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The Note 7 disaster did little to harm Samsung’s bottom line

Now that we know what caused the Galaxy Note 7 to catch fire, many folks may be wondering how badly this event impacted Samsung’s earnings.

The short answer is: not badly at all.

The firm announced that it raked in 9.2 trillion Korean Won in profit for Q4 2016 and 29.24 trillion won in profit for 2016.

As we’ve previously reported, this makes Q4 2016 the best quarter Samsung has seen in three years.

While many feel that the Note 7 debacle would be Samsung’s doom the firm’s components business was its saving grace.

Samsung’s semi-conductor arm which manufactures the firms NAND storage, and DRAM (among other things) posted operating profit of 4.95 trillion won. Demand for OLED panels also increased in 2016 and that section of the business brought in 1.34 trillion won in profit.

Surprisingly, Samsung’s mobile and IT division saw an increase in earnings. The firm says high demand for smartphones and tablets over the festive season brought in 2.5 trillion won in profit.

“The Mobile business saw its earnings increase YOY [year-on-year] on the back of continued robust sales of the flagship Galaxy S7 and S7 edge as well as improved profitability in the mid-to-low end segment,” said Samsung.

Smartphones more profitable than the TV in your home

Samsung has said that it hopes to regain the slice of the market it lost as a result of the Note 7 disaster by introducing “differentiated design and innovative features” to its premium smartphone line-up.

For the mid-to-low end smartphones Samsung appears to be looking to Chinese smartphone makers for inspiration. It plans to bring water and dust-proof features to its handsets as well as fingerprint recognition.

The firm has noted however that its consumer electronics division saw a decline in profits.

This has been attributed to the increase in price of the panels Samsung uses in its TVs and currency fluctuations. The manufacturer also notes that it didn’t perform well in developing countries due to weaknesses in the the market.

Overall however, Samsung looks like an even bigger powerhouse in the tech world than it was before the explosive launch of the Note 7. The firm has big aspirations for 2017 and we’re just a bit excited to see what the South Korean manufacturer does next.

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