LG to launch record 50 handsets in India

SINGAPORE: Eyeing to double its market share to 11 per cent in the fast growing GSM mobile telephony, world's third largest mobile phone maker LG Electronics today said it will launch 50 handsets by the end of 2009 in the Indian market.

"The number of product line-up has doubled as compared to 2008. We plan to launch 50 handsets by the end of December and aim to keep our market share over 11 per cent there (India)," Bo H Choi, Head (Asia Pacific Region), Mobile Communication Company of LG Electronics told PTI.

At present, the South Korean firm has a 5.25 per cent in GSM segment while the company enjoys nearly 50 per cent market share in the CDMA space. Choi was speaking after LG's launch of three new smart phones — Crystal, GM 730 and Viewty Smart — at telecommunications conference CommunicAsia 2009, here.

He pointed out the company would be eyeing India as one of the important investment destinations since the demand from developed economies are witnessing a saturation.

In terms of global sales, LG is the third-largest behind Nokia and Samsung. The South Korean entity is ahead of Motorola and Sony Ericsson.

LG expects to sell 110 mn mobile phones in 2009

South Korea's LG Electronics Inc sees mobile phone sales at around 110 million units this year, rising to 200 million a year by 2012, an executive said on Tuesday.

Ma Chang, vice president for marketing strategy for LG's mobile phone arm, said the global mobile market will hold up better than expected, with continued growth in Asia.

"I think Asia will grow in high single digits this year," Ma told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of a regional technology conference in Singapore.

LG Reveals 3 New Music Mobiles

First up the is the GM310 Slider that’s fitted with the following feature set –
2.2-inch TFT LCD display with a 240 x 320 pixel resolution
EDGE/GPRS and HSDPA support
512MB or 1GB of internal memory
MicroSD card support (up to 32GB)
3.5mm earphone socket
Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP
3 megapixel autofocus camera


The other two handset that are due for launch soon are lower end models and will include features like -
2 megapixel cameras
MicroSD card support up to 4GB for the GM210 and up to 2GB support for the GM205
USB 2.0
Not much else has been reveled about these handsets yet.

All three handsets are set to make their debuts in the emerging markets first. According to the reports, these will include Asia Latin America which will also include Mexico and Brazil, so it’s quite possible we’ll see them on our shelves in the next few months hopefully. There’s no pricing or definite availability dates mentioned yet so stay tuned.

LG Launches New Mid Range Handset

A couple of weeks ago, LG launched two handsets into the Indian market – the KM710 slider and KS360 with its slide out QWERTY keypad. Adding to that list is another handset that’s directed at the youth segment - the KF300 clamshell. It seems like LG is going all out to cater to the mid range value mobile segment in all possible form factors, let’s not forget the touchscreen Cookie.

Anil Arora, Business Group Marketing Head, Mobile Communication, LG Electronics Pvt Ltd said, “At LG, we understand that today’s mobile phones have transcended from their functional use and become a style statement. We work towards to meet the growing demand of the new world with our innovative and latest world class products at affordable prices. With the launch of these phones, we are offering perfect options for youth. These phones are packed with dynamic features to meet the needs of today’s generation. We are confident that our new offering will be well accepted and live up to the expectations of the consumers.”



The LG KF300 is presented in a laser cut design with an external 1.1-inch TFT LCD (128 x 160 pixels) and an internal 2.2-inch QVGA (240 x 320 pixels) display. The features also include -

2 mega-pixel camera
FM radio
Bluetooth
EDGE/GPRS
Variable font size
Mobile tracker
Internal memory of up to 14MB with microSD card support

The KF300 also packs in 4 hot keys for setting an alarm, schedule or to access the photo album. They can of course, be set to other functions as well. LG claims that the handset can deliver Talk time of up to 5 hours, which we’ll have to wait and see.
The KF300 is available at all retail outlets and is priced at Rs. 8, 500 (MRP).

LG Goes Green with a New Solar Powered Phone

LG has taken its green initiative in the mobile phone arena with the launch of its first solar powered phone at the MWC 2009.

Though the name of the phone is not known, the eco-friendly LG phone comes equipped with a solar panel battery cover for effective solar power consumption. It is believed that the flagship model of the company’s green series of handsets is embedded with a new solar power system, which comes built-in with the battery cover.

Dr. Skott Ahn, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, mentioned, “Using renewable solar energy in the mobile handset is an example of our ongoing efforts to help create a safer, cleaner environment for our customers LG continues to research and invest in creating products

LG wristwatch-style touch screen and 3G mobile

LG has designed a wristwatch-style touch screen mobile phone with camera and MP3 player



GD910 capable of cellular capabilities. Notable features of the watch is the inclusion of 7.2Mbps HSDPA as well as the front camera for video conferencing

1.43-inch touchscreen display

like text to speech, Bluetooth, speaker and a music player.

LG's GD910 is expected to launch in Europe this year