SEOUL: Samsung Electronics’ flagship Galaxy S22 smartphone has taken a battering from reports of hobbled performance and has seen carriers half its price at home in South Korea just weeks since its launch, hurting its image as an iPhone rival.

Consumers have complained — and even filed a class-action lawsuit — about the handset maker advertising what it called its most powerful smartphone yet with scant detail about performance management software that they say drastically slows the premium device when using processor-intensive applications.

Such are the complaints that the Korea Fair Trade Commission last month began investigating the world’s biggest phone vendor.

The controversy represents a blow to Samsung’s reputation for high-end handsets — and potentially its finances — as it tries to make up for two years of premium sales that missed analyst estimates and reverse a decline in market share.

“The dispute will inevitably be a big hit to Samsung’s credibility,” said analyst Lee Seung-woo at Eugene Investment & Securities.

Published in Dawn, April 9th, 2022