New Delhi: In the wake of burgeoning competition, Lava International seems to have pulled its socks up to get better of rivals. The company, which recently introduced its most expensive smartphone, Iris Pro 30, is gearing up to debut some interesting products this year.
In an interview with IBNLive.com, Prashanth D Gadiyar, VP - products planning and development, Lava, said the company is working on a Windows Phone smartphone. He also made it clear it will indeed be a budget smartphone, which the company intends to bring this year. He, however, had no information to share on pricing and technical specifications.
"We are identifying the right mix as in what should be the display size, camera specs and chipset. The Windows experience itself is still in the stabilisation stage. We are working on something and we will have these announcements when we have a little more inputs. Our internal intent is to bring the Windows Phone smartphone in 2014 if this is going to be really feasible and viable," said Gadiyar.
When asked about Lava's foray into the phablet or large-screen smartphone market, he stated the company's focus is on devices below 5-inch. As far as 5-inch devices are concerned, there is some discussions going on. The company is working to come up with the right kind of device. Different designs are being reviewed before we finalise them.
We have seen different wearable devices from international players, and it came as good news when Lava's executives opined that wearable devices are in the talks. Nitin Verma, product manager, Iris Pro series, Lava, said, it's in discussions, but the company has not yet decided whether it will be a smartwatch, a glass or any other device.
On Lava's plans on wearable devices, Gadiyar said, "we have not gone into very specific details. we have just tried to check if there is a feasibility, if there is actually a walk-in consumer asking for such devices. We have a small team that does a market research. We try to identify with our retailers and distributors. There has not been any great demand for any such device. Consumers would like to have such gadgets but they are not sure what they want." The company aims to bring wearable devices, but it will only come up with any such device once there is a market for such products.
Lava is currently focusing on catering its consumers what they are looking for. "Going by our portfolio and current roadmap, there is already a huge demand for certain devices including smartphones and tablets. And we have not even been able to cater to, let's say, 30-40 per cent of this basic demand. In the next 6 months, we will start stabilising our smartphone portfolio a little better," said Gadiyar, adding, "the next focus this year is more or less going to be on experience even at service centres as well as on the brand. This is our primary focus this year."
It was interesting to hear a company calling its rival a friend. When asked Gadiyar about its plans to get ahead of its arch-rival Micromax, he said, "We don't see them as a threat. Internally, we are trying to improve everything we can. We have adopted a different strategy. We have got a different consumer base. In the ecosystem we are acquainted with each other; we are friends, actually."
Lava will bring its second smartphone in the Iris Pro category in April, which will be an under 5-inch phone. By Feb-end, Lava plans to sell 30,000-35,000 units of the Iris Pro 30 smartphone.
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