Two more Philips phones to hit market soon

Licencee Shenzhen Sang Fei targets top 10 slot in India

Shenzhen Sang Fei Consumer Communications Company, a division of Chinese telecom equipment giant China Electronics Corporation (CEC), is introducing two new feature phones in the Indian market under the Philips brand name.

CEC had taken over the mobile phone division of Philips in 2007. Since then, Shenzhen Sang Fei has been manufacturing and marketing the phones under licence from Philips.

Shenzhen Sang Fei, which is present in India since 2000, had a major relaunch in May last year. With the two new models, its portfolio boasts of three smartphones and four feature phones. SS Bassi, Country Manager, India, Shenzhen Sang Fei Consumer Communications Company, told Deccan Herald that even though Philips exited the mobile business, the 124-year-old iconic Dutch company still plays a major role in quality control. “Today at Sang Fei, quality is still controlled by Philips representatives. They sit in our manufacturing base, and they do regular check-ups on our quality which we maintain as per Philips standards. That’s our licence condition,” Bassi said.

“After we develop the phone, we get it vetted by them. They approve each and every model. They are involved with the research and development (R&D) and branding too,” he said.

Shenzhen Sang Fei has considerable heft too. Bassi said the company manufactures 10 million phones a year and has sizeable market share in China and Russia. In India, though the market share is still in the single digits, the company is targeting to be a top 10 player. The imported phones are now distributed across 1,600 stores with a target of 8,000 stores by the end of the year, Bassi said.

Of the two new feature phones being launched, one is an entry-level phone costing Rs 1,700 (E160). The model comes with dual SIM, digital camera, FM radio, and MP3 player.
 The other model (E310) is targeted at senior citizens. It comes with bigger fonts for easy reading and dialling, has a text magnifier and flashlight, and most important, has an SOS switch for emergency call which goes out to two-to-three trusted numbers already fed into the phone. Bassi claimed that there is no such comparable product in the Indian market.

phone costs Rs 1,100. The three smartphones are priced in the Rs 5,600 to Rs 9,000 range. Bassi said the high-end smartphone comes with a 5,300 mAH battery which can run for 66 days on standby, once charged. For heavy use, a charge lasts 3-4 days, he said. Shenzhen Sang Fei is planning more smartphone launches in the coming months, Bassi said.