Since January we’ve been seeing rumors pointing to the LG exist of the smartphone segment. The company tried to deny this, but the truth is that it was looking for workarounds or even for someone interested in buying its smartphone production. In early April, the company finally confirmed that it is really dropping the smartphone business after years in the red. LG was once one of the most relevant smartphone makers and tried to start interesting trends such as the rear-mounted buttons, knock-code, the modules (LG G5). Unfortunately, the brand failed to keep relevant against its fellow Samsung and the Storm that came from China.
According to fresh reports coming out of Korea today is the last day of production for LG smartphones and tablets. The company will continue to support existing devices for some time to come. Premium models will get three years of software support. However, it’s unclear if this really means three years of major Android upgrades. Anyway, some models will let Android 11 and Android 12, while the latest premium smartphones will go up to Android 13. Of course, we’ll need to wait and see if the company will stay with this promise. Interestingly, users will be able to receive after-sale services for 4 years from the date of manufacture of the device.
Gizchina News of the week
LG factories producing smartphones will switch to home appliances
LG Electronics’ factory in Vietnam where most LG smartphones were being built will be switching over to home appliances. The Korean firm had already transitioned some of its production capacity there to home appliances. This is a way to keep smartphone factory workers employed. The remaining workers from the smartphone lines will be reassigned by the end of July. It’s good to hear that employees will not lose their jobs as this is one of the worst scenarios amidst this pandemic.
The plant at Haiphong is up since 2015 and has been making TVs and appliances in addition to smartphones. Also, sister companies LG Innotek and LG display produce camera modules and displays there. The change makes perfect sense as LG Electronics is on track to become the biggest manufacturer of home appliances. The company will hit record-high sales of $6.3 billion in the second quarter. LG topped main rival Whirlpool in the first quarter, now in the second quarter analysts expect it will remain o top for the rest of year.
Interestingly, as a sort of final goodbye, LG was supposed to sell a limited number of LG Velvet 2 Pro rollable phones. Around 3,000 units were promised to employees. However, that didn’t go as planned, and this may not happen at all. Worth noting that LG showcased its rollable tech during CES 2021, but unfortunately their aspirations didn’t live to make this product real.