LG partners with Qualcomm to unveil new LTE phone

By Kim Yoo-chul

LG Electronics is working together with Qualcomm to develop and release a new smartphone based on the U.S. company’s quad-core mobile processor, according to LG officials Tuesday.

They said the joint project with Qualcomm is aimed at producing an LTE (long-term evolution) smartphone using a quad-core 1.5 gigahertz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro mobile processor that features an Adreno 320 graphics chip. The phone will be available in the fourth quarter at the latest.

The officials said Qualcomm has already sent some test samples of the S4 processor to some handset manufacturers, including LG.

Company spokesman said LG has been diversifying sourcing channels for parts.

The Korean tech giant’s move is seen as an attempt to rebuild its relationship with Qualcomm after it suffered from a shortage of chips. LG Electronics is categorized as a “second-tier” business partner.

The Korean company has been trying to strengthen its relationship to ensure a sufficient chip supply.

Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jeong Do-hyun said the impact of chip shortages at Qualcomm on LG Electronics would be short-lived and limited to the current quarter.

“LG was negotiating with Qualcomm to get more chipsets on a stable basis from the third quarter of this year. A shortage of Qualcomm chips won’t have any big negative impact,” said Jeong.

The head of LG Electronics’ mobile phone division Park Jong-seok said the company is developing its own mobile application processors, which may be used in next year’s smartphones.

Alongside LG, the nation’s smallest manufacturer Pantech has been keen on releasing a new LTE smartphone using Qualcomm’s quad-core processor possibly from the latter half of the year. A Pantech spokesman only said the firm hopes to strengthen its strategic partnership with the U.S. company.

In a recent report, PiperJaffray, a U.S. investment bank, said Qualcomm’s chip supply will improve in the coming quarters.

“It’s very interesting to see that the South Korean market will be getting hotter and hotter as LG Electronics and Pantech are preparing to challenge Samsung by releasing smartphones using Qualcomm’s latest technology,” said Kim Jeong-min, a 35-year-old office worker in Seoul.

LG Electronics is seeing a slight improvement in its smartphone business. The mobile chief Park recently told reporters that it will keep this year’s sales target of 35 million, including 8 millions the LTE handsets.

yckim@koreatimes.co.kr