Samsung's Galaxy S21 Plan Leaks With A Production Surprise

Back in November, reports claimed that Samsung would take a more cautious production approach with its Galaxy S21 models, something that followed the Galaxy S20 series' lackluster sales last year — which, no doubt, was due in part to the pandemic. A new report out of Korea reinforces these leaks, claiming that Samsung expects to ship around 26 million Galaxy S21 units in 2021.

The report comes from Korean publication The Elec, which cites an unnamed industry source who claimed Samsung anticipates shipping approximately 26 million Galaxy S21 phones by the end of this year. The adjustment was likely based on the 2020 market, which saw Samsung's Galaxy 'S' series shipments drop from around 35 million to 26 million.

The report claims that Samsung is expecting to ship around 10 million of its base-tier Galaxy S21 phones, as well as around 8 million Galaxy S21 Plus units and another 8 million Galaxy S21 Ultra phones. In November 2020, the same publication claimed that Samsung would produce around 6 million Galaxy S21 units to start with, a figure that hinted at the company's expectations for its latest and greatest phones.

Based on the latest report, it seems that Samsung is approaching the 2021 market with caution and modest expectations. It may be looking to avoid a scenario in which it ends up producing too many Galaxy S21 handsets, instead opting to wait and see whether demand ends up exceeding its initial expectations.

Whether Samsung will actually end up selling fewer Galaxy S21 units this year compared to its history remains to be seen; it is possible the company will exceed its 2020 figures, particularly if retail stores begin to open back up later this year and consumers feel more financially confident going forward.