Two of the leading Android smartphone makers are showing very different quarterly earnings, as Samsung Electronics has posted record sales while HTC has shown its first quarterly loss since going public in 2002.
Samsung is expected to post profits of about $9.4 billion for its third quarter, while HTC posted its first quarterly net loss of about $101 million.
The record-breaking misfortunes of HTC wasn't exactly unexpected though. The Taiwanese smartphone maker, which released the high-end solid aluminum-bodied HTC One earlier this year, announced in late July that it expected losses in Q3 of this year, partly due to ongoing internal struggles at the company and partly due to lower than expected sales of the expensive HTC One.
Meanwhile, Samsung has benefited by several drivers of growth, according to The New York Times - some of which have nothing to do with its smartphone lineup. Analysts are saying that Samsung Electronics, while being the top smartphone maker, also "was probably benefitting from a recent recovery in the price of memory chips," after a rival chipmaker suffered a factory fire.
Samsung not only makes memory chips and processors for its own devices, but sells them to other companies as well. One of those companies, ironically enough, is Apple, which Samsung has provided solid state drives and processors to, off and on, since Apple shifted away from using hard disc drives in its iPod series in 2005. The highly acclaimed 64-bit A7 chip found in the newest Apple iPhone 5s, for example, was manufactured by Samsung.
"Samsung's diversity of profit streams plus strength and scale in all tiers of smartphones helps them continue to grow profits," said Mark Newman, analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, according to The New York Times.
The veritable "Galaxy" of mobile products Samsung offers through all different price ranges and form factors have often been maligned by technology watchers.
For example, Samsung offers products in the Galaxy Note series ranging from its new flagship 5.7-inch phablet, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, to the older Galaxy Note 8 (8-inch) and a new Galaxy Note 10.1, while also selling cheaper 7-inch, 8-inch, and 10-inch Galaxy Tabs. The Galaxy S4 smartphone itself has four other variations: Mini, Mega, Active, and Zoom.
Critics often refer to new, smaller additions to Samsung's product line as Samsung throwing something "against the wall to see if it sticks," but apparently that strategy is part of Samsung's sound business plan.
HTC's strategy was much different. HTC seemingly put all of its eggs into the HTC One basket at the start of the year, hoping for an iPhone-like reception to its premium smartphone.
Part of that strategy included making the HTC One out of a single, solid piece of aluminum, an expensive manufacturing process that led to a skyrocketing cost structure - a cost structure that was not covered by big sales.
The Taiwanese company also had internal problems, according to the Times, including one of its top design executives being arrested in late summer for allegedly stealing trade secrets from the company.
HTC isn't the only smartphone-maker in trouble. Nokia was just bought by Microsoft and BlackBerry is attempting to find private buyers after a disastrous attempt at an all-around refresh.