Samsung's Q3 operating profit of $9.6 billion is a record, thanks to memory and cheap Galaxys

Samsung's earnings for the third quarter are in and as usual, the money keeps flowing in. As it predicted a few months ago, Q3 represented a record high in operating profit for the company, hitting 10.16 trillion won, or about $9.6 billion. While the results last quarter reflected a flattening growth curve in smartphone sales, business is still getting better thanks to cheaper versions of its Galaxy smartphones and profits from memory chips (Flash storage and RAM) that have doubled last year's results. With its chips in demand for the new game consoles, smartphones, servers and PCs, Samsung has plenty of customers (including some of its competitors), and is predicting supply will stay tight for the near future. Meanwhile, it's making less money on displays as prices continue to drop, but noted sales of 60-inch and higher TV panels are growing.