Samsung could switch to metal construction for the next Galaxy Note
Whenever I get a Samsung device to review, I notice once again the biggest complaint that I have which applies to all of Samsung’s products: The low-quality feel of their smartphones and tablets. Now, I’m sure that Samsung’s plastics are decently high quality, and that Samsung manufactures its devices well. In fact, I’ve found Samsung’s hardware to be some of the most durable on the market, despite the light and cheap feel. However, despite all the advantages offered by Samsung’s essentially plastic smartphones, it is still a bit disconcerting to have a $500 smartphone that feels like a toy.
According to SamMobile’s “insiders,” Samsung has noticed the HTC One and is concerned that customers are going to prefer the aluminum design and build quality of the device. To be more precise, Samsung is a bit “worried,” and has received some criticism for releasing the Galaxy S4 with a plastic body.
As a result, it is now rumored that Samsung will switch from its standard design language for the next Galaxy Note, the Galaxy Note III. It is actually mentioned that Samsung planned to make this switch with the Galaxy S4, but couldn’t mass produce the metal devices in time for a spring launch. If this is true and Samsung can sort out these issues, it does sound likely that the next Galaxy Note may have a very new design and materials from Samsung.
There are, of course, reasons that metal smartphones are difficult to get right, the primary problem being reception. Then again, HTC managed to figure out how to make it work with the One, so obviously Samsung could use metal for the Galaxy Note III if it really wanted to. Still, even though I don’t like Samsung’s plastic phones, I do have to say that they are light, durable, and look at least decent, so they do have their advantages. I’m sure there are some people who might prefer a removable battery on a plastic phone to a metal phone without one, so perhaps Samsung should stay true to its roots and continue with their current designs. After all, it does distinguish the company from HTC and others, and choice for consumers is always a good thing.
Economically speaking, though, if the HTC One does begin to eat into Samsung’s sales, then I wouldn’t be surprised if the switch was considered. Would you buy a metal Galaxy Note III, or do you think Samsung would be smarter to stick to what they know?
[SamMobile]
