The flip smartphone is slowly entering the mobile industry once again. We’ve seen a a few already include the LG Gentle, Samsung SM-G9198, and the Sharp Arrows and Aquos flip phones. LG has just introduced the Gentle flip phone last week in South Korea, but here’s another model for those who like the idea of clamshell phones: the LG Wine Smart.
Actually, LG has released a Wine Smart last year but this new version is actually just the LG Gentle. The Wine Smart name is for the international market that includes Japan, Spain, Kazakhstan, Poland, France, and Italy.
The clamshell phone is no longer a feature phone but is now considered a smartphone, thanks to its multimedia features and the Android 5.1.1 Lollipop running inside. But as with the old flip phones, the LG Wine Smart still has a 3×4 numeric keypad and hotkeys for easy typing and instant access to a number of phone functions. To open the camera, phone dialer, or address book, simply press the assigned hotkeys.
Since the flip phone only has a small screen, don’t expect any hi-res display here. The LG Wine Smart only features a 3.2-inch HVGA display with 480 x 320 pixel resolution. Other specs of the flip smartphone include a 1.1GHz Quad-Core chipset, 4GB built-in memory, 1GB RAM, 3MP rear camera, VGA front-facing cam, Bluetooth, WiFi, and 4GLTE connectivity. The features are really basic but we’re happy to know that it can connect to 4G networks already. You can choose from either the Navy or Burgundy version of the Wine Smart from LG.
No word on pricing and availability yet in the countries mentioned but expect local mobile carriers to make their own announcements before the month of August ends.
