Super Premium Smartphone
As the competition between Samsung and Apple is becoming more fierce in the global smartphone market, there is a rumor that the release of the next “super premium phone” from LG Electronics is imminent.
According to industry sources on July 22, the so-called “super premium phone” will be put on the market soon. Earlier, LG Electronics President Cho Jun-ho said, “The company will be releasing a 'super premium phone' that sits above the G4 in the second half of this year” during the 2015 Mobile World Congress held in Spain in March.
LG is preparing the launch of the “super premium phone” in profound secrecy, opening only to those in the company who participate in the project. Some say that the phone will be the G5, the extension of the G4, but others say that it could be a totally different brand model.
It is said that LG initially planned to unveil the phone in Oct., but the company will move up the release date as much as it can, allowing for increasingly competitive global smartphone market conditions. As Apple’s iPhone 6S will be out in Sept., Samsung Electronics decided to advance the launch date of the Galaxy Note 5 by a month this year. Accordingly, LG Electronics should put the phone on the market as quickly as possible to compete with its rivals.
An official from the industry said, “LG planned to unveil the phone in Oct., but it is highly likely to release the model earlier. We are still unsure that the next 'super premium phone' will be named the G5 or a different name.”
Industry watchers are paying attention to whether LG Electronics will tighten its grip on the smartphone market with the upcoming secret phone. With the sales of the LG G4 being lower than the company’s expectations, LG is having a more difficult time in the premium smartphone market than ever. The G4 sold 240,000 units in the domestic market for two months after the release in April. The figure was far lower than the 1 million units of Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy S6 series. In addition, LG Electronics’ share prices have recently plunged to some 40,000 won (US$34.45), which is the lowest level in 12 years, due to concerns over its performance. Since there are also rumors about Google’s takeover of the company’s stocks and its large-scale restructuring in the markets at home and abroad, LG needs to drum up its smartphone business in the second half of this year.