Pantech returns with budget smartphone

Models promote Pantech’s new smartphone, the Sky IM-100, during a showcase at the company’s headquarters in Sangam-dong, western Seoul, Wednesday. / Yonhap

By Yoon Sung-won

Pantech has returned to the smartphone market Wednesday after 19 months, with the launch of a new budget model — the Sky IM-100.

The handset maker, which has managed to pull itself out of a bankruptcy crisis, faces a tough challenge in the budget market against Samsung, LG and emerging Chinese brands.

“We have returned after the last two regretful years,” Pantech President Moon Ji-wook said during a press conference in Seoul, Wednesday. “We needed an overhaul and now we will focus on providing products that satisfy the customers, not ourselves.”

Pantech had its domain in the highly competitive domestic handset market until the early days of smartphones. It lagged behind larger brands such as Samsung, LG and Apple amid fierce competition and slipped into severe financial problems.

Last September, the company fired nearly half its employees and was acquired by Solid Consortium, ending a period of court receivership in November.

It had to dismiss hundreds of more employees in April as part of corporate restructuring.

“The slogan ‘I’m back’ ambitiously reflects our hope for the return of those who had to leave the company during difficult times,” a Pantech official said.

The company said it plans to launch the IM-100 later this month through SK Telecom and KT, with LG Uplus excluded. It said it plans to distribute up to 20,000 IM-100s initially and aims to sell about 300,000 in total. The price is expected to be about 449,000 won ($389), according to industry sources.

The company also revived its Sky brand, which had enjoyed a dominant image as associated with premium features, and released teaser ads appealing to former Sky handset users.

It said after-sales service will be available at 65 service centers nationwide. It also said it would let customers send in phones for repair through the mail and provide a handset rental service.

“We have analyzed client patterns from our last 20 years in the industry and plan to expand the points of contact with our customers,” Pantech said. “To this end, we will provide mobile after-sales services and maximize customer satisfaction.”

The IM-100 has a metallic exterior and a full high-definition LCD screen. As a budget model, it has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 application processor, 2GB of memory and a 3,000mAh embedded battery.

Despite its relatively mediocre hardware specifications, the IM-100 has Qualcomm’s latest audio chip — the WCD9326 — to maximize its audio functions. It supports high-quality sound technologies such as the free lossless audio codec and aptX codec, Pantech said.

“Qualcomm and Pantech have maintained a long-term partnership in the smartphone ecosystem,” Qualcomm Korea General Manager Lee Tae-won said. “In the smartphone business, we expect to maintain the cooperation between the two companies in wearables and the Internet of Things.”

To differentiate itself from other handsets, the IM-100 has a jog dial on the right side. With this, users can adjust volume and easily control playback while listening to music or watching videos.

As a companion device for the new smartphone, Pantech also showcased what it calls the Stone. Once synchronized with an IM-100, a Stone can wirelessly charge the handset and serve as a 2.1-channel Bluetooth speaker.