Samsung might have to give its metal Galaxy Alpha 'limited edition' status. Metal case manufacturers will only be able to produce one million cases per month, since they are all working with Apple.
With its most recent flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S5, Samsung played its usual hand of resorting to release a smartphone with high-end specs, exclusive features like S Health and even threw in a heart rate sensor (The health and fitness feature is situated below the handset's powerful 16-megapixel rear camera, making it the first smartphone to include this type of sensor.)
The Galaxy S5 also continued Samsung's longstanding tradition of using shoddy-feeling plastic that tries to look premium but in reality is just a painted plastic smartphone. You can't fool the hand and Samsung is finally doing something about it.
For years Android fans have been happy with the OS' top manufacturer and Samsung's Galaxy smartphones and phablets have been pretty much the gold standard when it comes to Android smartphones and phablets. However there has always been one sticking point the company has neglected and it looks like it's finally going to address the issue.
So long Galaxy S5 Prime and Galaxy F; latest reports claim that Samsung plans on calling its 'real metal' smartphone the Galaxy Alpha. The handset has been described as Samsung's iPhone 6 challenger, now that the Galaxy S5 has not performed the way the company hoped. Reports revealed that Apple's eight month old iPhone 5s is continuing to outsell the Galaxy S5. Lately hundreds of Samsung managers in the company's device division gave back part of their first-half bonuses. Another report claimed the move was viewed as a gesture to take full responsibility for the company's declining smartphone sales.
Samsung is widely expected to introduce the metal-clad quad HD Galaxy Alpha in August or possibly September alongside the Galaxy Note 4, which is expected to be announced at IFA in Berlin in September. A new report [in Chinese] claims that Samsung may have made its winning move a little too late.
In order for Samsung to really compete with Apple's anodized aluminum iPhone 6, the company needs to hire a manufacturer to build the metal cases for its new smartphone. The problem is that those metal case manufacturers are only located in Taiwan and have exclusive contracts with Apple to build the company's signature aluminum chassis.
The Samsung Galaxy Alpha's metallic case will reportedly cause the company to make the smartphone a "limited edition" smartphone. This wouldn't be the first time Samsung has launched a device many customers have been asking for, but only make it available in a select region. Last year's race with LG to produce the first flexible smartphone display resulted in Samsung winning the race with its Galaxy Round, which launched just ahead of the LG G Flex, but was only available in small numbers and in a few regions. The Galaxy Alpha will likely follow a similar path if this report holds any merit.
As always it's best to take any reports of upcoming popular smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy Alpha with a huge grain of salt. It won't be the last time you'll be hearing about this smartphone.
