LG Launches New L Series Budget Smartphones For Emerging Markets

LG L Fino and L Bello are two new 3G smartphones by the Korean tech giant packed with premium features at an affordable price.

LG Electronics, the renowned smartphone maker, is going after emerging markets with its latest L series smartphones. The L Fino and L Bello, two new smartphones announced by LG on Thursday, target the budget-conscious consumers looking for premium features in a smartphone without digging a deep hole in the pockets. After the huge success of Motorola and Xiaomi in India, LG too might be tempted to get the taste of success in the growing 3G markets.

LG highlighted some of the key features of the L Fino and L Bello, which are expected to debut at the IFA 2014 show in Berlin next month. The smartphones will feature a premium UX directly taken from the company's flagship LG G3 and run Google's latest Android 4.4.2 KitKat OS. This is the first step toward bringing G3's UX features to most of the entry and mid-range smartphone and tablets by LG during the second half of this year.

Some of the noteworthy features in the L Fino and L Bello include Touch and Shoot to capture images with a single tap, Gesture Shot to start a three-second countdown by simply opening and closing a hand in front of the lens, Knock Code to unlock device with a unique pattern, QuickCircle Case with a circular window on the flip cover that enables various shortcuts and Front Camera Light for a better screen preview. These features were debuted alongside the launch of LG G3, critically acclaimed high-end flagship smartphone.

"With their competitive specs and accessible pricing, we have high hopes for the L Fino and L Bello to continue our successful expansion into emerging markets," Dr. Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of LG, said in a press statement, Thursday. "Our newest L Series smartphones represent the best of LG in design, hardware and UX as well as our commitment to bringing best smartphone experience to 3G customers as many as possible."

The LG L Bello is slightly better in terms of specs. It is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core processor and 1GB RAM compared to L Fino's 1.2GHz processor. L Bello sports a 5-inch IPS display with 854 x 480 pixel resolution and 196ppi, 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, 1MP front shooter and a 2,540mAh battery. The L Fino, however, sports slightly smaller 4.5-inch display with 800 x 480 pixel resolution and 207ppi. It features a similar 8MP rear camera but a VGA front shooter and a 1,900 mAh battery.

LG did not give any pricing or availability details, which will be shared locally at the time of launch. Consumers can choose from white, black and gold variants for both phones while additional red and green colors will be available for L Fino. Color availability will vary by market.