Pre-orders for Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Ultra are higher in India; this is why

Babbar said the expansion of Samsung Finance+, its digital lending platform as well as increased touchpoints to experience its smartphones in smaller towns have helped the company to double down on premium smartphones in the country. “It’s a mix of assortment and availability of tech for the right upgraders,” he said, adding that the company’s focus on expanding the premium phone tier with various devices and experience creation might have worked in its favour.

“80 per cent of Samsung finance customers come from tier-3 and below, with 50 per cent of that consumer is new to credit who have never taken a loan or might not get a loan,” he added. Babbar cited accessibility and easy finance options as reasons behind strong early pre-order numbers for the Galaxy S23, mostly driven by consumers from India’s smaller cities.

The South Korean tech major last week announced new flagship smartphones for 2023—the Galaxy S23, S23+, and S23 Ultra. They are available for pre-order right now and officially go on sale starting February 17 globally, including in India. The most expensive of the three models, the Galaxy S23 Ultra, features a 200-megapixel camera, a built-in stylus that’s accessible from the bottom edge of the device and a 5,000-mAh battery. It starts at Rs 124,999 for the base model and goes up to Rs 154,999 for the top-end model.

The S23 series will go head-to-head with Apple’s iPhone 14, which launched last September. The devices are being assembled in India. (Image credit: Samsung)

Samsung made changes to its flagship strategy last year when it combined the high-end camera and performance seen in its S Series with the power and built-in S-Pen stylus from the popular Note Series of phablets, creating a new class of ‘Ultra’ line. The move was aimed at differentiating its flagship line in order to better compete with Apple, its biggest rival in the high-end smartphone space. Samsung also offers a separate line of foldable smartphones which are more exclusive and premium in nature.

In markets such as the US and Europe, where smartphone penetration is close to saturation and many customers are holding onto their phones for a longer duration, brands like Samsung are looking at India for the next wave of growth. With cheaper finance options and cashback schemes, Samsung wants to bank on customers’ loyalty to pay higher prices for its premium smartphones. The company in the past had succeeded with the Galaxy Note series, which was targeted at a notoriously loyal and affluent customer base.

But its latest Galaxy S23 Ultra comes at a time when Samsung is more keen to lock customers into the Galaxy ecosystem than only target a subsection of the premium customer base.

“The definition of S Pen has changed,” Babbar explained. “The way the expansion of the S-Pen has taken place, it sits in an ultra, but it is equally available on a foldable.” Babbar reasoned this change is due to a shift towards creating an ecosystem of devices which is why the S Pen is available on more Samsung products including laptops.