Japanese electronics maker Sharp is launching an adapted model of its 920SH mobile phone in China later this month, aimed at high end users, as it makes its first foray into a market that has been notoriously difficult for Japanese handset makers to crack. Sharp’s rival handset makers Matsushita Electric, NEC, and Kyocera, have all tried, failed, and decamped from the Chinese market, despite rolling out some of the world’s most advanced cellphones. Sharp is Japan’s leading handset maker, but in a saturated home market is seeking growth in emerging markets to boost revenues. In China, it’s purposely positioning itself on the high end to avoid a showdown with Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and Samsung, whose size and scale allow them to dominate China’s low end handset market. Reuters reports that Sharp said it hoped the business would be able “to stand on its own two feet, by 2009-2010.

Sharp plans to retail the 920SH starting at 3,000 yuan ($434) in Shanghai and Beijing. The Japanese version of the 3G phone music phone, currently carried by Softbank, is a svelte 18 mm, with a 3.2” widescreen VGA LCD. It also supports Japan’s TV standard oneSeg. The company plans to release a further two or three undisclosed handsets to the Chinese market later this year.

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