amazing and its smooth as butter. Screen size I'm used to now, it didn't take long. And I couldn't go back to a screen that's much smaller. With 2gig of ram you never run out of system memory for Android is not overkill its needed. Android is pretty I stable now, its everything that the iphone isnt.

 

[aerok]

I got the Note II for one reason, battery life.

 

[mikegasol]

I got the Note II for one reason, battery life.

Why not the Razr Maxx then? Bigger battery and longer life.

 

[TheHateMachine]

Marketing, Touchwiz is super smooth... hell its even smoother than some AOSP vanilla roms (Mostly because of Touchwiz transitions) and the fact that the same device is on all carriers. It is a nice phone and I am sure the screen attracted a bunch of people too.

 

[TheHateMachine]

Why not the Razr Maxx then? Bigger battery and longer life.

It is fairly close to the RAZR Maxx, off by about 2 hours here or there. Just for reference GSM Arena got 21 hours of talk time out of the Maxx and 17 hours out of the Note 2.

 

[aerok]

Why not the Razr Maxx then? Bigger battery and longer life.

One cannot get the RAZR Maxx in Canada and also wanted Google Now.

 

[Stuntman06]

Marketing, marketing, marketing.

For years, Apple's marketing was untouchable. I feel that Samsung finally got a decent marketing campaign that helped push the SGS3 into the minds of the general public.

On top of that the SGS3 is a very solid phone. I personally prefer a physical keyboard. I even considered ditching my SGS3 for a physical keyboard after struggling for 3 months with the touch screen keyboard. Finally, I made a concerted effort to really get used to the touch screen keyboard in the 4th month I have owned the device because it was such a good phone in every other respect. I still hate touch screen keyboards, but am at a point where I can tollerate it enough that it doesn't bother me anymore.

The SGS3 unlike my previous Android phone (HTC Desire Z) continues to run smoothly and be very stable after almost 5 months now. It was more stable than my previous phone and did not suffer any slowdowns even after installing a bunch of apps.

 

[lordofthereef]

With all the Android devices to chose from, what made the masses chose the GS3 over the comparable devices from Motorola, LG, HTC and Sony.

A lot (not all) is marketing. Can you remember the last Moto, HTC, or Sony promotion? I sure can't. Well, ok, the "Droid Does" campaign, but that is from years ago. meanwhile there are "Samsung Experience" kiosks in malls, billboards, posters, etc. all over the place, ads ripping on the iOS audience (which are quite funny I might add), and, what might be the biggest deal, you can play with the actual phone almost anywhere. Apple has been the only manufacturer that I know of that insists a working model in their display unit wherever the device is sold. Samsung has now done this (maybe not everywhere, but a lot of places). This helps tremendously.

 

[Switchback666]

I have to agree, Samsung did some great marketing and push it a lot of course they also made 2 awesome devices and proved thats theres a market for even bigger screens and hell even a styles wich some consider prehistoric; i think that the state of iOS also help them a lot ! people love change and these times theres plenty of superb alternatives or better? anyway next year its going to be very interesting.