Galaxy J7, Galaxy J5 Release Date, Specs, Features and Price: Will Samsung Remain At Top With New Launches?

Will Samsung's latest help the tech giant bolster its number one position in emerging markets? If first impressions of the Galaxy J5 (2016) and Galaxy J7 (2016) are any indication, it is hard to believe they can.

The Galaxy 'J' series of phones are launched by Samsung with a keen eye on competition in emerging markets and in those countries where volumes matter more than profit margin on each phone. Among the former are countries including Indonesia and Philippines, while the latter notably include China and India. Numbers for this year's first quarter show Samsung remaining ahead of others in these markets but registering a decline year-on-year.

Strategy Analytics recently pointed out that Samsung remained ahead of others in at least 14 emerging markets including Egypt, Romania, Poland, Turkey and Portugal. In Asia, Samsung marched topped in Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia but fell behind a local phone-maker in Philippines. A Business Line report pointed out that Samsung retained its top spot in India thanks to its J-series devices. However, the year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter figures showed a declined.

Local phone-makers are gnawing at Samsung's shares in most countries, offering loaded devices at lower costs. It is here that Samsung's latest launches, the Galaxy J5 (2016) and Galaxy J7 (2016) fall short. At the prices being offered, $ 210 and $ 239 respectively, the value for money seen in these devices is small in say India, reviews suggest. Given that the devices are only $ 30 apart, one may wonder if Samsung would launch these devices in Europe or US.

Technically, both these devices are only minor upgrades from last year's devices. Apart from a slight bumping up of RAM, a visibly improved chipset and the S-Bike NFC connect in India the two phones have nothing more to offer. It remains a mystery why Samsung launched the Galaxy J7 (2016) in China with a gigabyte of additional RAM and a Full HD screen compared to the phone it launched in India and South Korea. Both phones feature the same 13 MP rear and 5 MP front cameras from last year's devices.

Interestingly however, the Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) is said to be among the list of most popular phones this week, having climbed five positions since last week, GSM Arena points out. It remains to be seen if this popularly transcends into sales.