Samsung to Stop Galaxy Alpha Production; Focus on Galaxy A Series

Samsung will reportedly stop producing the metal-clad Galaxy Alpha early next year, and instead position the Galaxy A5 smartphone as its replacement.

According to a report, with the launch of Galaxy A5 in South Korea - which can be as early as mid-January and as late as early February - Samsung will phase out production of the Galaxy Alpha once the current inventory of materials is exhausted for the smartphone, reported Korean publication ET News on Friday.

"I understand that the Galaxy Alpha will be produced until the materials currently in inventory are used up," said an industry insider cited by ET News, "Its production will end by early February next year."

To remind you, Samsung has according to multiple reports been facing production issues for its latest metal-clad Galaxy A series as well, resulting in their delayed launch. Notably, the Galaxy A7 handset that was much-leaked alongside the Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 has still not yet been announced - possibly another symptom of the yield issues.

"The casings did not meet the quality requirements Samsung was aiming for, and only around 50 percent of the yield came out right," noted an earlier report citing insider sources.

Earlier this month, Samsung started rolling out the Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 smartphones outside China.

The Galaxy A5 was spotted listed by various online retail sites and Samsung's online store in Russia at RUB 23,990 (approximately Rs. 27,350). Last month, the Galaxy A5 had gone on sale in China at CNY 2599 (approximately Rs. 26,000).

Specifications of the Samsung Galaxy A5 include a 5-inch HD (720x1280 pixels) Super Amoled display; 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor; 2GB of RAM; 13-megapixel and 5-megapixel camera; 16GB built-in storage expandable via microSD card (up to 64GB), and Android 4.4.4 KitKat.