When you're on top, there's little reason to innovate. Based on the latest numbers, Samsung gained 26% of operating profits so far this year. Some have gone so far as to say that the only real competition between smartphone manufacturers is between Samsung and Apple.
Yesterday Samsung revealed the Galaxy S III, the latest version of the very popular Galaxy line of phones. While the Galaxy S and Galaxy S II have been major devices for the past two years (hence Google's continued partnership with Samsung on the Nexus line of phones), the Galaxy S III looks like a me too device that doesn't stand out on its own. Personally, I wasn't impressed with the Galaxy S II, but I think the Galaxy S III is a joke compared to the competition.
The Hardware Design
I won't bore you with admonitions about how important hardware design is. Simply put, hardware design can make a device really stand out next to the thousands of black slabs released every year.
