What's the first thing you do when you boot up a new Samsung phone? For many, the answer is to turn off the Bixby voice assistant and replace the Samsung Keyboard with the Google GBoard keyboard. So why doesn't Samsung just remove these oft-mentioned features?
In short, analysts say it wouldn't be viable or financially sound for Samsung to abandon all of its proprietary software and apps in order to stick with only Google's offering. But he agrees that Samsung needs to focus on "creating better differentiated software rather than trying to copy something that someone else does better." Samsung's software decisions often feel like they are for the benefit of the company and not us.
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Better focus
Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC's global device tracking, says that Samsung, which has some of the best phones with Android in the world, they need to narrow their ambitions when it comes to software and services and focus only on the good. This, he said, could mean that if it can't offer a top-notch experience, it will leave it to Google or other solutions.
In this case, Ubrani agrees that Bixby is far from one of the company's touted features, which is just different from, say, the S Pen experience and its software debugging. But at the same time, he says it wouldn't be smart for Samsung to ditch all of its software efforts because many of its customers are drawn to the company for its own software.
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According to Anshela Saga, lead analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, Samsung should rethink which software and apps are doing well. "I don't think it makes sense for Samsung to give up all the software and apps given its current investments," he says. "Samsung would be best served to review all of its software solutions and find out where it is and is not competitive, and trim the applications that are not competitive so that it can focus on new areas that could pay off where it is exposed today especially Google.”
Google's lead is not insurmountable
And while Ubrani and Sag agree that Bixby is no good and even call for it to be removed from Samsung devices, Mishaal Rahman, Esper's senior technical editor and former editor-in-chief of XDA Developers, thinks that even if Bixby isn't great, Samsung should definitely keep it. He mentions that Google's lead is not insurmountable in all areas. Of course, it would be foolish if Samsung tried to create its own search engine, but in the field of virtual assistant, Google is definitely not guaranteed any dominance.
Rahman adds that Samsung maintaining its own set of apps also gives it leverage over Google in licensing negotiations. Additionally, in mid-2021, 36 U.S. attorneys general revealed that Google feels threatened by how Samsung is strengthening its business Galaxy Store by entering into exclusive contracts with popular app developers. Furthermore, during the trial of Epic Games vs. Google has been cited by various documents as estimating up to $6 billion in lost revenue if alternative app stores "receive full support."
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So even if you don't use Bixby, even if Google Assistant leaves you cold, it's important that these features are there. Because they are constantly improving and learning, and it is possible that one day they will really be the kind of artificial intelligence with which we will normally communicate today and every day.
Currently available language versions of Bixby:
- English (UK)
- English (US)
- English (India)
- French (France)
- German (Germany)
- Italian (Italy)
- Korean (South Korea)
- Mandarin Chinese (China)
- Spanish (Spain)
- Portuguese (Brazil)
