Apple vs. Samsung smartphone battle intensifies with anti-Samsung videos, strong sales

THEY’RE the world’s biggest smartphone makers. And when it comes to sales, Apple and Samsung are not afraid to play dirty when it comes to getting customers to switch sides.

The battle between phone giants Apple and Samsung is getting fiercer as they fight over a smaller audience willing to swap platforms. Picture: AAP Photo/Richard Drew

THE BATTLE to convince smartphone users to switch camps is intensifying, with Samsung posting “strong sales” for its newest phones after an “aggressive” campaign and Apple posting another two anti-Samsung videos online in response.

But the tit-for-tat companies, which analysts say hold a seemingly unbreakable “duopoly” in smartphone and tablets, are finding it difficult to recruit buyers from the other camp, even though switching has never been easier to do.

And experts say the war for new customers will only get more fierce as a result.

Samsung currently holds the title of best-selling smartphone in Australia with its Galaxy S8, according to Kantar Worldpanel figures released on Thursday, but sales of its newest, and most expensive models are already making an impact.

Samsung introduced the Note 8 “phablet” last August, thanking fans who remained loyal to the device after the exploding batteries scandal.

Smartphone buyers snapped up more than 8 million Galaxy S9 and S9+ smartphones in their first month on sale, according to Canalys, and many are opting for the bigger screen and better camera in the $1499 version.

Canalys analyst Ben Stanton said Samsung’s “aggressive” marketing and early-buyer discounts were paying off in sales.

“Samsung’s performance is impressive,” he said, “considering the Galaxy S9 is not a major step up from the S8.”

But its main rival is hitting back.

Smartphone users are becoming more loyal and are more reluctant to swap phone platforms due to concerns about software loss.

While sales of Apple’s flagship iPhone X met the company’s expectations this year, according to earnings data revealed this week, Apple targeted those considering a Samsung purchase with two more videos in its ‘Life is Easier on iPhone’ series.

One suggested the competing Google app store was a mess that could explode in users’ faces, while the other showed a woman frustrated by her Android camera’s lack of features.

Telyste managing director Foad Fadaghi said the battle between smartphone giants would only get fiercer as the phone-switching audience diminished.

“The percentage of people regularly swapping between Android and Apple in Australia is small — it’s single digits,” he said.

The Apple iPhone X and the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus — it’s easier now to switch devices.

Mr Fadaghi said smartphone users were become more loyal and more reluctant to swap phone platforms due to concerns they’d lose their software investment, even though many apps “like Netflix and Spotify, you can use across both platforms”.

Both Apple and Samsung have also launched apps to make switching to their devices from a rival easy, but Mr Fadaghi said the “duopoly” may be hard to separate despite aggressive campaigns on both sides.

5 TIPS FOR SWAPPING FROM APPLE TO ANDROID

— If you’re moving to a Samsung gadget, you can move everything from videos to text messages in one go using the company’s Smart Switch app. It can transfer information wirelessly, but works quicker with a cable connection.

— Google can also backup files from an Apple device in its Drive app to transfer to a new gadget. Users must select Menu, Settings, and Backup on the Apple app, and set up the new Android device from the backup when it starts.

— The SmoothSync for Cloud Calendar app ($2.78) will move appointments from Apple iCloud to Google Calendar.

— You can download contacts from Apple’s iCloud (Export vCard in the menu) and add them to Google Contacts (More and Import) in a web browser.

— Google Photos is a free app that will download and store all pictures and videos from your Apple device, and make them available in the app on your new device.

Originally published as Apple vs. Samsung smartphone battle intensifies with anti-Samsung videos, strong sales