LG starts selling KakaoTalk-friendly fold phone

A model shows the newly unveiled, fold-type smartphone the“LG Wine Smart”at LG Twin Tower in Yeouido, Seoul, Monday. LG Electronics started selling the budget smartphone for older customers. / Courtesy of LG Electronics

By Kim Yoo-chul

LG Electronics has teamed with Kakao to diversify its handset offerings to meet growing demand for mid- to low-end models from middle-age consumers.

On Friday, LG started selling Wine Smart, a budget fold-type smartphone targeting senior consumers.

LG said the phone, which costs about 400,000 won, would allow consumers over 50 to use KakaoTalk, the nation’s most popular chat app, more easily as it has a KakaoTalk button.

"This is a customized smartphone for our target customers, said spokesman G. W. Kim. “LG applied the fold-type design, which the older generations like.”

Kim said the company would promote the budget phone via major social networking sites, including Facebook, to boost demand from consumers who want budget smartphones with customized features.

Wine Smart, the sixth model in LG’s Wine phone series, has specific buttons enabling users to send text messages and use other functions easily.

Demand for less-pricey phones remains strong as pricing is now the most critical factor for consumers.

LG Electronics competes with long-time rival Samsung in the premium phone segment. It also competes with China's Huawei Technologies in the sale of cheaper handsets.

KakaoTalk has evolved into a platform where users can spend time playing games, shopping and using social networks. It boasts 50 million users, of whom three-quarters are Koreans.

LG Electronics wants the latest budget phone to become another "million-seller mobile." So far, LG has released five Wine-branded mobiles, of which four have exceeded 1 million in sales.

By diversifying its handsets from premium models to budget models, LG Electronics has become the leader in the "1.5-tier" group in the global smartphone industry, which Samsung Electronics and Apple lead.

LG Electronics is expected to report a 1.95 trillion won operating profit on a consolidated basis ― an international accounting measurement frame that includes all performance of a company’s overseas units ― this year, a 52 percent jump from a year earlier.