The new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are of great importance for the South Korean smartphone maker, especially after the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco of last year, which resulted in major financial loss and a severely affected brand image.
However, Samsung is confident that the Galaxy S8 will help improve the company’s image and make customers forget about the whole Galaxy Note 7 debacle. Samsung’s Mobile Chief, Koh Dong-jin has stated in a recent report that the new Galaxy S8 flagship will beat sales of its predecessor, the Galaxy S7.
Sadly, the executive didn’t offer a sales target for the Galaxy S8, but the company expects sales to surpass the internal record set by Galaxy S7 during the first year since it was released. Industry estimates say that the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge sold over 48 million units until early 2017 and the phones were even named the best smartphones of 2016 during the Mobile World Congress edition of this year.
The Galaxy S8 is already up for pre-order
Reports from earlier this year did suggest that Samsung increased the initial production volume of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ to about 17 million, meaning that the company intends to sell about 60 million units by the end of the phones’ life cycle.
The Galaxy S8 marks a major design change in the Galaxy S lineup, as well as the introduction of new features like the intelligent interface Bixby and the DeX Station for a desktop experience. Internally, the Galaxy S8 and S8+ have the same specs, with the exception of a bigger battery on the 6.2-inch model.
Speaking of which, during the Unpacked 2017 event, Samsung did put emphasis on the fact that the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ underwent rigorous battery tests to spot any flaws and make sure that another Galaxy Note 7 incident doesn’t occur.
The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are available for pre-order, while shipping is expected to start on April 21. Unlocked versions will arrive in the US on May 9.
