The South Korean company will offer the service to customers who order its latest range of Galaxy devices online
The drone delivery service will be initially introduced to customers based in Oranmore. (Credit: SAMSUNG)
South Korea’s Samsung Electronics has partnered with Manna Drone Delivery to launch drone delivery services to its Irish customers who purchase its devices.
The service will be made available to customers who order Samsung’s latest range of Galaxy devices online.
Devices that will be delivered through the drone delivery service include S21 Ultra, the Galaxy Buds Pro, the Galaxy Tab S7, the Galaxy Watch 3, and Samsung’s recently launched Galaxy A Series.
The service will provide an end-to-end contactless experience for Samsung customers from their initial online order through the company’s Irish eStore, right through to fulfilment.
Samsung Ireland online head Eamonn Grant said: “At Samsung, we are always looking for ways to bring meaningful innovation to our customers so we’re really excited to be the first technology company in Ireland to make our products available to our customers via drone delivery.
“To be able to deliver our products to our customers within three minutes of leaving the dispatch centre is a brilliant example of innovation in motion. Superior customer experience is at the heart of what we do and with this new service, we are embracing what we believe will be the future of retail.
“In the current environment, there is no better time to provide a contactless alternative to ‘click and collect’ and we are really thrilled to be partnering Manna to achieve this.”
The drone delivery service, which will be initially introduced to customers based in Oranmore, is a first for Samsung globally.
Manna’s drones are said to fly at an altitude of 50-80 metres and a speed of over 60kph, making the deliveries reach Oranmore homes within three minutes.
Samsung and Manna intend to make the service available across the country in the future.
Using custom-developed aerospace-grade drones, Manna delivers products directly to customer’s homes. The company operates its autonomous drone fleet directly from the restaurant, dark kitchen or retail premises.
Manna CTO Alan Hicks said: “This partnership with Samsung marks the first of its kind in the world. To date, we have been working with Tesco and local businesses to deliver grocery, hot food, books and pharmacy items, to people in the area.
“We recognise that the potential for the application of drone delivery is enormous. Samsung is one of the most innovative and widely recognised brands globally that always puts its customers front and centre. It’s for this reason we are genuinely excited to be embarking on this next chapter with them.”