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Motorola Aura Diamond Edition

Filed under: Gadgets


Fans of the Motorola Aura with money to spare can trade up to the latest model. The Motorola Aura Diamond Edition is plated with 18K gold and boasts 34 diamonds set along the phone's circular display. Should you care about the inner workings of your new gadget, the phone is a quad-band GSM phone with email, web browsing, a two megapixel camera, Bluetooth and a media player. It will sell for $5,700 and goes on sale this week.

Gresso Gets into the Race with Carbon-Fiber Grand Monaco

Filed under: Gadgets



Coming up a little short for the ten-grand Vertu Ascent Ti Carbon Fibre edition? Not to worry, the Russians have got you covered. Luxury electronics company Gresso has just come out with the Grand Monaco mobile phone, and it's jam-packed with racy goodness.

Named after the grand prix in the Mediterranean principality, the Grand Monaco features a case made out of titanium alloy, coated in black PVD in some places and in high-strength ceramics in others, with carbon fiber trim front and back. A sapphire crystal display prevents scratches, and the phone packs a 2-megapixel camera, GPRS and Bluetooth connectivity and more. But it'll cost you $2100, if you can get your hands on one.


Vertu's Next Special Edition: Ascent Ti Neon

Filed under: Gadgets



Another day, another special-edition Vertu. The premium mobile phone company seems to crank them out with regularity, and we recently reported on the Carbon Fibre Collection. Now reports from the mobile phone world indicate that Vertu is already working on the next special version.

Dubbed the Ascent Ti Neon, it's reportedly been redesigned to fit more snugly into the hand, plus they've replaced the leather on the standard model (which is anything but "standard") with neon-colored rubber. The price tag is expected to approach the $10,000 mark when it hits the market in October.

Vertu Lightens Up With New Ascent Ti Carbon Fibre Collection

Filed under: Gadgets, Wheels



The market for big-bucks luxury cell phones may be shrinking, but that isn't about to stop Vertu. The premium division from Swedish telecom giant Nokia comes out with a new motorsport-inspired special edition every year, and Vertu has no intention of letting a little economic hiccup derail their plans. So while others cancel theirs, Vertu has launched the new Ascent Ti Carbon Fibre Collection.

Comprised of four special edition phones with various applications of the high-tech and dazzling material, the collection tops out with the $9,800 Ascent Ti Carbon Fibre Edition. The latest collection follows the same path as the previous Ferrari editions and Racetrack Legends series, giving those with deep pockets and a penchant for everything automotive a new mobile phone to covet.

Gresso's 'Lady Diamond' Phone

Filed under: Gadgets


I'm not one to usually be very impressed with jewel-studded cell phones, because even if they're pretty to look at they always seem so gaudy and impractical to actually use. But the design of this Lady Diamond phone by Gresso seems to have a nice balance of sleek common sense and indulgent luxury. Made in a limited edition of only 8 phones (seems like an odd number...) it's basically a red version of Gresso's Skeleton Gold model with 4 tiny diamonds on the center keys. It has the same 42K sapphire crystal display and transparent back as the Skeleton Gold, but the price is significantly higher at $5500.

Swiss Watchmaker Ulysse Nardin to Launch Ltd. Edition 'Kinetic' Smartphone

Filed under: Gadgets, Timepieces

nardin phone
Famed Swiss watchmaker Ulysse Nardin has partnered with European firm SCI Innovations to create what's being billed as the world's first hybrid smartphone, blending a high-tech communications tool with a classic and elegant timepiece. Dubbed the Chairman, the luxurious limited edition phone pairs cutting-edge kinetic technology with the pedigree of Ulysse Nardin, founded in 1846. The Chairman will be launched at the Ulysse Nardin booth at BaselWorld in Switzerland at the end of the month, and will go on sale later this year.

While details are limited, we can tell you that the phone will be able to use any mobile phone service provider in the world and includes several components never seen before in a smartphone. A Ulysse Nardin kinetic rotor system has been incorporated into the Chairman's mechanical and aesthetic design. The blue and rose gold phone is hand-assembled under the watchmaker's strictest guidelines, and each bears a numbered plaque.

The Motorola RAZR LK

Filed under: Gadgets


Despite being out of the spotlight lately, Motorola hasn't given up on the RAZR and they've released a new, luxe model of the popular phone called the Motorola RAZR LúK. It's only available in one color but we think you won't mind since it's classic pearl white combined with equally classic (and shiny!) 18k gold plating. The phone's shape, keyplate, and flip design all remain unchanged but the interior specs of this 3G model are updated with HSDPA connectivity, video calling, bluetooth, and pretty much everything else you'd expect in a RAZR. I love it.

The New Nokia Carbon Arte Attempts to Prove the Cell Phone is Not Dead

Filed under: Gadgets

Nokia Carbon ArteIt's not a Blackberry. It's not an iPhone. It's just a phone. The new Nokia Carbon Arte attempts to prove that the cell phone is not dead.

It has panels crafted with leather from Eastern India. Its sister phone, the Sapphire Arte has a sapphire "select" key. Both phones include a "groovy" soundtrack by Austrian duo Kruder & Dorfmeister. Each has a 3.2 megapixel camera, 1 GB of built-in memory, and 3G capabilities. We like the weight, the way it slides open to reveal the keypad (shown), and the really cool silencing mechanism -- if you turn over the phone to screen-side-down when it's ringing, it stops.

Is the heyday of the cell phone over? At 1000 - 1500 euros, this is definitely a luxury item, but who among the elite wants a phone that doesn't surf the web?

Are Cell Phones Over?


The $2,000 Motorola Aura

Filed under: Gadgets, Timepieces


Now that's a phone. The $2,000 Motorola Aura is here, and lookalikes are bound to follow.

The Aura has the world's first circular display with 16 million colors and a 300 dpi resolution. The lens isn't just scratch resistant, it's Grade 1 62-carat sapphire crystal. The casing is stainless steel, coated with PVD coating (like on a luxury watch), and it rotates open with the help of 130 precision ball bearings.

All the usual technologies (2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, Open Source browser) are included in this sleek, attractive 47.60 x 96.87 x 18.55mm phone.

Blackberries are for assistants.

Just in time for the holidays, you can order one now to be shipped out December 4th.

[via engadgetmobile.com]

Are Landline Phones Only for the Rich?

Filed under: Gadgets, Services


It used to be that having a mobile phone was a fairly expensive treat but oh how things have changed. In a strange twist it now seems that owning a landline has become the true luxury.

A recent Nielsen survey found that not only have 17% of homes already gone landline-less but that number is predicted to jump to a full 1/5 of the population (20%) by the end of the year.

So what's causing this trend? Finances, for most. It's a cold hard fact that for most people cell phones are cheaper to own and operate than landlines, all factors considered, and in today's ever-tightening economy luxuries like home phone service are getting cut out. Who would have thought, expensive and fancy as cell phones are getting these days, that the real status symbol would become the clunky home phone?

Via psfk

Samsung's Armani Night Effect Phone

Filed under: Gadgets


Armani and Samsung have released their latest joint effort cell phone. The Samsung Armani 2 Night Effect gets its name from the wraparound LED light on the phone. The candybar-style phone has a 3.2 megapixel camera, FM radio, 120MB of memory that is expandable with microSD, and Bluetooth. It will be sold in Europe in November with sales in Southeast Asia and the Middle East to follow. It will sell for around 300 euros. Tech pundits don't seem to be loving this one, finding the Armani logo on the back a bit garish and the overall look to be a bit clunky.

Apple iPhone 3G, Studded with Diamonds

Filed under: Gadgets


I'm not generally a big fan of diamond-encrusted cell phones but I think the iPhone lends itself to the idea better than others because it's so sleek and has such a limited area where diamonds can be placed. Claiming to be the world's first real diamond-studded iPhone, the Apple iPhone 3G by Swiss jeweler Knalihs Athem is made with 475 brilliant cut diamonds totaling 3.75 carats. Only 50 iPhone 3G handsets will be created on a made-to-order basis, with the first 10 units being sold at the special price of $10,000. iPhones 11-50 will be priced "sharply upwards."

I'm not sure what that translates to exactly but it sounds like if you want one you better move fast.

Polo Ralph Lauren To Offer Shopping By Mobile Phone

Filed under: Apparel, Gadgets, Services


Polo Ralph Lauren will soon be offering American shoppers the ability to shop for goods via mobile phone. The technology itself is only about a year away (something about integrating codes for download) but the company expects Americans to warm up to the idea only very slowly after that. Although foreign consumers like the Japanese have been using similar technology for years, Americans are thought to be a little less comfortable with cutting edge shopping methods.

Do you think that's really the problem? Couldn't it be that we just have too much fun shopping to reduce the whole experience down to a tiny cellphone screen?

Hm, maybe that's just me. If you're interested look for the service to appear soon on a cell phone screen near you.

Diamond Nokia 8800 Sapphire Arte Phone

Filed under: Gadgets


While you are waiting for your new diamond-covered iPhone you might want to consider this sparkly gadget. Swiss luxury designer and jeweler Knalihs Athem has recently created a diamond encrusted Nokia 8800 Sapphire Arte. This phone is decorated with 1000 finest quality brilliant cut diamonds that weigh 6.75 carats in total. There will only be 20 handsets made and each will be accompanied by a official diamond grading report from a gemological lab. It can also be personalized with your name or whatever you would like. The Nokia 8800 Sapphire Arte by Knalihs Athem has a starting price of $20,000.

"My Dior" Mobile Phone

Filed under: Gadgets


Christian Dior has branched out into the mobile/cellular phone universe with the "My Dior" phone, by ModeLabs. It took three years to develop the clamshell, which will be available in two versions: a $5,000 basic version and a $26,000 luxury version, which features a 2.6 touch screen with an integrated media player and is decorated with 640 stones of 3,251 carats of Swarovski crystals imprinted on a crocodile skin case. Ringtones are proposed to be Dior's voice as well as music. Look for marketing to begin this month. This phone is just beautiful, but I'd be terrified of dropping or losing it!


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