A relief and background photo of Samsung mobile phones arranged in a spiral. A relief and background photo of Samsung mobile phones arranged in a spiral.
09

Genesis of Samsung Galaxy Smartphones

By the mid-2000s, Samsung mobile phones were already doing very well, rising to second place globally, and leading the digital world with an array of multimedia feature phones. However, attaining first place still seemed out of reach.

A photo depicting the Samsung Anycall SH-770 released in 1994 and the SGH-T100 cell phone introduced in 2002.

(Left) Samsung AnyCall (SH-770) released in October 1994, (Right) SGH-T100 presented in 2002

To achieve supersonic speed, you have to change everything from the materials to the engine. By 2008, we must replace the engine, the body materials, and even how we train the pilot. Only then can we genuinely compete against the market leader in 2011 or 2012. Otherwise, defeat is inevitable.

June 2004

It was clear to Lee Kun-hee what the company needed to do to become number one in mobile phones, saying that, “everything had to be changed and thoroughly prepared.”

A photo of Chairman Lee Kun-hee inspecting smartphones at the Advanced Products Exhibition in July 2011.

July 2011: Advanced Products Exhibition in Suwon

Samsung officially entered the smartphone competition in 2010. The company may have been slow to respond to the advent of the smartphone era, but Chairman Lee instilled confidence by asserting that the company still had a chance if it made a strong determination to start anew and make bold changes.

By bringing together all of its technology, capabilities, and expertise, Samsung introduced a new brand of smartphones called Galaxy.

A photo of Samsung Galaxy smartphones arranged in order from the earliest models to the latest releases.

Samsung Galaxy S Smartphone Series

With the world watching, the smartphone war among the world’s greatest technology giants was on. In 2011, Samsung released the Galaxy S2 to wide acclaim. Then in 2012, 24 years after entering the mobile business, Samsung achieved remarkable results in our mobile business, ranking No. 1 in both sales and market share in smartphones and all mobile phones.