You’ll notice something strange if you walk into any mid-tier electronics store in Rawalpindi or Lahore these days. The price tags have subtly increased, but the shelves still appear familiar—the same Xiaomis, Samsungs, and shiny display units under fluorescent light. When you ask why, shopkeepers shrug. Some point the finger at “PTA.” Some murmur about memory chips. Some simply say, “What to do, sir? Everything is going up,” with a smile.
In the center of this peculiar moment is the Samsung Galaxy A57. With its 6.67-inch OLED screen, Exynos 1680 processor, 5,000mAh battery, and 45W charging, it appears to be an upper mid-range phone. There’s nothing about that lineup that suggests a crisis. However, leaked European pricing indicates that the A57 may increase by 15 to 20 percent over the A56 from the previous year, bringing the 256GB model above €600 and the 128GB model to roughly €539. That’s a low-cost phone with a price tag that would have purchased a flagship phone just two years ago.
As you watch this happen, you get the impression that the mid-range segment is simultaneously being squeezed from every angle. Global memory chip prices are rising, and even Samsung, the world’s largest memory manufacturer, is reportedly feeling the effects. The company has discreetly begun sourcing OLED panels for the A57 from China Star Optoelectronics instead of its own Samsung Display arm in an effort to mitigate the damage. Five years ago, this kind of choice would have seemed unimaginable. Samsung is purchasing screens from a Chinese competitor in order to maintain the affordability of a Galaxy phone. Even though it’s a minor detail, it reveals everything about the current state of the industry.
Naturally, none of that is visible to the Pakistani buyer. They see the total amount after the PTA tax is added. Locally, there is already a 25 percent sales tax on devices over $500, and high-end phones may have an effective tax of well over 50 percent. Approximately 52% of Pakistanis are now completely unable to access the internet through smartphones, according to the same Express Tribune report from earlier this month. Go over that twice. Due to the device of entry becoming a luxury good, half of the nation is excluded from the digital economy.
It’s difficult to ignore the irony. Price-sensitive markets like India, Pakistan, Southeast Asia, and Latin America are the reason behind the existence of Samsung’s A-series. The A56 was meant to be the workhorse—the reasonably priced, dependable phone you give to your father, who has finally decided to upgrade from his Nokia, or your cousin who is headed to college. The A57 now enters a market where its intended consumer can hardly afford it.
Other brands are not exempt. By making very few changes, Google’s Pixel 10a maintained its price. The Phone Is Nothing (4a) Pro took the opposite approach, adding features and increasing the price in the hopes that its allure would win out. Each of these offers a unique response to the same awkward query: how can you market a “cheap” phone when the supply chain is no longer inexpensive? The memory is working. Tariffs have increased. Local taxes have increased. Silently, more silicon is needed for AI features. In Shenzhen’s back rooms, even the panels behind the screen are being renegotiated.
Something seems to be slowly shattering, but no one knows what it is. According to every leaked specification, the Galaxy A57 is actually a pretty good phone. glass back, a thin chassis, and a battery compatible with the S26 Ultra. The gadget isn’t the issue. The world it is entering is the issue. A world in which the cost of staying connected has become its own kind of tax, paid not at the register but rather in the silent choice of a person in Multan or Karachi to put off purchasing their first real smartphone for another year or two.
The A57 might still be in demand. Samsung usually manages to get around it. However, it’s important to consider what we’re really purchasing these days and who is being left behind.
