Samsung successfully enters hybrid form factor device market

The devices that power our digital lives have undergone significant changes over the past few years as they continue to raise consumers’ expectations with the advanced features they offer. 

Realizing that consumers expect more power, more flexibility and more functionality at affordable prices, device-makers are today gravitating towards the concept of convergence. Some are experimenting with hybrids of smartphones, tablets and notebooks. For example, the Samsung Galaxy Note, which was released in major markets in fall 2011, is a hybrid smartphone and tablet. Samsung recently announced that it sold 5 million units of the GALAXY Note since its launch, highlighting the success of hybrid form-factor devices. 

Hybrid form factors like the Samsung Galaxy Note represent a rapidly expanding opportunity for vendors to tap into today’s modern executive. However, hybrid form factors are not limited to just smartphones and tablets but are also achievable across several product categories. A rising trend in hybrid creations is the ‘PC tablet’. Using notebook and tablet hybrid form factor, ‘PC tablets’ incorporate a full PC operating system such as Windows 7. This contrasts with media tablets such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which utilize a mobile operating system and employ a touch screen as the primary interface. Highlighting the market potential of PC tablets, the market size for PC tablets is set to experience 123 percent year-on-year growth, reaching 6.8 million units, up from 3 million units in 2012. 

“PC Tablets such as the Samsung SLATE PC Series 7 takes the laptop a full step towards total mobility - a revolution in portable computing,” said Denzil Dsouza, Business Head of Notebooks at Samsung Gulf Electronics. “By combining the power of a PC and the portability of a tablet, the Slate PC represents a new era of efficient and powerful mobile computing that has appealed to our Gulf consumers, enabling it to capture 5% of our Total Notebook Sales”. 

The SLATE PC Series 7 pushes flexibility and mobility to a new level by having multiple input methods – including touch screen, Bluetooth keyboard and digital pen – ensuring that it is the perfect solution for consuming and creating content on the go. 

Consumption trends are changing rapidly and product designers are responding accordingly, so grasping the dynamics of the market requires an ongoing examination of prevailing factors. The advent of the ‘Notes’ and ‘SLATE PCs’ represent the first wave of what promises to be a deluge of hybrid form factor devices from Samsung solidify its grasp on the market. Samsung is simply removing the barriers that exist between devices and content to deliver a smarter, simpler and more connected life for consumers.

“We're seeing a shift in the marketplace and there's room for diversity," said Mr. Dsouza. "Hybrid devices are personal to people and are being used in unique ways - which explains why we are seeing emerging industries such as Education adopt the SLATE PC Series 7. Recently, Samsung worked on a pilot project to transform traditional classroom to smart classroom. This new mindset has helped our SLATE PC sales gain momentum as well introduce the product in untapped industries. We are excited to see what the future holds.”