Samsung's 'rushed,' 'half-baked' announcements set Apple up for easy victory this fall, analyst says

Posted:
in AAPL Investors edited September 2014
Samsung this week made a slew of announcements, most notably its next-generation big-screen Galaxy Note 4 smartphone, but none of the products were enough to impress analyst Brian White, who doesn't think the South Korean electronics maker is well positioned to compete with Apple's anticipated fall product lineup.




In a note to investors on Thursday, White, of Cantor Fitzgerald, used the words "underwhelming," "rushed," and "half-baked" to describe Samsung's announcements, which also included the Gear VR partnership with Oculus, a Gear S smartwatch, and the new Note Edge handset with a side-facing display. White said he believes Samsung's announcements were a subpar attempt at garnering buzz for its products before Apple holds its own presentation next Tuesday, Sept. 9.

"In our view, this strategy was ill-advised because we found the event 'half baked' with no details around the price points, launch dates a bit fuzzy, limited technical specifications, and 'gimmicky' features," White said in his note, a copy of which was provided to AppleInsider. "With the potential threat of this event now out of the way, we believe this just made Apple's 'Fab Fall' launch a lot easier because the company's #1 competitor does not appear well prepared to take on Apple's new iPhones this fall."

Apple heavily rumored to be planning to release two new iPhone models this year with two different screen sizes. In particular, the larger 5.5-inch model is expected to be Apple's answer to the so-called "phablet" trend, arguably led by the popular Galaxy Note lineup.

White believes Apple's 5.5-inch "iPhone 6" will eat into the Note franchise, which heads into the fall with the Galaxy Note 4 as its new flagship model. That handset will launch with a 5.7-inch 2,560-by-1,440-pixel Super AMOLED display as well as a new 16-megapixel camera system.

Apple could further take the wind out of Samsung's sails if the new jumbo-sized iPhone hits the market before the Note 4. Apple typically launches new iPhone models the Friday after their unveiling, which would make Sept. 19 a likely date this year, though there have been rumors that the company is facing production issues with the 5.5-inch model and it could debut slightly later.

White is one of the most bullish analysts on Wall Street regarding Apple, with a price target of $123. He has particularly high hopes for Apple's 5.5-inch "phablet" in China, where he believes the bigger model could help the company gain market share.

Shares of AAPL are up slightly Thursday after taking a tumble Wednesday following Samsung's announcements at the IFA trade show in Berlin. The company is now trading below $100 a share after finishing last week at an all-time high north of $102.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 96

    But just wait until their new announcements in two weeks after they have a chance to improve on Apple's new products!

  • Reply 2 of 96
    chadbagchadbag Posts: 1,999member
    Tuesday, come already.

    I don't think yesterday's drop in price had to do with Samsung, but rather the iCloud "nude photo scandal" brouhaha.
  • Reply 3 of 96
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by smaceslin View Post

     

    But just wait until their new announcements in two weeks after they have a chance to improve on Apple's new products!


     

    Well,yes, of course. Samsung has been in standby mode for over a year now waiting to see what Apple does. They have released a slew of ‘feature’ phones in an attempt to cover all their bases

  • Reply 4 of 96

    sigh...

     

    Apple products stand on their own.

     

    Apple's only competition is people's expectations of Apple's Products.

     

    Samsung doesn't win market share, Apple just doesn't want parts of the market.   

  • Reply 5 of 96
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by lkrupp View Post

     

     

    Well,yes, of course. Samsung has been in standby mode for over a year now waiting to see what Apple does. They have released a slew of ‘feature’ phones in an attempt to cover all their bases


     

    Don't forget they're on their 6th generation of smartwatches after just a year, in a desperate attempt to throw every concept at the wall before Apple launches anything so they can claim SEE??! FIRST!!.  

     

    What a disgusting company that is only causing massive consumer confusion through constant product spamming, and negatively affecting people's relationship with technology because of this. 

  • Reply 6 of 96
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Slurpy View Post

     

     

    Don't forget they're on their 6th generation of smartwatches after just a year, in a desperate attempt to throw every concept at the wall before Apple launches anything so they can claim SEE??! FIRST!!.  

     

    What a disgusting company that is only causing massive consumer confusion through constant product spamming, and negatively affecting people's relationship with technology because of this. 


     

    And the hilarious part is that it isn’t working. While not labeled as ‘beleaguered’ yet analysts are starting to use the term ‘in a slump’ recently.

  • Reply 7 of 96

    Even the Android fans I know with Sammy phones don't seem to care what Samsung is doing. They pray at the altar of Google. Ha ha! Cult! Derp!

  • Reply 8 of 96
    slurpy wrote: »
    Don't forget they're on their 6th generation of smartwatches after just a year, in a desperate attempt to throw every concept at the wall before Apple launches anything so they can claim SEE??! FIRST!!.  

    What a disgusting company that is only causing massive consumer confusion through constant product spamming, and negatively affecting people's relationship with technology because of this. 

    Thousands of "yes" to every "no."
  • Reply 9 of 96

    How many smartwatches has Samsung announced over the past 2 years?

     

    Edit: Already answered. 6 generations. Wow.

  • Reply 10 of 96
    512ke512ke Posts: 782member

    Samsung: profits down 20% year over year, income down 15%, sales down 10%, operating profits down 25%, shares down.   Still the largest smartphone supplier, but global market share down from 32% to 25%

     

    Will yesterday's announced products change that?  I don't think so.  

     

    Samsung -- offering incremental improvements to existing products in markets where Samsung already competes.

     

    Apple -- pushing into brand new markets.  Phablets?  new territory.  Wearables?  Totally new.  Payments?  That's new.

     

    This is why Apple has unique opportunity to rise all the metrics listed in the first paragraph, above.

     

    So says a non professional amateur investor lol.   But I'll bet I'm right!

  • Reply 11 of 96

    But one should not deny that... Samsung new Note's design got improved.

  • Reply 12 of 96
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Chandra69 View Post

     

    But one should not deny that... Samsung new Note's design got improved.




    By adding a ring of aluminum?

  • Reply 13 of 96
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by smaceslin View Post

     

    But just wait until their new announcements in two weeks after they have a chance to copy on Apple's new products!


     

    There, fixed that for you. ;)<img class=" src="http://forums-files.appleinsider.com/images/smilies//lol.gif" />

     

    Joking aside, Samescum is in a serious world of hurt right now. Their brand has been taking a beating because they are showing that they don't know which direction they are going. Six iterations of Galaxy Gear in over a year. They have so many "smart" phones out there, no one is really sure which is the new one and which is not. Then you have these carriers that keep promoting Galaxy IIIs as new phones for free, further diluting their brand.

     

    Just a really ugly situation for a completely moral-less company.

  • Reply 14 of 96
    cornchipcornchip Posts: 1,945member

    Analyst says......

     

    Anyone. Literally ANYONE could make this observation. Maybe I should go get an MBA... I'd sure get paid a bunch more to be a dumbass than I am as a "Designer"...

  • Reply 15 of 96

    So, when an analysts says anything bad, negative, not in the favor of or something most of you guys disagree with about Apple, you guys hate on analysts in a big way. Now that an analysts says something which you guys agree with it's all rosy. Got it.

     

    Not that I disagree with almost all that is being reported but I've read the site long enough to see how you guys swing. You guys really crack me up. Thanks for all the laughs. 

  • Reply 16 of 96
    nagrommenagromme Posts: 2,834member
    Six Samsung "smartwatches" this year! And a zillion from every other company.

    Apple's hardware ("smartwatch" or whatever) will be trivialized as "only having a few innovative differences and looking better."

    Meanwhile the important thing--the SOFTWARE and the whole ecosystem--will be overlooked in favor of spec-obsession. The REAL value of tech is what it DOES, and software (from OS, to specific integration with hardware features, to 3rd-party support) is what matter most.

    Most of the media and tech blogosphere doesn't understand that--or pretends not to.

    We've seen the pattern before... we'll see it again soon.
  • Reply 17 of 96
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by TheOtherGeoff View Post

     

    sigh...

     

    Apple products stand on their own.

     

    Apple's only competition is people's expectations of Apple's Products.

     

    Samsung doesn't win market share, Apple just doesn't want parts of the market.   


    You win the post of the month award.

  • Reply 18 of 96
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member

    I don't know why Samsung would have rushed to get their products out anyways. First doesn't mean better (in fact its usually the latter). Apple isn't always the first to do something, but they're typically far better than the space they just entered/upgraded. Don't announce things until they're ready and well thought out. The products they released the other day are just shameful. If thats "The Next Big Thing", then Samsung is in trouble and we'll really see if thats true come Tuesday. 

  • Reply 19 of 96
    slurpy wrote: »
    What a disgusting company that is only causing massive consumer confusion through constant product spamming, and negatively affecting people's relationship with technology because of this. 

    "Negatively affecting people's relationship with technology?" Really? You need to quit taking any relationship you have with Technology seriously dude... She doesn't love you, she's only after your money...
  • Reply 20 of 96
    Samsung's new products look like prototypes that need more work and shouldn't have been released.
    Epic fail. Note 4 looks pretty much identical. Note Edge is a gimmick that people won't get used to. Their watch looks ugly. The Gear VR looks like it belongs in the 90s. I currently have a Note 3.
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