Samsung, LG unveil latest flagship devices

February 22, 2016 - 08:08 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Smartphone rivals Samsung Electronicsand LG Electronics Inc unveiled their latest flagship devices on Sunday, Feb 21, seeking to revive sales momentum and buck slowing industry growth, the Associated Press reports.

Phone makers face another tough year in 2016 as subdued global growth and persisting currency weakness in key emerging markets sap consumers' spending power. A push by Chinese manufacturers to expand overseas amid slowing growth in their domestic market may also undercut margins further.

In a bid to recapture market share, Samsung launched two new versions of its Galaxy S smartphones and brought in Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg for a surprise appearance to tout the potential of virtual reality, prompting hundreds of people to rush to the stage to record the moment.

LG, which lost money from its mobile business last year as its flagship products struggled, introduced a modular design to its new G5 smartphones that allows users to replace or upgrade functions such as camera and audio independently.

It also launched a virtual reality headset and accessories including a drone controller to pair with the G5.

Analysts and investors cheered LG's features, which they said were different enough to possibly revive sales, but were lukewarm about Samsung's offerings, saying they only featured incremental upgrades.

"I think it's possible for LG's mobile business to recover on its new product launch, since they delivered significant changes with the G5," Seoul-based HDC Asset Management fund manager Park Jung-hoon said.

"The Galaxy S7, however, doesn't seem to be creating as much buzz," Park said, according to Reuters.

Samsung on Saturday said its mobile payments service, Samsung Pay, will launch in China in March, a month after Apple launched its Apple Pay service in the world's biggest smartphone market.

The company fell out of the top five in the world's top smartphone market last year but hopes that its easy-to-use payments service will help it regain sales momentum.