LG focused on fundamentals for G6, says mobile boss
LG Electronics focused on fundamentals rather than differentiation for the recently unveiled G6 smartphone, according to the company's mobile boss.
"We've focused on differentiation for the past few years. We [previously] thought of unique design, materials, and functions," Juno Cho, president of LG's mobile business, told Korean reporters at the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.
"But this has caused us to miss the fundamentals desired by mainstream users who account for 70 percent of smartphone distribution," he said.
The G6's bigger screen but lighter body was a result of LG understanding what consumers really cared for, Cho said.
The smartphone is the South Korean tech giant's first to be IP68 water- and dust-proof. It has a unremovable battery in a unibody, and boasts the industry's first 18:9 ratio display, which the firm calls Full Vision.
The rear camera has two 1.3 megapixel cameras that can take wide-angle shots.
Last year, the company launched the modular G5, which was critically praised but missed sales targets.
Cho said the firm expected the new phone to sell more than the G5 but declined to give specific figures.
The president also declined to say whether the business will turn to the black anytime soon. LG's mobile business lost 1.3 billion won last year.