Upmarket toaster maker Balmuda launches smartphone in iPhone-dominated Japan

Kyocera

16/11/2021 09:03

By Sam Nussey
    TOKYO, Nov 16 (Reuters) - High-end Japanese toaster maker
Balmuda Inc  6612.T  unveiled a stripped back smartphone on
Tuesday, aiming for a toe-hold in a market dominated by Apple's
 AAPL.O  iPhone.
    Chief Executive Gen Terao said at the launch event that the
5G enabled Android device is expected to contribute 3 billion
yen ($26 million) to Balmuda's sales in the current financial
year.
    The "Balmuda Phone" costs 104,800 yen ($920) and has a small
4.9 inch screen and a curved back. 
    It is built by industrial ceramics firm Kyocera Corp
 6971.T  and offered by wireless carrier SoftBank Corp  9434.T ,
which first brought the iPhone to Japan.
    "The iPhone has become too much the standard," said Terao,
who was a high school dropout and in a rock band before founding
Balmuda.
    The device has a custom designed home screen with Balmuda's
version of basic apps like the calendar and clock and fits in
the hand, Terao said. 
    Balmuda, which listed last December https://www.reuters.com/article/us-balmuda-ipo-idUSKBN28Q0DQ,
 has carved out a niche selling minimalist household appliances
at premium prices such as "The Toaster", priced $225, and a $520
coffee machine named "The Brew". 
    Its smartphone will face stiff competition from Apple, which
notched up iPhone sales in Japan of $28.5 billion in the year to
September. The 5.4 inch iPhone 13 mini is almost 20% cheaper in
Japan than the "Balmuda Phone".
($1 = 114.1900 yen)

 (Reporting by Sam Nussey; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
 ((sam.nussey@tr.com; https://twitter.com/SamNusseyRTRS;
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