That $299 smartwatch known as the Samsung Galaxy Gear isn't doing nearly as well as Samsung probably hoped. A report estimates that the vendor has only been able to sell 50,000 units or less since its launch about a month and a half ago on Oct. 4. Sales are averaging between 800 and 900 per day. Yeah, it's pretty embarrassing.
It doesn't get much better from there. Reports from the end of October indicated the return rate for the Galaxy Gear is at 30 percent — just under one-third of customers were returning the smartwatch. Despite Samsung pouring quite a bit of effort into marketing, the numbers so far clearly illustrate that the product has basically flopped.
Let's be realistic here though. The watch from the start was both expensive at $299 and inflexible being compatible with only one Samsung smartphone, the Galaxy Note 3. In fairness, compatibility has since expanded to some additional Galaxy devices like the S4. It received universally mediocre reviews for its lack of complete functionality and inability to function much at all without a compatible smartphone. A $300 accessory is a tough sell. Plus, it's not entirely out of the question that Samsung just rushed the product to market in an attempt to be one step ahead of the rumors surrounding an Apple smartwatch in the works.
Source: BusinessKorea
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