Did you know that Lenovo once sold its own mobile phone division?

posted by Nick T. / Feb 04, 2014, 9:45 AM

Did you know that Lenovo once sold its own mobile phone division?

In the western part of the world, Lenovo is known mostly for its broad range of laptop computers sold under the ThinkPad and IdeaPad brand names. Its Android- and Windows-based tablets are gaining in popularity as well (and some of them are pretty well made, for that matter). Smartphones, however, seem to be what the Chinese company is now ready to invest in further, judging by its interest in acquiring Motorola. But did you know that Lenovo had once completely given up on its phone business?

That happened back in March of 2008 when Lenovo sold its mobile phone division in order to focus on its core business (at the time) of making PCs. But then in November of 2009, the company spent $200 million to buy it back, aiming to become the biggest maker of mobile internet devices in China. Allow us to remind you that Lenovo sold more smartphones and tablets than PCs last year so its return in the smartphone business was a pretty wise move.

Lenovo has been making phones for quite some time, and its first devices date back to the days when the iPhone and Android weren't yet a household name. Pictured on the left is the Lenovo ET960 – a vintage Pocket PC communicator that featured a 2.8-inch screen, 312MHz processor, 64MB of RAM, and a 1.3MP camera. Today, some 9 years later, the company's current flagship is the gorgeous, Android-powered Lenovo VIBE Z, which you can learn more about in our hands-on.

Lenovo ET960 and Lenovo VIBE Z

reference: China Daily

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6 Comments

1. hmd74

Posts: 542; Member since: Jan 31, 2013

No I Didn't :|

posted on Feb 04, 2014, 10:01 AM 3

2. QWIKSTRIKE

Posts: 1461; Member since: Mar 09, 2010

Hind sight 20/20 they realize that they were on the cusp of something big only after they let it go.

posted on Feb 04, 2014, 10:09 AM 0

3. jroc74

Posts: 6023; Member since: Dec 30, 2010

Ok...them getting Motorola doesnt seem too bad now. Might mean Moto might try to compete more in the spec wars with HTC, LG, Samsung, etc. with Lenovo in their corner.

posted on Feb 04, 2014, 11:25 AM 0

4. Pedro0x

Posts: 271; Member since: Oct 19, 2012

Yes exactly. I actually got excited when Lenovo bought Motorola. I am looking forward to some new innovating tech from Lenovo now when they got Motorola on their side. Motorola is a well established company which is good for Lenovo, no-one that I know would buy a phone from Lenovo.

posted on Feb 04, 2014, 1:23 PM 2

5. XperiaOptimusOne unregistered

Hope they could release a Motonovo phone this year.

posted on Feb 04, 2014, 5:53 PM 0

6. andynaija

Posts: 1265; Member since: Sep 08, 2012

Good luck Lenovo/Motorola. That was pretty smart of them to do, and if you look at their current flagship it kind of resembles the Motorola Droid Bionic in a way.