The folks saying this is the end of Samsung -- get a grip -- it's not Samsung's end --- not by a LONG SHOT. I'm not speaking as a loyal Samsung customer, in fact I'm speaking as someone who made the mistake of buying a Samsung Ci5 notebook back in the day and well, I've decided never to buy Samsung ANYTHING unless the product offers something truly mind boggling.
Now coming to the point, this will definitely hurt Samsung, and Apple will enjoy an advantage for 1-3 years over Samsung after this. But make no mistake about it, this will most likely be spun in to a marketing campaign for something reflecting the "rise of the phoenix from the ashes" or how the company "cares & values its loyal customers that it completely recalled all the production" -- Yeah campaigns like that will run and most likely will bring customers to the markets with their money. What remains to be seen are two things ..
-How much customer trust has been lost by Samsung ?
-How much does Apple gain in the mean time while it's operating with it's rival on it's toes and without a new flagship product ?
BTW, my opinion --- If it's REALLY your NEED or/and your a tech enthusiast, only then should you go for such high-end devices. It's almost a culture now, where the type of mobile phone you carry determines your place in the social ladder. Refuse to be the part of that game.
BTW I'm an owner of a Sony Xperia Acro S which I believe was the "test bed" per say for what became the Xperia Z.I've extracted 4-5 years out of it, and I've only had to take it to the market once for a minor software glitch. It's still going strong and I might still get 2-3 years more out of it ....As far as I'm concerned .... the next time I'm going shopping ... I'm hunting for a Sony ...