LG Is Killing Its G-Series Smartphone Brand

LG is reportedly preparing a new re-branding strategy for its flagship lineup of smartphones — and that includes saying goodbye to the G-series brand.

Though nothing seems to be set in stone at this point, some of LG’s strategies moving into the new year could include numbering new devices with a “two-digit number” or rebranding the phone with an entirely new name, an LG official told Digital Daily, a Korea-based tech news outlet.

The G-series brand of smartphones has been central to LG’s lineup since September 2012, when the Korean electronics maker rolled out the Optimus G. The next iteration of LG devices — 2013’s G2 — dropped the “Optimus” moniker, officially becoming the first in the G-series that we know today.

LG confirmed to The Investor that a rebranding operation is underway for its flagship devices, reportedly in an effort to compete with Apple, and closer to home, Samsung. “Rebranding flagship models is nothing new, and Samsung and Apple have done so for their own flagships,” an LG spokesperson told the outlet.

The Korean company, which has long been overshadowed by market-dominator and local rival Samsung, is expected to unveil a new, high-end smartphone this February at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Since LG typically launches its G-series devices in the first half of the year, the upcoming phone is presumably a spiritual successor to the G6 — which was unveiled in February 2017.

Certain market analysts are speculating that LG may be considering a new numbering system based on the fact that lower numbered monikers could indicate an outdated smartphone — particularly when compared to the latest and greatest from its competitors.

For its part, Samsung skipped over the Galaxy Note 6 to unveil the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 in 2016. Apple has also seemingly skipped a number for its latest flagship release, launching both the iPhone 8 and the iPhone X (pronounced iPhone “10”) this past fall.

It’s not currently clear whether LG will carry out a similar rebranding strategy for its V-series smartphone lineup, which typically launches in the second half of the year. Of course, for that series, LG dubs each iteration in increasing increments of 10.

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