We have team members at MWC 2023 in Barcelona as we speak, visiting booths hosted by Samsung and other brands. We just paid Xiaomi's booth a visit, where the company is showcasing the Mi Mix Fold 2 foldable phone — a rival to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 — among other devices. And we couldn't help but notice something peculiar about this foldable Xiaomi device.
Xiaomi appears to be using the brand image of Samsung's wholly-owned subsidiary, Harman, better than Samsung. And it's odd to see it all happen at a big mobile tech event, where numerous companies compete for the spotlight. How is Xiaomi doing it, you ask? Well, it's simple. The OEM's Mi Mix Fold 2 carries a neat little logo claiming that its sound system is enabled by Harman Kardon. And it is a nice touch that can lend more credibility to the phone's audio prowess, given Harman's brand power.
Samsung owns Harman but doesn't use the brand for Galaxy phones
It was only a couple of months ago when we spoke about Samsung needing to use its subsidiaries for better audio branding on Galaxy smartphones. The company owns Harman — since it bought it for $8 billion in 2016 — and other audio brands, including Bang & Olufsen, JBL, and AKG.
Samsung's tablets, such as the Galaxy Tab S7 and Tab S8 series, get the “Sound by AKG” branding on their back panels. But Galaxy smartphones — even its most premium foldable and Ultra devices — do not enjoy the same treatment. And here we are now at MWC 2023, seeing the Harman Kardon brand on a rival smartphone, and a high-end Xiaomi foldable phone at that.
Samsung is dominating the foldable phone segment. But to maintain that position, the company may want to use every advantage possible, especially if rival OEMs such as Xiaomi are willing to take the extra step and team up with Samsung subsidiaries to improve their brand image.
This Harman Kardon logo alone gives the Xiaomi Mi Mix Fold 2 a better chance of competing in the emerging foldable smartphone market. But Samsung doesn't use similar tactics, which is odd, considering it owns Harman and many other popular audio brands.
At the end of the day, this instance at MWC 2023 makes Xiaomi look like it's able to use Samsung's resources better than Samsung. And admittedly, this doesn't sit right with us fans of the Korean tech giant. We're hoping that Samsung will do better in the future, and we're looking forward to the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5, which should get announced in August-September.
