8800Arte
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Hands-on with the Nokia 8800 Arte
From afar, it's really, really hard to understand the concept of a €1,000 (about $1,470) cellphone. Touch one, though, and it starts to make sense. The 8800 Arte -- the latest in a long line of luxury phones from Nokia dating all the way back to the trick 8110 "Matrix phone" in the mid 90s -- is a feast for the senses, thanks in no small part to a simply gorgeous 2 inch full color OLED display front and center. Of course, it also helps that the 8800 Arte once again sets a standard for quality materials and craftsmanship in Nokia's line, featuring perhaps the most satisfying slide mechanism we've ever had the pleasure of actuating. Put simply, this little beast feels as though it's crafted from a single hunk of metal, and indeed, that's probably not too far from the truth. The 3.2 megapixel camera is decent for a phone of its size and target demographic, and the same can be said of the 1GB of integrated storage; if it weren't for the lack of US 3G, we'd be just a hair away from being able to fully justify the monstrous price tag. For most of us, these gallery shots will be as close as we ever get to an 8800 Arte, so savor them, won't you?Thanks to the good folks at Wireless Imports for the hookup!%Gallery-13642%
Nokia's 8800 Arte and Sapphire Arte for the nouveau riche
Are you a "style-conscious consumer?" Yeah, then the 3G Nokia 8800 Arte and Sapphire Arte are for you toots. Just as long as you've got a €1,000 pre-tax bounty saved up for the Arte or €1,150 for the Sapphire Arte when they ship in Q4 2007 and Q1 2008, respectively. For that you get a 2.0-inch QVGA OLED display, 3.2 megapixel camera, 1GB of built-in memory, an anti-fingerprint coating on the metal and glass, and a leather pouch with linen-lining to keep things tidy. A turn-to-mute feature allows owners to quiet their phone by simply turning it over -- the phone equivalent of a huffy, raised-palm pirouette. It also ships with a Nokia BH-803 noise-cancelling Bluetooth headset which should help to minimize the "new money" whispers from behind your back.
