What you need to know
- A report claims that Samsung is growing “concerned” over its Q1 2026 profits, as it might post an operating loss.
- This could be due to the rising costs of memory and semiconductors required for its mobile devices, which has supposedly pushed Samsung to cut costs regarding executive travels.
- Samsung reported that its Galaxy S26 series has been smashing pre-order records in South Korea and that pre-orders are up 25% for the series in the U.S.
There have been concerns over the smartphone market’s future in 2026 due to the rising costs of memory, and those worries continue with Samsung.
A report from Hankyung (South Korean) claims that Samsung has become “concerned” over this year’s operating profits, as it might wind up in the negative (via 9to5Google). Social media tipster Jukan highlighted the report, stating that the Korean OEM could “post its first-ever operating loss” this year, which might force it to “cut costs.” The publication cites its industry source by claiming Samsung might “struggle” due to the rising costs of memory and semiconductors.
This is a struggle that’s caused some worry across the board in the smartphone market, so this isn’t too much of a surprise to hear. It’s not clear right now just how badly Samsung is expecting to lose; however, what’s been reported is its cost-cutting measures.
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Supposedly, Samsung is looking to “drastically” cut the amount of funds available for overseas travel expenses for its top executives. The publication adds that Q1 2026 could be the worst for the company.
How bad? To be determined
We’ve been seeing the warning signs about “higher-priced phones” for a while now. Android Central even discussed why this could be the case, and why budget phones might be the hardest ones hit. It’s been estimated that memory prices will climb an additional 20% in 2026 after being expected to jump by 30% at the end of 2025. Putting that together, that’s a ~50% increase in the cost of memory inside your phone, which would likely be passed on to consumers.
Even Nothing’s CEO, Carl Pei, talked about why phones could get more expensive in 2026. No one’s hiding from this unfortunate fact, but in Samsung’s case, it remains to be seen just how badly it’s affected.
Samsung’s Galaxy S26 series has been smashing pre-order records in South Korea, and it’s also been eating up the pie in the U.S. Right before its market launch, Samsung highlighted that pre-order numbers for the S26 rose by 25% in the U.S. The one leading the charge? The Galaxy S26 Ultra with 80% of the total pre-orders.
Android Central’s Take
It feels like costs are going up all over the place, doesn’t it? Whether its grocery stores or memory. Well, I guess the memory thing is an outlier, considering how much data centers (AI, too) requires it. Regardless, Samsung’s Galaxy S26 series pricing isn’t too different from what we were given in 2025. It seems Samsung’s managed to work things out in that regard. More importantly, I’m interested to see if it’s factored in its reported Galaxy S26 performance. I know it’s just pre-orders, so we’ll have to see how the numbers shake out for Q1 2026. But if it can keep its traction, perhaps the damage won’t be so detrimental.
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