Samsung downplayed a report claiming that the company has stopped production of an upcoming phone called the Galaxy S21 FE. Korean publication ETNews claimed last weekend that production of the unannounced phone had been halted due to a shortage of semiconductors and that Qualcomm processors had been assigned to foldable devices.
The report has since been deleted and Samsung says it has not yet decided whether production will be stopped. In a statement to Bloomberg, the company said, “While we cannot discuss the details of the unreleased product, nothing has been found regarding the alleged production suspension.”
The Galaxy S21 FE – the FE stands for Fan Edition – is supposed to be a stripped-down, cheaper version of the regular S21. Last year, Dieter Bohn gave the Galaxy S20 FE a positive review, noting that it had “a few quality components that will please you, while the cheaper parts won’t detract too much from the experience”.
The S21 FE was not officially announced, but Samsung said at an event last year that it plans to release fan editions of flagship phones in the future. OnLeaks released purported renders of the S21 FE in April that show a similar design to the well-preserved Galaxy S21.
While it is noteworthy that Samsung did not directly deny the ETNews report, it may take some time for the truth to surface. The S20 FE was only announced in September last year and released in October. Even though Samsung is currently having supply chain issues with its successor, a launch wasn’t necessarily imminent.
