For the first time ever, Samsung has set its sights on the budget market segment of the mobile phone industry. And what better country to begin their new crusade in than India?

With its enormous customer base and a well-cushioned layer of middle-income families, India has been the perfect playground for companies like Xiaomi. Yet, Xiaomi’s numero uno status is threatened now more than ever before, with companies like Oppo (Realme) and Huawei (Honor) looking for the slightest opportunity to flip the table upside down and reestablish the order with either on the throne.

With Samsung joining the race, 2019 promises to be a game-changing year for India’s mobile phone market, the consequences of which will impact battlegrounds elsewhere in the world.

On February 5th, Samsung releases two brand new phones in India – Galaxy M20 and Galaxy M10. Falling in the price range of INR 8,000 to INR 13,000, the phones come with the Infinity-V notch design and run on Android 8.1 Oreo, with two variants for each. An update to Pie is coming in August.

Galaxy M10 Specs

  • 6.2-inch 19.5:9 HD+ (720 x 1520) LCD display
  • Exynos 7870 processor
  • 2GB or 3GB RAM
  • 16GB or 32GB expandable storage
  • Dual 13MP + 5MP (ultra-wide) back camera
  • 5MP front camera
  • 3400mAh battery
  • Android 8.1 Oreo with Samsung Experience 9.5
  • Colors: Ocean Blue, Charcoal Black

Galaxy M20 Specs

  • 6.3-inch 19.5:9 FHD+ (1080 x 2340) LCD display
  • Exynos 7904 processor
  • 3GB or 4GB RAM
  • 32GB or 64GB expandable storage
  • Dual 13MP + 5MP (ultra-wide) main camera
  • 8MP front camera
  • 5000mAh battery
  • Android 8.1 Oreo
  • Extras: Bluetooth 5.0, USB-C, 3.5mm audio jack, rear-mounted FPS, Face unlock, Dual LTE, Dual VoLTE, etc.
  • Colors: Ocean Blue, Charcoal Black

A cause for worry for Xiaomi

Xiaomi’s popular products, such as Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro, Redmi Note 6 Pro or even the blazing hot Redmi Note 7 that is set to launch globally in February 2019, which gave the company runaway success and heaping profits, also fall in the price range that Samsung is targetting.

Having armed the two phones with large batteries and big screens and the gorgeous Infinity-V notches (that raise the aesthetic quality of the phones considerably) coupled with an exciting dual-lens camera that has an ultra-wide lens and solid hardware specs, Samsung could tempt away a sizeable chunk of Xiaomi’s customer base and erode their profits.

Only time will tell.

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What are your thoughts on this? Will Xiaomi sales suffer at the hands of Samsung Galaxy M10 and M20? Let us know in your comments below.