Vietnamese consumers' technology adoption reshapes mobile market

Simon Sim, vice president and head of Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics Vietnam. Photo courtesy of Samsung

From cashless payments at coffee shops to the use of artificial intelligence for everyday tasks, technology has become increasingly integrated into daily life in Vietnam.

Samsung said younger consumers, in particular, are more willing to adopt new technologies when they offer clear practical benefits.

A generation accustomed to change

Simon Sim, vice president and head of the Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Vina, said understanding Vietnamese consumers requires looking at how quickly their daily lives have changed.

Vietnam's younger generation has grown up amid rapid technological changes, including smartphones and digital services that have altered how people shop, study and work. This exposure has increased familiarity with new products and services.

According to Sim, this has contributed to the adoption of digital payments, online shopping, AI tools and interactive entertainment among younger consumers.

He said consumers are increasingly connected while continuing to value familiar habits. Their willingness to try new technology depends less on novelty than on whether it provides practical benefits in daily life.

When consumers can see how a new feature improves convenience or addresses a specific need, adoption can spread quickly, potentially affecting an entire product category, Sim said.

Changing needs reshape premium smartphone market

Samsung said changing expectations around convenience, performance and AI are also influencing purchasing decisions in the premium smartphone segment, where established ecosystems can make switching between brands more difficult.

Internal Samsung data from the initial sales period of the Galaxy Z Fold8 showed that about one in five pre-order customers had switched from another brand or ecosystem. The number doubled from the same period a year earlier, with Samsung reporting particularly strong growth among users moving from closed operating systems to foldable devices.

Sim said the trend reflects changing expectations about smartphone capabilities.

As AI becomes more personalized and capable of performing tasks, consumers may increasingly expect devices to adapt to different uses, he said. Foldable phones can offer a compact form for portability and a larger display for activities such as work, entertainment, content creation and communication.

The form factor also provides different ways to interact with AI depending on the task and screen being used.

Samsung said improvements in thinness, weight, durability and usability have also supported interest in foldable devices. Sim said the company is focusing on expanding consumer choice and adapting foldables to different usage patterns while integrating AI into device experiences.

Simon Sim emphasized that Samsung’s goal is to continue expanding choice and refining foldables around how people actually live. Photo courtesy of Samsung

Technology designed around users

Sim said Samsung's internal data reflects broader changes in consumer expectations toward mobile technology, rather than sales trends alone.

The company sees the future of mobile devices as increasingly focused on how hardware and software adapt to users' needs, rather than technical specifications alone.

Samsung expects smartphones to remain a central part of the wider digital ecosystem. Hardware improvements can reduce physical limitations, while software and AI can simplify interactions and help devices respond to different contexts and needs.

Sim said Vietnamese consumers' willingness to adopt technologies that provide practical value could create opportunities for further innovation in the mobile market.

As consumers become more familiar with AI and expect technology to fit more naturally into their daily routines, device makers will need to adapt products to changing behaviors and needs, he said.