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Lava working on its first smartphone from Bangalore

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CIOL Bureau
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BANGALORE, INDIA: Indian handset manufacturer Lava is all set to join the Android bandwagon by launching its first India-designed-and-developed smartphone. Despite the fact that there are too many vendors, and smartphone sales contribute to a meager 6 per cent of the India mobile market, Lava believes there are plenty of opportunities and a big market for smartphones too.

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In an interview with CIOL, Arvind Jha, Director, R&D, Lava Mobiles, tells us why he believes in ever-increasing opportunities in the mobile space, especially for Indian brands.

Q: Where does Lava stand in India mobile market today?



Arvind Jha: We started only two years ago. The billings started from June 2009. The adoption of our phones has really surprised us. This has been possible because we are able to bring higher performance at lower prices. Today, Lava is among the top five Indian handset manufacturers and has three per cent market share in the feature phone segment.

Also read: Global smartphones headed for an up-swing 

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Q: Don't you think there are too many vendors in the mobile market?

Arvind Jha: Indian personal computer companies have failed to capitalise the PC revolution. We still have a very low PC penetration in the country. However, it's not the same with mobile phones. We have a strong 600 million plus customer base (which is second largest in the world), which brings the penetration rate to 60 per cent. This provides an opportunity for Indian brands.

Q: You already have multiple models in market. Can you tell us about your R&D set-up?

Arvind Jha: Presently, we have our supply ecosystem in China. We have incubated R&D center in Bangalore, which is focusing on our first smartphone to be released in a few weeks' time. We have a headcount of 70 in our China R&D facility and the headcount in Bangalore R&D center will go up to 50 by the end of 2011.

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Also read: China handsets blamed for infections



Q: What are the new features you are planning in Lava's first smartphone?

Arvind Jha: The Bangalore R&D team has invested 5 months with ODM team in China before taking up the work of building a new smartphone from Bangalore. The new phone will be based on Andorid 2.2 (upgradable) and Qualcomm processor 7227 series. Since Andorid phones are mostly for people in 25 years age group, we are planning to come out with better fun and music experience capabilities in the phone.

The new phone will also come with better mutimedia capabilities like virtual surround sound experience with both earphones and the built-in speaker.

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Q: Why are you planning a smartphone when India smartphone sales in India is just at 5-6 percent of total handsets sold?

Arvind Jha: Currently, feature phones are dominating Indian mobile market, but the market has witnessed a repeat of the trends in China mobile market. This year China Andorid market has grown tremendously. The same can replicate in India from 2012. We estimate to take a 20 per cent market share by 2013.

Also read: Andorid, iPhone apps and the dangers



Q: Is Lava planning a tablet device?


Arvind Jha: We are definitely looking forward to bring a tablet device. A generic product can be brought out easily. We believe in creating a product that brings value. We need to have some compelling software to make people to look at it. However, I can't give a dateline for the tablet release now.

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