Samsung’s Unpacked filled with glitz and glamour from K-pop stars and new tech

Tech

Published: 27 Jul. 2023, 14:18 Updated: 27 Jul. 2023, 16:26

Samsung’s Unpacked filled with glitz and glamour from K-pop stars and new tech

Suga of BTS is projected on the screen during the Unpacked event on Wednesday at Coex. [YONHAP]

As a commercial model for Samsung's Galaxy phones, Suga of BTS is known for his somewhat abrupt, open promotion of the smartphone maker on vlogs or during his world tour. So when he attended the Unpacked launch event for Samsung's new Galaxy Z series Wednesday evening, it quickly turned into an impromptu ARMY fan gathering.

Journalists line up in front of the conference hall before the Unpacked event begins. [JIN EUN-SOO]

“I am here to see Suga with my friends after finishing summer classes,” a Chinese international student surnamed Li said as the group waited in the hallway in front of a Coex convention hall hours before the event.

“I arrived here at 5 p.m., but surprisingly I was not the first. There were already so many fans here."

Li was part of a big K-pop fan crowd waiting in front of the convention hall where Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Unpacked event was to take place from 8 p.m. As part of Samsung's efforts to lure in more MZers to its user base from rival Apple, the company has been trying to gain the advantage by collaborating with big K-pop stars.

The usually quiet venue for business-to-business conferences and exhibitions turned into somewhat of a concert hall, filled with excitement.

Suga is in the front row of the Unpacked event on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

The event's staff had to constantly set up new safe lines to prevent any accidents as an unexpected number of fans, as well as attendees of the event, mobilized in front of the event hall hours before the scheduled starting time.

Some 2,000 attendees participated the Unpacked event. [JIN EUN-SOO]

Suga, Stray Kids, IVE’s Jang Won-young, and Jeongyeon from Twice were among the K-pop stars who attended the event.

The Galaxy Unpacked event on Wednesday was Samsung Electronics’ first unpack event to be held on its home turf since the Galaxy brand launched in 2010. Previous events, held in cities like Barcelona, London and Berlin, emphasized Samsung Electronics' global image while the latest Seoul event highlighted Korean elements such as writing "unpack" or "welcome" in Korean on advertisement boards and invitation cards.

Samsung Electronics President Roh Tae-moon speaks on stage at the Unpacked event on Wednesday in Coex in southern Seoul. [SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS]

Some 2,000 participants attended the event, including 700 journalists from the foreign press.

Journalists from home and abroad as well as influencers lined up to get inside the event hall as early as 6 p.m. to get the nearest seat to the round-shaped stage located in the center.

Korean motifs could be instantly detected at the entrance, such as a photo zone decorated with Korean traditional patterns and windows using hanji (Korean traditional paper). The catering included yakgwa (Korean traditional deep-fried honey cookies) and green plum tea.

The excitement was soon hushed as Suga’s Daechwita filled the hall, signaling the start of the event, alongside traditional Korean instruments such as taepyeongso and kkwaenggwari.

“We are proud to host Unpacked from this vibrant city known for world-leading technology and culture,” Samsung Electronics President Roh Tae-moon said on stage.

Roh quickly reassured the audience that Samsung was the first to launch a foldable smartphone and has been leading the industry ever since.

“When we introduced the first Galaxy Fold, we boldly stated that it was more than a new device, it was a new category,” he added.

“Now, just a few years later, tens of millions of people use foldable smartphones.”

During the event, Suga was asked about his thoughts on the new Z series, to which the K-pop star shyly gave a thumbs up and held up his own Galaxy smartphone.

Suga is known to be an avid fan of the Galaxy brand, so much so that he shouted “No iPhone, only Galaxy,” during his recent concert when he let his fans take selfies with him using their smartphones.

BTS has been modeling for the Galaxy brand since 2020.

IVE’s Jang Won-young was also seen taking selfies with American actress Sydney Sweeny during the event, promoting the enlarged cover display of the newest Z Flip 5.

Korean football star Son Heung-min who was recently tapped as a new ambassador for Galaxy was also shown through a video wearing the new Galaxy Watch 6.

A new poster featuring BTS leader RM with the Z Flip 5 was released Thursday on Samsung's Twitter account.