In the latest tech news, Samsung is pulling out all the stops to entice customers to pre-order their highly anticipated Galaxy S24 smartphone. Not to be outdone by Google's aggressive pricing strategy for its Pixel 8 range, Samsung has introduced a series of freebies and discounts for those who choose to pre-order through the Samsung Shop app.
Exclusive to the Samsung Shop app, customers can enjoy a 5% discount on the Galaxy S24 range by inputting the code 'APP5' at checkout. This discount is in addition to the £100 ($127.53) discount already offered during the pre-order period. While I managed to successfully apply the code on the U.K. app, it's worth trying in other territories as well.
This deal brings the price of the Galaxy S24 Ultra 512GB down to £1,186.55 ($1,513.25), a significant reduction of £162.45 ($207.18). But that's not all. The Samsung Shop app also offers an enticing voucher for a free Galaxy Watch 6 with the pre-order of the Galaxy S24, which expires on January 25th. Sadly, these two offers cannot be combined, so customers will have to choose between the 5% discount or the free watch.
It's evident that Samsung is strategically encouraging users to download their app and create a Samsung account to take advantage of these exclusive deals. Once users are embedded in Samsung's ecosystem, it becomes challenging to switch to other brands. As I was going through the checkout process for the Galaxy S24, I was presented with an additional surprise discount of 15% off a Samsung monitor when paired with a Galaxy Book laptop.
Samsung's aim is to make its hardware as accessible as possible, which is reflected in their repeated deals, extended software support, and additional features like webcam functionality on the Galaxy S24. While the company hasn't explained how they suddenly managed to offer seven years of Android updates and security patches, it's likely hidden in the small print on the Galaxy S24 product page.
The page mentions, 'Galaxy AI features will be provided for free until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices. Different terms may apply for AI features provided by third parties.' This suggests that Samsung may decide to introduce a paywall for these features in the future, as monetizing services that are expensive to develop and maintain becomes a priority.
Samsung isn't the only player considering this approach. Google is rumored to be launching a premium tier for its AI chatbot, Bard, while Microsoft plans to do the same for Copilot. If certain features on our smartphones end up behind a paywall, it could lead to a significant shift in how we use our devices. This could explain the intense hardware price-war currently underway between Samsung and Google.
In response to Samsung's pre-order deals, Google has swiftly retaliated with its own offer. They have introduced a new Mint color option for the Pixel 8, available for purchase immediately. However, this variant only offers 128GB of memory, so customers seeking larger storage capacity will need to consider other color options. The interesting aspect here is Google's new discounts. Starting today and lasting until February 3rd, Google has slashed 20% off the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. This translates to a $200 reduction for the Pro model and a $150 reduction for the base unit.
For U.K. buyers, Google is sweetening the deal by offering a £125 store credit with the purchase of either phone until February 2nd. These new offers follow several other promotions Google has rolled out since their launch, as the company aggressively competes for a larger share of the smartphone market.
While some of Samsung's pre-order deals are nearing their end, the 5% voucher code mentioned earlier will remain valid until December of this year. It's likely that we will see more deals from Samsung in the near future as they continue to challenge Google's offerings. Stay tuned for additional updates and promotions from both tech giants.
