The Beijing-based company sent an apology letter to customers in Jinan, capital of eastern province of Shandong, expressing its "deep regrets."

An increasing number of reports from the company's customers in the city exposed that the GD92, a new type of mobile phone from the company, does not work well. The keystrokes on the phones do not work at times, the screen flickering and sometimes an unprovoked automatic shutdown.

Most users bought the company's phones for no more than three months, sources said.

The company said in the letter that "the problem were caused largely by an off-gauged plug-in unit in the GD92 mobile phone."

The company denied the possibility of replacing the mobile phones that are working properly now but may malfunction, although it promised to replace those that are already malfunction, according to the company.

Before this problem occurred, the company's same type of products were reported to have been returned for repair in Shanghai and Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province.

The company admitted last week after a self-conducted survey that its GD93 type mobile phone also had the same problems.

(21dnn 03/06/2001)