Reference Auto

LG, although the third largest handsets seller in India, has a minuscule market share of just over 8% (compared with 11% of Samsung and a whopping 51% of Nokia) but can it really rev up its share with the launch of its high-end Optimus X2, which it has rolled out for Rs 30,000? The Optimus X2 will be available in the country from this month itself.

The above Rs 30,000 category market is dominated by Apple, BlackBerry, Nokia, Sony Ericsson and even Samsung.

So, will the Optimus X2 get lost in the maze of premium smartphones?

The Korean major will really have to do some hard sell with its X2 to stay afloat in the segment.

LG has put a new processor in the Optimus X2, the dual core 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor.

Optimus X2 operates on Android 2.2 and there is an option where it can be upgraded to Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

The X2 comes with a 4-inch WVGA display, 8 GB internal storage, which can be expandable up to 32 GB through a micro SD card.

It has an 8 MP rear camera with 1080 p MPEG-4/H.264 playback and recording, a 1.3 MP front-facing camera along with a HDMI out.

The Optimus X2 is going to slug it out mainly with models such as the Samsung Nexus S and the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc, all of which fall in the high-end Android smartphones category.

LG also rolled out the LG Optimus Black for a tad cheaper, at Rs 27,000. The Optimus Black features a 4-inch IPS LCD display with a 480 x 800 resolution.

The device comes with a 2 GB internal storage, expandable up to 32 GB. It has a 5 MP auto-focus camera at the back and a 2 MP camera that is front facing.

Both the LG Optimus X2 and the Optimus Black are targeted at high-end handsets users.

With the 3G revolution hitting India, LG sees huge opportunities for itself, and though its market share is not substantial, it hopes to buoy its presence by launching 10 3G-enabled smartphones within this year.

In fact, among LG’s launches this year, nearly half will be in the smartphones category and the company hopes to jack up its market share to nearly 12 per cent during the year. LG has set aside a whopping Rs 250 crore for developing marketing and retail activities.

LG may have lined up mega growth plans in the handsets segment. But instead of planning growth from brand-conscious smartphones customers, it should also offer value-for-money handsets, that are not only affordable but also come with enhanced features.

So, instead of concentrating on high-end smartphones like the Optimus X2, LG should rivet on basic handsets to give a fillip to not only its earnings but also its brand presence.