Samsung
Samsung could cut production at its biggest money-making business
Semiconductor Division of Samsung Electronics is known as its biggest money-making business, which could get a strategic production cut. However, the company is likely to post deficits of billions of won in the first quarter of this year amid weakening memory chip prices and higher inventories.
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According to the regulatory filing to DART by Samsung, its inventory assets reached an all-time high of 52.2 trillion won ($39.9 billion) as of the fourth quarter of last year, compared with last year’s 41.4 trillion won.
The South Korean tech titan’s chip business division accounted for the lion’s share of the total figure, with 29.1 trillion won in the same year, up nearly 12.6 trillion won from the same period tallied in 2021, the data showed.
Pent-up demand during the pandemic for home appliances, including TVs, has lost momentum, and aggressive rate hikes in major economies have significantly weakened consumer spending power.
This situation, on top of the inventory surge, has resulted in a sharp drop in chip prices. Market watchers believe the prices of PC DRAM and NAND memory chips are reportedly getting closer to their costs.
- KB Securities forecast the prices of DRAM and NAND chips will drop by a further 19 percent and 18 percent, respectively, in the January-March 2023 period.
While falling chip prices and soaring inventories affect Samsung’s earnings, the company is expected to take a turn into the red in this first quarter, logging operating losses of between 1.91 trillion won and 4.47 trillion won, reports FnGuide.
Despite witnessing a sharp drop in chip profits, Samsung maintains it will not be “artificially” cutting output and will keep up investment in its chips business. However, it has hinted at the possibility of a “natural” reduction through process conversion.
At Wednesday’s shareholder’s meeting, the company shared a downbeat forecast for its chip business this year but said it will continue to invest to secure clean rooms and technology advances in its efforts to “turn misfortune into advantage.”
“We will be flexible in executing infrastructure investment given volatile market conditions. We’re also planning to enhance our investment efficiency and improve the corporate structure.” Said Lee Jung-bae, president of Samsung’s device solution division.
Samsung and SK Hynix might reduce their production further to prevent soaring inventory assets and boost semiconductor prices. Market watchers say that reducing supply is the way to accelerate rebound in their chip businesses.
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra camera design remains to be a mystery. CAD renders showcased slightly rounded corners of the next flagships. However, the camera rings continue to be a controversial aspect of the S25 Ultra design.
In a new leak, tipster IceUniverse claims to have final design info of the S25 Ultra. The leaker claimed that the Galaxy S25 Ultra could feature the Galaxy Z Fold 6-like camera rings, which could be similar, but not the same.
CAD renders showcased a Fold6-inspired camera ring pattern. Later on, IceUniverse claimed that the S25 Ultra wouldn’t adopt such looking rings. However, the tipster now has updated information that the rings are identical to Fold6’s.
This means the S25 Ultra camera rings may not be as metallic and crispy as the S24 Ultra. Rather, the rings would adopt a textured design surrounding the sensor. The rings’ thickness would be higher than the rings used in the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
The final answer of S25 Ultra camera: It is similar to the camera ring design of Fold6, but not exactly the same. pic.twitter.com/WFYZZUGfj3
— ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) October 11, 2024
For now, take the input with a grain of salt as the final design could only be confirmed after the start of mass production. Well, the front side of the S25 Ultra will look even more classical than the S24 Ultra.
Samsung has further refined the bezel and smartly modified the overall dimensions. As a result, the S25 Ultra could be slightly taller and narrower. The company has also worked on reducing the thickness and weight of the next Ultra.
These crucial refinements are taken into account to solidify the sales potential. We expect the mega unveiling event by Samsung early next year.
Samsung has reportedly updated many icons in One UI 7 and added powerful widgets. The company teased the internal build of the upcoming software. The development is still in progress, and design modifications are underway.
IceUniverse revealed Samsung changed many icons and added new widgets in One UI 7. The software is “still in the development stage,” the source mentioned. The revelation aligns with Samsung’s announcement for further refinements.
Samsung will launch the Beta Program by the end of this year. We are expecting a brief One UI 7 Beta Program, covering limited models. Recently, the US community moderator confirmed that the Beta Program will launch for the Public as well.
The source highlighted that the Gallery app’s icon has been changed again. It looks like Samsung has also altered the in-app competent icons of Gallery. More native app icons are reportedly revamped as we await the Beta to kickstart.
In addition, the One UI 7 has added new widgets for Galaxy devices. Ice suggests the addition of “some incomparably rich widgets.” These widgets may offer powerful features that are not available in any other rival OS.
As I said before, One UI 7 is still in the development stage, the latest version is very smooth, and many icons have been changed, and the gallery icons have been changed again.😁
And added some incomparably rich widget, more than any other OS.— ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) October 11, 2024
Samsung’s Android 15 has been in the headlines for a quite long time. The software is awaited by millions of Galaxy fans worldwide. The company is delaying the release to offer a bug-free experience to Galaxy devices.
The final version of One UI 7 will be announced with the Galaxy S25 series next year. Due to this major change, One UI 7.1’s existence is in question. It’s uncertain whether the .1 version of One UI 7 will ship with new Galaxy S phones next year.
Will One UI 7.1 launch or be skipped after Samsung’s One UI 7 confirmation with Galaxy S25?
Samsung Galaxy S25 FE could introduce an innovative Slim design. The company is considering a slimmer design for the next Fan Edition. It could be made possible by expanding the battery size to prevent any drop in capacity.
South Korea’s TheElec reports that the Samsung Galaxy S25 FE could feature a Slim design. The smartphone is expected to get a 6.7-inch display. The battery capacity could also be the same as the S24 FE, which is 4700mAh.
Reducing smartphone thickness is a pretty difficult task for manufacturers. A small change or micrometer difference requires a lot of engineering work. Well, Samsung seemingly found a way to make its future Galaxies slimmer.
The Galaxy S25 FE could get a slimmer and larger battery in size. The capacity could remain intact, and a reduction in the battery’s thickness will help Samsung achieve the goal of reducing the phone’s thickness to make it slimmer.
Samsung has recently released the Galaxy S24 FE. The new variant comes with pretty much upgrades over its predecessor. It has a larger display, bigger battery, and upgraded display – but with a price increase of $50.
Now, the company is unlikely to modify these aspects in the next model. The focus could be on further refining the overall design. The camera department could see an upgrade with the inclusion of a next-gen Telephoto sensor.
The Galaxy S25 series is expected to be announced early next year. The S25 FE is approx a year away from now as we got the S24 FE released last month. We will get to know even more about the upcoming products in the future.