Samsung shuts down factory once again after another coronavirus case

A little over a week ago, Samsung announced the temporary shutdown of its smartphone manufacturing factory in Gumi, South Korea due to a confirmed case of the coronavirus infection. The factory was shut down for two days as the company carried out the disinfection of the entire workplace.

The company today announced that it’s going to shut down the factory once again for two days after another coronavirus case was confirmed. Production will remain suspended at its Gumi plant for two days, from March 1 to March 3.

There have been a total of three cases at Samsung

South Korea has been hit hard by the coronavirus infection. It has the highest number of infection cases outside China, the epicenter of the disease. The country’s biggest companies have rallied behind the Korean government to support its efforts to control the spread of this disease. Samsung announced this week that it will be donating $24.6 million to help the government’s efforts.

Samsung confirmed its latest coronavirus case today. A worker at the wireless business division of its Gumi factory, where premium devices like the Galaxy Z Flip and the Galaxy Fold are made, was infected. The assembly line where the worker was stationed has been closed temporarily and will be fully functional next week while the floor where he worked will remain closed until March 3 after which production will resume.

A confirmed case was also reported at Samsung’s Giheung semiconductor factory but it wasn’t a company employee. The infected employee was of a cafeteria partner. As a precaution, Samsung has shut down the cafeteria temporarily and could extend that for additional time if need be.

Like many South Korean companies, Samsung is having to deal with the fallout from the coronavirus infection. However, the company maintains that it doesn’t expect to have a supply shortage for the Galaxy Z Flip despite the earlier shut down of the Gumi factory.

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Weekly SamMobile Quiz 15 – Come test your Samsung knowledge!

Consider yourself a superfan of Samsung? Take our quiz and see how many answers you can get right! This is a fun activity that we do with our readers every week to test their knowledge of our favorite company. The quiz has a mix of easy and difficult questions that most fans should be able to answer without turning to Google.

We intend to make a new quiz for you every weekend so we hope that you’ll participate and learn a thing or two about Samsung in the process! Don’t forget to share the results of the quiz with your friends and see if you can outscore them. A little competition never hurt anybody!

Remember, if the quiz isn’t loading properly, please access the non-AMP version of this webpage.

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Galaxy S10 series March security update is out

What’s this? Is Samsung rolling out a new security patch for one of its flagships ahead of time again? Yes, that’s happening indeed: Samsung has released the March security update for the Galaxy S10e, Galaxy S10, and Galaxy S10+. The Galaxy S20 series, or at least the Galaxy S20 Ultra, has already received the March security update, though with no one actually owning a Galaxy S20 yet, the Galaxy S10 gets the distinction of being the first flagship to receive next month’s security patch.

We know nothing about the March security patch, as Samsung will only publish details about it sometime in the first week of next month. We do know what the latest software update for the Galaxy S10 series contains, however. Carrying firmware version G97xFXXS4BTB3, the update brings just the March security patch. It has no other improvements, changes, or new features, but it is possible we will see some of the improvements the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+ received in the latest update make their way to the Galaxy S10 lineup as well, perhaps with the next update.

The new update for the Galaxy S10 series is rolling out in Switzerland at this moment and should soon be released in other countries. To check if it’s available for your phone, open its Settings app, select Software update, and tap Download and install. You may have to do this a couple of times before the update shows up. If that doesn’t work, you can download the latest firmware for your S10e, S10, or S10+ from our firmware archive and install it on the phone using a Windows PC.

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Samsung could face global supply issues as Vietnam sets quarantine

Vietnam is taking extra precautions against the new coronavirus outbreak, and it will quarantine all arrivals from South Korea for 14 days, all the while suspending Visa Waivers for tourists from South Korea, reports Nikkei. Around half of all the Galaxy smartphones sold worldwide are manufactured at Samsung’s facilities in Vietnam, and the state of quarantine could disrupt the company’s output, potentially leading to supply shortages.

Reports indicate that South Korea has become a coronavirus hotspot and presently has the second-most COVID-19 cases in the world (over 2,300), after China. The outbreak has disrupted the local economy, and even early Galaxy S20 sales in the country have been underwhelming because people aren’t in a hurry to visit local stores. Likewise, Samsung decided to temporarily shut down its Galaxy Z Flip factory in South Korea last week after one employee was found to carry the coronavirus infection.

Samsung’s two largest smartphone manufacturing plants are located in Vietnam

Vietnam has had only 16 confirmed COVID-19 cases so far, and all of them have reportedly recovered. However, Vietnam also has the largest population of South Koreans in all of Southeast Asia, tallying at around 200,000. With many South Koreans – some of which are Samsung employees – flying in and out of the country, the Vietnamese government has decided that the best course of action against the coronavirus epidemic is to set a 14-day quarantine for every new arrival from South Korea.

Time will tell what kind of impact this quarantine might have on Samsung’s manufacturing schedule in Vietnam. The company’s products account for 1/4 of the country’s exports, and any disruptions there could create ripple effects around the globe, not to mention the local economy.

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Alleged Galaxy A11 leaked render sheds light on Infinity-O panel

As the Galaxy A11 keeps dodging the market weeks after its WFA approval, an alleged official render of the device has been leaked and passed along by Android Headlines. The render matches the sketch previously seen in FCC documents, at least from the back, and suggests that the device will sport an Infinity-O display with a corner cutout.

This is unlike Samsung’s more recent mid-range devices such as the Galaxy A51 and Galaxy A71, both of which are equipped with an Infinity-O AMOLED display boasting a centered selfie camera.

The off-center cutout positioned to the left harks back to earlier models like the Galaxy A60 and Galaxy M40, and time will tell if the Galaxy A11 will also sport a TFT screen as those two Galaxy devices do, or if it will switch to AMOLED.

As one of the company’s most budget-friendly devices of 2020 along with the Galaxy A01, the Galaxy A11 could very well stick to TFT technology, much like the A01 does. Rumors claim that the panel will have a 6.2-inch diagonal but this remains subject to change.

The Galaxy A11 could be one of the last Samsung phones to have a 3.5mm jack

Other details include a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and a triple-camera setup paired with a flash. The side button and volume rocker are located on the right edge of the phone, and the back cover is seemingly made out of plastic. Finally, while it’s difficult to confirm this detail from this render alone, the Galaxy A11 appears to accommodate a 3.5mm headphone jack on the top edge.

The Galaxy A11 should ship with Android 10 out of the box, but it remains to be seen exactly when Samsung will begin shipping the device to prospective buyers. The phone has yet to be unveiled by Samsung but it’s been leaked enough times to have its existence all but officially confirmed.

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Daily Deal: 14% off AKG USB-C Headphones

Most of Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones that lack a 3.5mm headphone jack ship with a pair of AKG Type-C earphones in the box. These earbuds satisfy the audio needs of most users, and unlike 3.5mm-based solutions, the AKG earbuds can be improved even after release via firmware updates.

Whether this is the first time you’re considering buying a pair of Type-C earphones or if you’re looking for a new replacement, you’re in luck, as Samsung’s AKG-tuned Type-C earphones are now available for purchase online at 14% off the original price.

Hit the Buy Now button below and order them before they’re out of stock!

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Samsung improves its LATAM share in 2019 despite a stagnant market

Samsung retained its top spot in the LATAM region throughout 2019, and it managed to increase its smartphone shipment market share from 36.6% in 2018, to 38% by the end of 2019. The Korean tech giant increased its influence even as the entire segment stopped growing in LATAM because of sluggish replacement rates, according to Counterpoint Research.

Although Samsung did increase its smartphone shipment market share throughout last year, it also lost a couple of points in Q4 when its devices have covered 34.2% of the market, down from 36.6% a year before. But overall, the company has not only kept the crown throughout the year but it also bumped up its market share over the 12-month period ending December.

Samsung has more market share than the 2nd and 3rd largest vendors combined

Samsung was not the only smartphone vendor to increase its influence in the region. In fact, each of the top-three vendors in LATAM, including Motorola on 2nd place and Huawei on 3rd, have increased their market share in the region by a couple of points at the expense of other, smaller brands. Nevertheless, Motorola and Huawei are not a threat to Samsung yet. While Samsung held 38% of the LATAM market in 2019, Motorola secured the second spot on the podium with only 15.5% market share, while Huawei held 12.9% of the segment. Even if these two companies would combine forces, that would still not be enough to overtake Samsung.

Apple is even less of a threat in the region, as it was the 5th largest vendor with just a 3.6% market share, down 1% from 2018. However, sales for the company have picked up in Q4 thanks to the iPhone 11 which has been selling well globally, so 2020 might look a bit different. The report doesn’t go into detail as to which Galaxy smartphones were the most popular in LATAM, but if the region reflects the global market in any capacity then the Galaxy A10 and Galaxy A50 would be fair guesses.

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