LG, which I’ve always thought of as Samsung’s little brother, constantly trying to get attention, but succumbing to the limits that come with adolescence, has recently said that they want to ship 6 million smartphones this year. This figure comes from a Senior Executive who spoke to The Korea Times and wishes to remain unnamed. He goes so far as to even provide a split by operating system: 4.2 million will be based on Android, and the remaining 1.8 million will be based on Windows Phone 7.
That’s a full 70%, which is a lot considering LG promised Microsoft in February 2009 that they’d prefer Windows Phone versus any other smartphone operating system. I wonder, what is Steve Ballmer is feeling right now?
This anonymous source continues to say that LG plans to slim down their portfolio, from 145 models announced in 2009, to 70 models announced this year. If that sounds familiar, then you’re right. Nokia did the same thing and dubbed their strategy “more wood behind fewer arrows“, which conjures images of Robin Hood and his merry gay men in the woods, alone, serenading each other with music coming out of a lyre.
Homoerotic fantasies asides, LG is doing quite well with the Ally [check out our review] and have even promised to upgrade it to Android 2.2 (FroYo) at some point in the future, but what about flagships?
Flagships are what drive people to your brand. Even if they can’t afford it, they want to at least own something in the portfolio in which the flagship lives. Motorola makes some terrible Android phones, but the Droid, Droid 2, and especially the Droid X, are shining stars whose rays of light touch the hand me down mid range lineup. Samsung as well, terrible devices in the low and mid range, but the Galaxy S and Wave are rock stars.
Where’s the flagship from LG? From Nokia?
[Via: Unwired View]