Rich folks like Vertu. (They must, otherwise Nokia wouldn't keep on making ten-thousand-dollar mobile phones, now would they?) But some like flip-phones better than the candy-bar form factor that has characterized its offerings until now. So ostensibly to satisfy such discerning customers, Vertu has released the new Constellation Ayxta.

Like the Ascent, Signature and the existing Constellation model, the Ayxta features luxurious hand-craftsmanship, leather trim and access to the company's bespoke concierge service, on call around the clock from anywhere in the world. The Ayxta's clamshell form also packs a 3-megapixel camera with flash, an 8-gig micro-SD slot and 3G wireless connection. Which by themselves may not warrant the phone's $6,500 - $8,500 asking price, but then companies like Vertu would argue that the whole of its product is more than the sum of its parts.

Luxury brand S.T. DuPont, famous for its stunning lighters and other accessories is getting into the mobile phone business. The French brand has teamed up with Korean company Pantech to create the Sky DuPont IM-510LE. CNET Asia reports that it will be available through SK Telecom in Korea. The phone will be available as a 2G (CDMA) handset and only for SK Telecom network users.

The design takes its cues from S.T. DuPont lighters. It has a push-up button that activates the phone with the same sort of muted click that can be heard when opening a lighter. The rim is brushed 18K gold. The phone has a 3-inch touchscreen LCD, mobile TV (T-DMB), 3-megapixel camera, GPS, Bluetooth, mobile dictionary and many other applications. The price is said to be around $800 to $900. It's not known yet if this phone will hit the international market. Hands-on video can be found at Tech Fresh and a video trailer is after the jump.

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.

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.

Welcome to our new feature, "10 Luxuries." For each installment a notable figure in the world of luxury, tastemaker or stylish personality will tell us about the 10 necessary luxuries they simply cannot do without. Related quotes and images of each item can be found in the gallery.

Perry Oosting became president of Vertu, the world's leading luxury mobile phone manufacturer, earlier this year. He joined the company with extensive experience in the luxury industry via senior roles held at several blue chip brands including Bulgari, Prada, Gucci and Escada.Vertu uses the finest materials from the world of watchmaking, automotive design, aeronautics, and jewelry to create truly unique mobile phones of unparalleled craftsmanship and exclusivity, such as the new Ascent Ti Carbon Fiber. Vertu is also the only phone in the world to ever receive a hallmark from the Swiss Assay Office, the organization that guarantees the quality of the world's finest watches. In the gallery, Oosting reveals his 10 essential luxuries, from his favorite hotel, watch and car to shoes, wine, writing instrument and more, and tells us what makes them a must.

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.

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.

Cell phones have nearly become the new watches.

Personally, I'm not a fan of this trend. I love watches. Watches have history, a long tradition of craftsmanship and beauty. Cell phones tend to last two years at most and break a lot. Using your cell phone as your watch may save you the money and trouble of finding and elegant watch, but it's sort of like using a backpack for a purse.

Prada has come out with an interesting pairing of watch and cell phone, above. Prada and LG have teamed up to bring you a watch that receives all your Prada/LG phone's text messages, call data, and it also has a Reject Call function. You wouldn't have to dig out your phone every time if beeps, you could just look at your watch and decide whether it was worth it. Very James Bond, or at least Penny from Inspector Gadget.

[via gizmodo.com]

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]

Does your phone need a little extra storage? These days people aren't exchanging their phones quite as rapidly and so they are trying to get the most out of them. Today I'm giving away one of SanDisk's Wake Up Your Phone packages. Their line of flash memory devices called the SanDisk Mobile Ultra are designed to offer easy transferring of large media files between your PC and your phone. The SanDisk Mobile Ultra microSDHC 4GB memory card comes with a pocket-sized, USB 2.0 compatible SanDisk MobileMate Micro card reader to make connecting easy. The device is compatible with almost all microSD supported mobile phones.

To win, enter a comment below about what you store on your phone. Music? Videos? Pictures? What's in yours?

To enter, all you need to do is leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Friday, September 26, 2008. We'll randomly choose one winner amongst the eligible entries.

Some other important details:

* To enter, leave a confirmed comment below answering the question above.
* The comment must be left and confirmed before Friday, September 26, 2008 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
* You may only enter once.
* One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
* One winner will receive the 4GB SanDisk Mobile Ultra SDHC card and reader valued at $39.99.
* Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.

See complete contest rules here.

This contest has closed. Thank you for your participation.

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 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.

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!

If the iPhone isn't on your holiday list maybe the new Motorola RAZR2 V8 Luxury Edition will catch your eye. The phone has 18K gold-plated accents with a black metal finish, a soft-touch back with a snakeskin look and details such as pin stripes, an engraved diamond-cut pattern on the sideband and a linear etching on the navigation wheel. The phone includes the Opera mobile browser, a 2.0 megapixel camera with 8x digital zoom that also provides up to 2 hours of video capture and playback, 2Gb of storage for up to 1,000 songs, and a large external screen so you can manage music and read texts without opening the flip. it also comes with a matching black Motorola H680 Bluetooth headset with 18k gold-plated accents.

The latest in blinged out cellphones is the Diamond Nokia N95, and there's no argument that it's 'doing the bling thing' in a big way. Coming from Alexander Amosu, the phone is a combination of 18k solid gold and 3.30 carats of high-quality diamonds. Available in a limited edition of only 10, each phone is custom set with 325 diamonds and the owner's choice of white gold or classic gold (white gold for me all the way), and of course each will be numbered from 1-10. Name or initials also available, $24,482.