The design behind the Samsung Galaxy A series

THE DEVICES in the current Samsung Galaxy A Series line, especially the Galaxy A7 and A9, are designed with millennials in mind, and there is a good reason for that.

As with all of Samsung’s designs, these devices are made to be relatable to their target consumers. In the case of the current Galaxy A Series phones, special attention was given towards the millennials.

This was what Samsung Electronics Design Team (III) principal product designer Sang Il Park ( far right) revealed at a recent media presentation in Kuala Lumpur.

Park, who has been with Samsung for 18 years, said that the designers work with Samsung’s six global design offices all over the world to research social, cultural and design trends of the world every year.

He added that for this series, they chose to focus on millennials because they are the generation who drive the new culture around the world, creating new values and leading the change, rather than following the path others are taking.

They are the ones who are not afraid of trying new things, nor of stepping outside of existing norms.

For their research, the designers split into two groups: one to look at millennials in Asian countries, and the other to seek out millennials in western countries.

Park added it was a challenging process spending time with millennials from different countries to gain insights on them.

In the end, they discovered that millennials, on the whole, are both trendy and energetic.

Based on these findings, Park said the team came up with three key design elements for the A9:

a quad camera that is naturally integrated rather than artificially exposed;

a glass back panel that seems to glow with multiple colours under the light; and

the gradient colours of both the glass and the metal frame, which express youthful energy.

Park added that each of the A9 colours has its own meaning. The caviar black exudes neatness and sophistication, lemonade blue is the colour of energetic vividness, while bubblegum pink makes anyone who looks at it feel happy.

When asked why the phone still has a camera bump, despite all the technical advances in mobile phones and the Galaxy A Series’ uniform design, Park said it is to protect the camera.

He explained that covering the camera with glass is not good enough. An elevated metal rim prevents the glass protecting the camera from touching surfaces that may have particles that could scratch it if it was flat.

Park also said that the Galaxy A7 and A9 were designed with a phone cover in mind and that Samsung provides a transparent cover for those who want to protect their phone without obfuscating its beauty. – Azizul Rahman Ismail