Samsung Galaxy S4 Hits 20 Million Sales Mark: Could This Be Samsung's Most Popular Phone Ever?

Despite reports to the contrary, the Samsung (NASDAQ:SSNLF) Galaxy S4 appears to be faring well in sales. After two months on the market, the Galaxy S4 has reportedly sold more than 20 million handsets.

News of the updated sales figures come out of the company's home South Korea, even though Samsung has yet to confirm them; the manufacturer is expected to put out a confirmation press release within a few days.

The Galaxy S4 was released to international markets in late April, and it sold 10 million handsets in less than one month. Having kept up that pace for a second month, the device is not only selling approximately 1.7 times faster than its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S3, which sold 20 million handsets in 100 days, but is now the fastest selling Android device in the world.

Such accolades for the Galaxy S4 have not stopped investors from getting nervous, however. Several recent reports have suggested that the device is not selling as well as expected, and is not on track to meet the sales goal set by analysts of 80 million to 100 million handsets within the year. This has caused Samsung’s stock to drop severely in recent weeks.

Even though Samsung CEO J.K. Shin publicly asserted that the Galaxy S4 is not suffering in sales, rumors have persisted that it has been doing so poorly that the company will move up the release date for the Galaxy Note 3 "phablet" to make up for lost Galaxy S4 sales. In fact, reports also suggested that Samsung will use components originally intended for the Galaxy S4 on the Galaxy Note 3.

In contrast, some now propose that advance sales expectations for the Samsung Galaxy S4 were highly inflated to begin with. The Galaxy S3, which was hailed as the best and fastest selling Samsung device of 2012, has notably sold 50 million handsets since its May 2012 release -- 40 million of them within 2012, which is considered an impressive sales record.

In comparison to rival flagship smartphones with strong sales records, the Samsung Galaxy S4 is selling extremely well. The HTC One, which released in March, sold a mere 5 million handsets within two months.

Even if the Galaxy S4 does not reach the expected sales record, it does appear on track to have a solid sales history. With the summer in full swing and many carriers now offering discounts on the device, some predict 50 million handsets sold within six months, believing that it if it keeps up its current sales pace, it could be in the running to be the most popular Samsung smartphone ever.

Do you believe that the Samsung Galaxy S4 is selling well? Let us know in the comments below.

Follow me on Twitter @FionnaatIBT.