Nokia is working with Goldman Sachs to arrange the sale of its luxury phone subsidiary Vertu. It remains unclear exactly how much Vertu is worth, Reuters said Thursday, but the company typically earns Nokia an estimated $268-$402 million in annual revenue. Vertu is best known for its expensive handsets that feature luxuries such as sapphire crystal keys, gold accents and prices that reach several thousands of dollars and beyond. Private equity groups are already interested in the brand Reuters said, citing a Financial Times report that claimed luxury brands will likely also have interest in purchasing Vertu. Vertu has more than 90 retail locations around the globe.

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Following up on the 105 Damascus the company launched last month, Mobiado announced Tuesday that a new ultra-high end model has been added to its portfolio. The Classic 712 Stealth was inspired by stealth military aircraft and is built out of glass bead-blasted “aircraft aluminum” and sapphire crystal. The case is then anodize coated and adorned with hand painted sapphire crystal buttons. In terms of specs, the 712 Stealth features quad-band GSM and triple-band WCDMA (2100/1900/900), a 2.2-inch QVGA display, a 5-megapixel camera with video capture and a flash, integrated GPS and Nokia’s S40 platform. The Mobiado Classic 712 Stealth is available immediately for $2,970. Hit the break for the full press release.

TRADITION CONTINUES WITH THE MOBIADO CLASSIC 712 STEALTH: EXTREME MOBILITY

Vancouver, Canada – November 16th, 2010: Working off the 712 Series DNA, and inspired by military stealth aircrafts, the Classic 712 Stealth combines aluminum and sapphire crystal in an extreme fashion. Evolving from the history and tradition of Mobiado Stealth lineup, the 712 Stealth is certain to become a Mobiado cult classic.

The Externals: Intense design and hand crafted sophistication.

Remaining perfectly faithful to the Stealth design, the Classic 712 Stealth is the evolution of the extreme series; combining aluminum and sapphire crystal to create a sense of intense luxury.  The aluminum frame is created from aircraft aluminum to build a strong/stiff yet light body, it is glass-bead blasted to give a matte finish, and then anodize coated black to produce a rock hard ceramic coating for the toughest of uses.  Large sapphire crystal plates are precision inset into the aluminum body and sapphire gems are inlayed along its sides.  The buttons of the Classic 712EM are crafted from sapphire crystal and hand painted with black paint.  The phone is then assembled using gun-metal black stainless steel screws.  The iconic Mobiado logo is CNC machine engraved into the body to bestow a final touch of elegance.  Available with a black, clear, blue, or ruby selection button.

The Internals: Merging state-of-the-art technologies with the tradition of phone-making innovation.

The 712 Stealth is unlocked and will work with any GSM network operator.  The phone is quad-band GSM (GSM 850/900/1800/1900) and has triple band WCDMA Band I, II and VIII (2100/1900/900) coverage on up to five continents.  It is equipped with a large 2.2” QVGA display, 5 megapixel camera and video camera with flash, integrated GPS, web browser, email support, and a music player that supports AMR, MID, MP3, MP4, M4A, .WMA and AAC files.

Luxury phone maker Mobiado today announced a new addition to its portfolio of exotic cell phones. The Mobiado 105 Damascus, hand-forged using a hot-forging technique that dates back to 1700 AD, certainly does its predecessors proud. The result of the forging technique used to build Mobiado’s new handset is called Damascus steel and it was used to build swords renowned for their strength and sharpness. The 105 Damascus won’t cut you, though it will definitely carve its way deep into your bank account.

Mobiado’s latest creation features GSM and WCDMA radios, a 2-inch 16 million color display, Nokia’s S40 feature phone operating system, a 2-megapixel camera with video capture support, Bluetooth, a microUSB port and over 1GB of internal storage. Since the 105 Damascus is handmade, like all Mobiado phones, the attention to detail is remarkable. And like snowflakes — very, very expensive hand-forged steel snowflakes — no two phones are alike.

The Mobiado 105 Damascus is available immediately and is priced at $4,180. Hit the break for the full press release along with a few additional images, including two awesome shots of the forging process.

MOBIADO UNVEILS THE PROFESSIONAL 105 DAMASCUS: TRADITION CONTINUES.

Vancouver, Canada – October 28th, 2010: Mobiado continues the tradition of the Professional 105 series with stunning hand forged Damascus steel. Damascus steel is a technique of hot-forging steel, originally used in 1100 to 1700 AD to create sword blades renowned for their sharpness and strength. Every 105 Damascus is different and unique, no two phones are alike.

The Externals: Exceptional design and hand crafted sophistication.

The 105 Damascus redefines the luxury mobile phone to create an engineering masterpiece.

Damascus steel is a beautiful material, whose grain patterns appear from repeatedly hammering and folding of different types of steel upon itself. The phone frame is precision CNC machined from Damascus steel, hand polished, and then etched to reveal the stunning Damascus steel pattern. The entire front and back of the phone has been crafted from large pieces of sapphire crystal, providing a modern minimalist look with a wear resistance second only to diamond. The 105 Damascus utilizes a unique and hidden sliding battery cover mechanism (patent pending) with the battery cover being made entirely from one piece of sapphire crystal. The buttons and screws are beautifully machined from stainless steel, and then glass-bead blasted to give matte texture and look.

The Internals: Merging state-of-the-art technologies with the tradition of phonemaking innovation.

The 105 Damascus is unlocked, quad-band GSM/EGSM and dual-band WCDMA network operational. It works within North America, Europe, Africa, Asia- Pacific, and South America where GSM/EGSM 850/900/1800/1900 and WCDMA 850/2100 networks are available. It is equipped with a 2 megapixel camera and video camera, more than 1 GB internal memory, 2″ display with up to 16 million colors, Bluetooth and micro USB connectivity, and a music player that supports AAC, eAAC+, and MP3 audio formats.

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You know we are big fans of Vertu handsets around these parts, and Mr. Frank Nuovo certainly isn’t sitting in the UK counting iPhone sales while doing nothing. Vertu has, in Vertu tradition, silently announced an updated model in their lineup and it is the new Vertu Ascent for 2010. Picking up on almost all of the previous phone’s shortcomings (save for the S40-based OS, of course), the new Ascent features quad-band 3G, GPS, preloaded maps for navigation, a 5 megapixel camera, and will come in 8GB and 32GB internal memory configurations in addition to titanium and aircraft-grade aluminum casings. But, it’s a Vertu, and that means there are a plethora of different color combinations. Since the Ascent is racing inspired, don’t hold your breath for diamond-studded versions. Yet there are plenty of bright color finishes to get your juices flowing. You know, if you are into dropping anywhere from $5,000 and up on a cell phone. Couple more shots after the break!

[Via Engadget]

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Nokia can produce a luxury phone like none other and its latest rumored endeavor, the Erdos, is no exception. Featuring a slick polished aluminum casing, matching mirrored 2.4-inch QVGA OLED display and a keyboard that rises when the slider is drawn, the Erdos is seemingly shaping up to be the epitome of class. Under the hood, the Erdos is no slouch with a 5 megapixel auto-focus camera, Carl Zeiss optics, dual LED flash, microSD expansion (up to 8GB), Wi-Fi, aGPS, Bluetooth (A2DP), activity LEDs, noise reduction microphone, tap sensitive commands and HSPA connectivity. It’s also said to run S60, though Nokia typically opts for S40 in its 88xx series handsets. After watching this seductive video, one can’t help but want to slide this beauty into his or her pocket. Since this little guy would undoubtedly be the most well-spec’d handset to ever hit Nokia’s 88xx line, expect an astronomical price tag should it ever see the light of day. Hit the jump for the video, scotch and cigar optional.

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Samsung’s partnership with fashion designer Armani continues with the appearance of the rumored Armani W820/8200. The gold-trimmed slider features a 3.1-inch WVGA AMOLED touchscreen display, HSDPA, T-DMB, Bluetooth, 5 megapixel primary camera and a secondary front facing camera for video calling. The phone will reportedly launch in Korea some time in the near future, though timing and pricing are both unknown for the time being. We’re sure pricing will be nice and elevated but truth be told, this could be a sweet little phone. Let’s hope Samsung issues a version without the gold trim — you know, for those of us with self respect.

[Via Unwired View]

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A sponsored advertisement on Google’s Ireland website may have inadvertently leaked the release date for the much hyped Dell Adamo. The sponsored link for Dell Adamo promises that we can “Discover the love story on 17/3″ and sends the user to Dell’s Adamo splash page. Sure this could be another slick marketing ploy but it could mean we’re all in for a treat tomorrow — a very expensive treat. We must admit that a St. Patrick’s Day launch revealed by an Irish website sounds delightfully ironic, doesn’t it? Maybe Dell will even launch a special model in green to go along with all the green beer that will be flowing. No? Ok, probably not.

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There is still a massive shroud of mystery surrounding the upcoming Adamo line of high-end laptops by Dell. The scrappy Texas start up-turned PC giant semi-announced the line last month at CES, showing off a sexy black laptop, saying essentially nothing about it and allowing no one to turn it on. Smooth. Dell just updated its Adamo microsite to include a new Flash layout with links to a bunch of coverage Adamo has received thus far (and one link to a video that has nothing to do with the Adamo), along with a whimsical intro and a few fields where you can sign up for future info. There is still very little known about Dell’s luxury line of inevitably overpriced laptops but from the looks of things we may soon be in store for a new round of details. For the time being however, basic specs, metal cases, spun metal trackpads, backlit keys, high quality materials and luxury-level price tags are the only details you can take to the bank.

Thanks, Rupam and J.C.!

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Dell chose the final weekday of CES 2009 to take the wraps off its rumor-riddled Adamo premium notebook, but took a very odd approach when doing so. During a press event a short while ago, Dell made a few announcements as media attendees awaited news of the Adamo. When the time finally came, Dell revealed that Adamo is in fact its new luxury line as opposed to a single model and displayed an unbelievably sexy notebook that represents the first in the Adamo series. The problem? The company revealed absolutely nothing about it. It’s sleek, it’s dark, it looks gorgeous and that’s just about all she wrote. Even during the short hands-on time after the event, no one was permitted to boot the device or really do anything short of snapping a few shots besides Engadget. So all we know for sure is that we’re looking at display of approximately 13″, 3 USB ports and an eSATA jack. Also, it’s definitely not thinner than the MacBook Air as had been speculated, though we don’t carry our laptop around in a manila envelope so a tiny bit of bulk is hardly an issue. The rest remains a mystery – no word on pricing, the processor, available configurations or anything else. The Adamo model shown off at the Dell press event will be made available some time in 1H 2009. Are we excited? Thanks to a stunning lack of information, we really have no idea.

Hit the jump for more pics.

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Motorola announced on Tuesday its new luxury phone, the Motorola AURA. The AURA features the world’s first circular display with 16 million colors and 300 dpi resolution and is the first phone to really capture that “cyclops” look. You wont need an invisible shield for this phone as the display is covered with Grade 1, 62-carat sapphire crystal lens, one of the most scratch-resistant materials on earth, and the housing is crafted from stainless steel that is electro- and hand polished, chemically etched, and PVD coated. No wonder why it takes two weeks to create the front of the phone. The handset has an assisted-opening blade that is comprised of a Swiss-made, custom-engineered rotating mechanism with 130 precision ball bearings and custom Tungsten Carbide Coated Gears.  To separate the phone from the full, we should tell you that the AURA sports quad-Band GSM 850/900/1800/1900, EDGE, a 2 MP Fixed Focus camera, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR with A2DP, text and email messaging, multimedia playback, and a yet to be named open source browser. Smooth and sexy with an hint of class and an interesting design is the new Motorola AURA. If you fancy one for yourself, you wont have to wait very long as it is expected to launch worldwide at the beginning of Q4 2008. Start cashing in your piggy banks now as this won’t be your father’s cheap flip phone, ringing up the registers at $1,999.

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