LG launches into notebook market

Consumer electronics specialist LG Electronics has taken a major stride into the IT sector, launching three Centrino-based notebooks.

LG has decided to only make the computers available through its mass merchant channel including Harvey Norman, Betta Electrical, NARTA, Domayne, Good Guys and Officeworks.

LG Australia marketing manager, Paul Reeves, said the company had elected to launch the notebooks through its retail channel in order to position them in the consumer space.

LG would look at making the notebooks available to the resellers down the track, he said.

As a latecomer into an already crowded market, LG is banking on mobility as the key.

The company claimed long battery life in a lightweight, wireless form factor would allow it to differentiate its product offering.

The vendor claimed its power management technology allowed up to 10 hours battery life, due in part to the light form factor of the notebook.

“LG has successfully launched into a number of IT and consumer electronics markets and grown to be a major player,” Reeves said. “This is a natural progression for us following the success of our LCD monitors, CRT monitors and optical storage drives.”

The notebook range features Intel Pentium M processors, 802.11b wireless connectivity, 15 inch displays and DVD/CD-RW combo drives as standard. The top two models weigh in at 2.4 kg, while the bottom model weighs 2.5kg

The top of the range model boasts a 1.6GHz Pentium M processor, 512MB, 15-inch display and a 60GB hard drive. The recommended retail price (RRP) is $4499.

The middle model (RRP $3599) has a 1.5GHz Pentium M processor, 256MB and 40GB hard drive. The low end model, RRP ($2999) has a 1.4GHz Pentium M processor, 256MB and 40GB hard drive.