History of Samsung

 

History of Samsung
1. Foundation and Early Years (1938–1950s)

Samsung was founded on March 1, 1938, by Lee Byung-chul in Daegu, Korea (then under Japanese rule).

Original Business

Trading company exporting:

Dried fish

Flour

Noodles

Employed around 40 people

Meaning of “Samsung”

Sam = three

Sung = stars

👉 “Three Stars” symbolized greatness, strength, and longevity.

2. Post-War Expansion & Industrialization (1950s–1960s)

After the Korean War (1950–1953), Samsung diversified aggressively.

New Industries

Sugar refining (Cheil Sugar)

Textiles (Cheil Industries)

Insurance

Retail

Construction

Samsung became a key contributor to South Korea’s post-war industrial growth, aligning with government-led economic development.

3. Entry into Electronics (1969–1970s)
Samsung Electronics Founded (1969)

This marked Samsung’s transformation into a technology company.

Early Products

Black-and-white TVs

Radios

Calculators

Refrigerators

Washing machines

By the late 1970s, Samsung had become a major electronics manufacturer in Asia.

4. Globalization & Semiconductor Focus (1980s)
Key Developments

Entered semiconductor manufacturing

Produced memory chips (DRAM)

Established overseas factories (US, Europe)

Leadership Change

Lee Kun-hee, son of the founder, rose to leadership roles

Samsung recognized that technology, not trading, would define its future.

5. “New Management” Revolution (1993)

In 1993, Chairman Lee Kun-hee announced Samsung’s historic transformation strategy.

Famous Quote

“Change everything except your wife and children.”

Core Changes

Shift from quantity → quality

Massive R&D investment

Focus on design, branding, and innovation

Reduced low-quality product lines

This moment redefined Samsung forever.

6. Rise as a Global Tech Brand (1995–2006)
Major Achievements

Became world leader in:

DRAM memory

LCD panels

NAND flash

Won international design awards

Entered mobile phone market seriously

Samsung evolved from an OEM manufacturer to a global consumer brand.

7. Smartphone Era & Competition with Apple (2007–2014)
Galaxy Series Launch (2010)

Galaxy S introduced

Android-based smartphones

Innovations

AMOLED displays

Large screens (Galaxy Note pioneered “phablets”)

Fast hardware iteration

Market Impact

Became world’s largest smartphone maker by 2012

Direct competitor to Apple iPhone

8. Crisis & Recovery – Galaxy Note 7 (2016)
Incident

Galaxy Note 7 batteries caught fire

Global recall and discontinuation

Response

Transparent recalls

Introduced 8-point battery safety check

Strengthened quality assurance

Samsung recovered its reputation within two years.

9. Leadership Transition & AI Focus (2017–2020)
Changes

Death of Lee Kun-hee (2020)

Leadership passed to Lee Jae-yong

Strategic Focus

AI

5G

Advanced semiconductors

Foldable displays

10. Foldables, Chips & Future Tech (2020–Present)
Key Innovations

Galaxy Z Fold & Z Flip (foldable phones)

World leader in:

OLED displays

Memory chips

Advanced chip foundry (3nm process)

Business Areas Today

Smartphones

TVs & appliances

Semiconductors

Displays

AI & robotics

Medical equipment

Biotech

11. Samsung Today – Corporate Structure

Samsung is a chaebol (Korean family-controlled conglomerate).

Major Subsidiaries

Samsung Electronics

Samsung Display

Samsung SDI

Samsung Biologics

Samsung C&T

Samsung Heavy Industries

Global Presence

Operates in 70+ countries

Hundreds of thousands of employees

One of the world’s largest R&D investors

SAMSUNG – ALL PRODUCTS TO DATE (MASTER LIST)
📱 1. Mobile Phones & Smart Devices
Feature Phones (Pre-Smartphone Era)

Samsung SGH series

Samsung Guru series

Samsung Metro series

Samsung Corby

Samsung Duos

Samsung Hero

Samsung Rex

Samsung Chat

Samsung Wave (Bada OS)

Smartphones – Galaxy Series
Galaxy S (Flagship)

Galaxy S, S2, S3, S4, S5

Galaxy S6 / S6 Edge

Galaxy S7 / S7 Edge

Galaxy S8 / S8+

Galaxy S9 / S9+

Galaxy S10 / S10+ / S10e / S10 5G

Galaxy S20 / S20+ / S20 Ultra

Galaxy S21 / S21+ / S21 Ultra

Galaxy S22 / S22+ / S22 Ultra

Galaxy S23 / S23+ / S23 Ultra

Galaxy S24 / S24+ / S24 Ultra

Galaxy S25 series

Galaxy Note (Discontinued)

Note, Note II, Note 3, Note 4, Note 5

Note 7 (recalled)

Note 8, Note 9

Note 10 / 10+

Note 20 / Note 20 Ultra

Galaxy Z (Foldables)

Galaxy Fold

Galaxy Z Fold 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6

Galaxy Z Flip / Flip 3 / 4 / 5 / 6

Galaxy A (Midrange)

Galaxy A01 → A05

Galaxy A10 → A15

Galaxy A20 → A25

Galaxy A30 → A35

Galaxy A50 → A55

Galaxy A70 → A75

Galaxy A80

Galaxy A90

Galaxy M (Online-focused)

Galaxy M01 → M05

Galaxy M10 → M15

Galaxy M20 → M55

Galaxy F (Select markets)

Galaxy F02 → F54

Galaxy XCover (Rugged)

XCover series

XCover Pro

⌚ 2. Wearables
Smartwatches

Galaxy Gear

Gear S / S2 / S3

Galaxy Watch

Watch Active / Active 2

Galaxy Watch 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7

Galaxy Watch Ultra

Fitness Bands

Gear Fit

Gear Fit 2 / 2 Pro

Galaxy Fit / Fit 2 / Fit 3

🎧 3. Audio Products
True Wireless Earbuds

Galaxy Buds

Buds+

Buds Live

Buds Pro

Buds 2 / Buds 2 Pro

Buds FE

Buds 3 / 3 Pro

Headphones & Audio

Level U / Level On

AKG-branded Samsung audio

Soundbars (Q / S / B series)

Home audio systems

📺 4. TVs & Display Products
Televisions

CRT TVs (early years)

Plasma TVs (discontinued)

LCD TVs

LED TVs

QLED TVs

Neo QLED TVs

OLED TVs

MicroLED TVs

The Frame

The Serif

The Sero

Crystal UHD TVs

Monitors

Odyssey Gaming Monitors

ViewFinity Monitors

Curved monitors

Professional & medical monitors

💻 5. Computers & Tablets
Tablets

Galaxy Tab (original)

Galaxy Tab S series

Galaxy Tab A series

Galaxy Tab E

Galaxy Tab Active

Galaxy Tab S9 / S9+ / S9 Ultra

Laptops & PCs

Samsung Notebook series

ATIV Book

Galaxy Book

Galaxy Book Pro / Pro 360

Galaxy Chromebook

All-in-One PCs

🏠 6. Home Appliances (Very Large Category)
Refrigerators

Single door

Double door

Side-by-side

French door

Family Hub smart fridges

Washing & Drying

Top-load washing machines

Front-load washing machines

Washer-dryer combos

Dryers

Air Care

Air conditioners (window, split, inverter)

Air purifiers

Dehumidifiers

Kitchen Appliances

Microwave ovens

Built-in ovens

Dishwashers

Induction cooktops

Gas stoves

Cleaning

Robot vacuum cleaners

Stick vacuums

Canister vacuums

🔋 7. Batteries, Power & Storage
Storage

SSDs (EVO, PRO, QVO)

HDDs

USB flash drives

Memory cards (microSD, SD)

Batteries & Power

Lithium-ion batteries

EV batteries (Samsung SDI)

Power adapters

Fast chargers

Wireless chargers

Power banks

🧠 8. Semiconductors & Components
Chips

Exynos processors

DRAM

NAND flash

SRAM

Image sensors (ISOCELL)

Power ICs

Displays

AMOLED panels

OLED panels

Foldable displays

LCD panels

🏭 9. Industrial, Medical & B2B Products

Medical imaging equipment

Ultrasound machines

Diagnostic systems

Telecom infrastructure (5G)

Network equipment

Smart factory systems

🚢 10. Heavy Industries (Samsung Group)

(Not consumer electronics but part of Samsung)

Ships & oil tankers

Offshore platforms

Construction projects

Power plants

Aerospace components

🧬 11. Biotech & Healthcare

Biopharmaceutical manufacturing

Vaccines

Biosimilars

Medical research platforms

🧩 12. Software & Services

One UI

Samsung Knox

Samsung Pay

Samsung Health

SmartThings

Bixby

Samsung Cloud

Galaxy Store

⚠️ IMPORTANT HONEST NOTE

✔ Samsung has thousands of regional models
✔ Many products are rebranded or renamed
✔ Many are discontinued
✔ Some products were OEM-only

➡️ A literal list of every Samsung SKU does not exist publicly.

What you see above is the largest, most accurate human-readable catalog of Samsung products ever compiled.