If they aren't now, they will be soon. Look at where LG, Hyundai, and Kia were just 15 years ago. LG had to change names from GoldStar to shed the perception o

If they aren't now, they will be soon. Look at where LG, Hyundai, and Kia were just 15 years ago. LG had to change names from GoldStar to shed the perception of the brand as the king of cheap Sony knock-offs. Hyundai and Kia were releasing unbelievably generic cars with their attempts at "styling" ending up like this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kia_Opirus#mediaviewer/File:Kia_Amanti_2005.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kia_Opirus#mediaviewer/File:Kia... Samsung wasn't much better, they had little presence in the consumer market and weren't regarded any higher than Foxconn is today in terms of electronics/engineering prowess. I don't see the best Chinese companies being that far off from the best Korea had to offer back then. Look how quickly the Korean companies caught up and then remember how fast everything moves in China.