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Chinese-owned Vertu vows to keep making luxury phones in the UK
It's been a little over a week since Vertu announced that it is now under full ownership of Hong Kong's Godin Holdings. Which, as we found out, is linked to Godin Cyberspace Security Technology -- aka GodinSec from mainland China. This raised two questions: Will Vertu be ditching its "Handmade in England" slogan in favor of the classic "Made in China?" And does Godin intend to make use of its own secure smartphone OS on future Vertu devices? The short answer to both is no, according to the newly appointed CEO Billy Crotty.
Vertu's mysterious Chinese buyer has its own secure smartphone OS
In recent years, we've watched Vertu evolve to a luxury phone maker that actually cares about specs, and you can thank CEO Massimiliano "Max" Pogliani for that. But according to Financial Times, Swedish private equity group EQT has recently sold Vertu to Hong Kong's Godin Holdings, and Pogliani has since decided "to pass on the baton" to someone else. While these changes may bring a tear to some eyes out there, things are about to get real interesting for Vertu. You see, after some digging around in the Hong Kong Companies Registry, we found out that this Godin Holdings is actually just a four-month-old shell company of Godin Cyberspace Security Technology (translated name), which claims to be working on its very own secure smartphone OS dubbed "GOS." If you put the pieces together, we could be looking at a luxury equivalent of the Blackphone or the BlackBerry Priv in the making.
The Engadget Interview: Vertu CEO Perry Oosting talks specs and rationale
Vertu CEO Perry Oosting talks about the rationale for buying luxury goods.
Vertu's first Android smartphone costs $9,600, admits to falling short of 'bleeding edge' (updated)
That fancy Vertu Ti handset we saw pop up last month? It's finally been priced, predictably out of the average buyer's price range. Sticker shock for Vertu's first device since the EQT acquisition starts at €7,900, or about $10,587 $9,600 in the US, and buys eccentrics with money to burn a sapphire-covered 800 x 480 display, 1.5GHz 1.7GHz of processing power and a 1,250mAh battery -- all wrapped in a durable titanium shell. What's it missing? 4G connectivity, unfortunately. "Vertu will never be at the bleeding edge of technology," Vertu head of design Hutch Hutchison told the BBC. "It has to be about relevant technology and craftsmanship -- it's not a disposable product." At those prices, we'd certainly hope not. Vertu phones might not be packed with the mobile world's latest tech, but Hutchison says that the top dollar pricetag buys better durability. "People think sapphire is just posh glass," he explained to the BBC. "The only thing that scratches it is a diamond." At the very least, Vertu customers won't have to worry about which pocket they keep their keys in. Update: Now with official product shots below and press release (including details on the various stress tests) plus promo video after the break. Also, here's a detailed list of specs: Android 4.0, dual-core 1.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 SoC, 64GB storage, 3.7-inch sapphire crystal screen, titanium casing, 8-megapixel rear camera, 1.3-megapixel front camera, NFC and "Full/Micro/Nano SIM capability" (see new update below). The prices are as follows: • Titanium Black Leather - $9,600 • Titanium Pure Black - $11,500 • Titanium Black Alligator - $12,800 • Black PVD Titanium Red Gold Mixed Metals - $19,900 Update 2: We heard back from Vertu regarding the multi-SIM compatibility, and the feature's indeed just as bland as we had feared: "Vertu Ti can hold a regular sized SIMs, nano and micro. It is purpose built to hold a regular sized version. If a customer has a smaller SIM, the phone has a special SIM adaptor that ensures that it fits in properly." Richard Lai contributed to this report.
Nokia finishes offloading Vertu, rumors claim Vertu plans a matching switch to Android
Nokia has ended one of the more significant chapters in its tumultuous history: the Finnish phone giant has finished divesting Vertu to private equity firm EQT VI, shedding direct control of the definitive luxury phone brand. The formal switch lets Nokia keep a 10 percent stake and move 1,000 staffers to the newly independent company. Where Vertu goes next may be more intriguing, however. There's no official word on any change of direction, but that hasn't stopped tipsters from claiming to TechCrunch that there's a big shakeup ahead. Supposedly, former Nokia VP Anssi Vanjoki will finally get the phone maker CEO position he's been looking for through a Vertu spot, and he won't simply follow in his former employer's footsteps -- upcoming Vertu phones may use Android, not Windows Phone. While it's a very unconfirmed rumor, a switch-up wouldn't be completely surprising when Vertu is still an all-Symbian house that needs more than just a few extra jewels to stay relevant.
