NEW DELHI: Handset maker Lava will introduce 7-8 new devices in this quarter, as it looks to strengthen its portfolio of 4G-enabled devices.

“We are looking at launching 7-8 4G devices this quarter. These will be across various price points,” Lava International Chief Operating Officer Navin Chawla told reporters here.

He added that the prices of 4G handsets will come down as more 4G devices come into the market and a handset with “decent set of features” could come for about Rs. 5,000. The company today launched a new 4G smartphone (with Voice over LTE), V5, priced at Rs. 11,499. It features a 1.3 GHz quadcore processor, 3GB RAM, 13MP rear and 8MP front camera and 3,000 mAh battery. There has been a manifold jump in demand for 4G-enabled devices as mobile operators like Airtel expand their 4G (high-speed Internet) services. A report by research firm IDC said shipment of 4G smartphones jumped almost three-fold in the third quarter of 2015 over the previous quarter with one out of three smartphones shipped being 4G-enabled. Handset makers are expected to line up more affordable devices to cash in on the opportunity further as Reliance Jio starts offering its services to consumers later this year. According to a report by Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA ML), India is expected to have 9 crore 4G subscribers and 18 crore 4G smartphones by 2018. In next few years, there will be marginal difference between 3G and 4G tariffs as well as there will be decline in smartphone prices that may lead 2G subscribers leapfrog to 4G services and skip 3G, the report added.–PTI