Lenovo Unveils 6 Smartphones for Businesses, Consumers

The new Lenovo smartphones aren't yet slated to come to the United States, where they'd enter a crowded market.

Lenovo is rolling out an expanded new line of smartphones to take on iPhones, Microsoft Windows phones and Android devices, but American consumers are going to have to wait to see them because the new handhelds are not immediately headed to U.S. shores.

The six new smartphone models will initially be sold only in China and other "select global markets," according to announcements Lenovo made Jan. 7 and 8 at the 2013 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. That could mean that China-based Lenovo is launching the new smartphones on a limited basis to see how they sell around the world before bringing them into the United States and other major world consumer markets where they would compete with established market leaders such as Apple, Samsung, Google Android and others.

Neither prices nor carriers have yet been announced for the phones.

By releasing a full line of models, the company hopes to offer something for every potential user as it works to boost the sales of its smartphones, which it began selling in China in 2010.

"For smartphone users, one size does not fit all," Liu Jun, senior vice president of the Lenovo Group, said in a statement. "We've learned from our customers, and we know they have many different, unique reasons for selecting Lenovo smartphones.

Lenovo's new portfolio is designed for a wide range of customers globally, "with a phone for every user," said Jun.

Lenovo's flagship smartphone will be the K900, which includes a 5.5-inch full 1080p HD touch-screen with 400 pixels per inch and Gorilla Glass 2, according to Lenovo. The phone, which is just 6.9 millimeters (mm) thick, runs on an Intel Atom processor and is built into a housing made from a composite of stainless steel alloy and polycarbonate. The K900 also includes a 13-megapixel front camera with an F1.8 focal length lens, as well as a rearview camera. The K900 will debut in China in April and will spread to other markets soon after, said Lenovo officials.