The 'LG Velvet' That Abandoned Its Name Aims to Revive Feature Phone Glory

Shift from G Series to Intuitive Naming Strategy
Competing with New Designs in a Similar Smartphone Market

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] LG Electronics is abandoning the G series after 8 years and will launch a smartphone with new naming and design next month.

LG Electronics will release the mass premium smartphone 'LG Velvet' in mid-next month. This is a new smartphone that breaks away from the design and naming of existing smartphones. The price is expected to be in the 800,000 KRW range.

Instead of the induction design, LG Velvet arranges three lenses and a flash vertically on the rear camera like water droplets falling. It is the first to apply the ‘3D Arc Design,’ where the left and right edges of the front and back are curved. The strategy is to emphasize design and make a bold move with a new product in the smartphone market, which is full of similar designs.

Starting with the 'Velvet phone,' LG Electronics will completely revise its smartphone brand strategy. The previously used brand names such as the G or V series will no longer be used, and a separate brand reflecting market trends and intuitively showing product characteristics will be applied to flagship smartphones.

Velvet was chosen as a name to convey an intuitive product image. It was selected to emphasize softness, flexibility, and comfort when held in hand. The intention is to revive the history of popular phones in the 2000s that reflected product features, such as Chocolate Phone, Cookie Phone, and Ice Cream Phone.

During the feature phone era, LG Electronics had a history of selling over 10 million units with a single model. The Chocolate Phone sold more than 20 million units, and the Shine Phone and Cookie Phone each sold over 10 million units. However, this legacy was lost starting in the 2010s with the advent of smartphones. LG Electronics was late to enter the smartphone market, stubbornly sticking to feature phones. Even after the iPhone 3GS was released in 2009, while manufacturers joining the Android camp such as HTC and Motorola were gaining prominence, LG Electronics made a mistake by releasing a Windows OS-based smartphone in 2010.

LG Electronics opened the curtain for the G series with the brand 'Optimus G' in 2012 and released up to the G8 in 2019, but it has struggled in the smartphone market due to competition with Samsung, Apple, and Chinese manufacturers. The MC Business Division, responsible for smartphones, recorded losses for 20 consecutive quarters through the first quarter of this year. Its global smartphone market share has also fallen to the 2% range.

By differentiating smartphone design and leading with a new brand strategy, it seems to have succeeded in changing the atmosphere. Foreign media have also given fresh reviews. The IT specialized media GSM Arena described it as "a product that bets on design rather than specs." LG Velvet is expected to support 5G with the Snapdragon 765G chipset, feature an OLED display larger than 6.7 inches, and also support dual screens.