Every day, Samsung Electronics’ engineers and product planners work together to the end of creating products that are as fresh as they are innovative and groundbreaking. Their mission is no simple one: to introduce new ideas and advancements in technology while raising the bar, year after year.
Since the first introduction of the flagship QLED TV in 2017, Samsung’s product planners have been responsible for the introduction of countless innovations, ideas and partnerships to bring users the tailored, true-to-life viewing experiences they expect.
As Samsung celebrates its 16th year as the number one global TV leader, no product better demonstrates the cutting-edge product innovation of the company’s teams quite like the 2021 Neo QLED.
Development of the 2021 Neo QLED lineup.
Innovation That Understands the User
Consumers expect new and exciting products every year, but there is a lot of competition out there. Many brands have TVs that are of the same size as Samsung, and also claim to have many of the same features and resolution, so central to product development is breaking through the competition by really focusing on providing the most optimized user experiences for the Neo QLED lineup.
Central, then, to the teams’ QLED strategy direction is the user. Recently, we have seen a dramatic shift in what consumers are looking and asking for. Users are moving away from specs and feed to upgrades that are centred around personalized viewing experiences, design, and true-to-life picture quality.
Incorporating the New Normal Into TV Development
Not only has the recent global situation completely transformed the way users are interacting with their TVs, but it has also affected the way TV product planning is carried out. Traditionally, large trade shows such as CES and IFA serve as perfect opportunities to gather industry feedback, while in-person sales provide on-site consumer feedback. Since both of these opportunities have been off the table since early last year, a new internal meeting system was created that is both timely and agile enough to provide feedback from various regional offices regarding local situations. This system incorporates touchpoints with vendors, partners, retailers, and customers allowing them to easily communicate with all those on-site and helps respond effectively to the changing landscape.
Since its launch in 2017, the QLED lineup has taken the premium TV market by storm. Last year, QLED sales reached 7.79 million units, accounting for 35.5% of total Samsung TV sales. The company’s 2021 Neo QLED lineup, recently launched across various regions throughout March and April, has also provided valuable insight for the planning teams. In Korea alone, Neo QLED TV sales have reached 20,000 units in under two months since the product launch. This speaks volumes about the importance of market research and timely consumer feedback.
Harnessing Teamwork to Adapt to the Latest Trends
There is no denying that mainstream consumer TVs are becoming larger and that the standards for picture quality are becoming higher than ever before. However, the recent shifts in TV and behavioural trends have seen Samsung’s product planners lean towards developing hyper-personalized screens able to fit into individual consumer lifestyles.
But this change in behavioural trends has not resulted in a complete transformation of the team’s strategic planning. Picture quality and design have been Samsung’s top priority since the launch of the first Samsung TV, and changing consumer usage patterns, along with the increased need to provide a one-of-a-kind experience, are what ultimately led to the creation of this year’s Neo QLED lineup.
Developing Neo QLED to Be the Ultimate Entertainment Hub
Another exciting trend we have noticed since the beginning of 2020 is that a lot of people are playing more games, be it on their mobile, computer or their TV. According to a recent report from the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), there are approximately 214 million gamers in the U.S. alone, with 75% of households having at least one member actively playing games regularly.
Maintaining the Samsung Legacy of Superior Picture Quality and Design
The latest Neo QLED lineup would be nothing without the past 16 years of display innovation. At the end of the day, the QLED’s new features and product differentiation strategy wouldn’t lead to much without a solid foundation in picture quality and design.
Based on the success of Neo QLED, Samsung’s TV product planning team is developing yet another impressive and groundbreaking product lineup for 2022. There is truly never a dull moment during the development cycle.
The Neo QLED 8k range is available for purchase at authorized Samsung distributors; Softlogic, Singer, Singhagiri, Damro and Samsung e-Store.