The most expensive phone in the world?
I wouldn’t. Then again, I don’t have $22,000 just sitting there, waiting to be turned into a phone.
It’s a little bit hard to believe that a phone (not wrapped in sheets of gold) could set you back $22,000. Despite how unbelievable it is, however, it’s completely true.
Cue, the Vertu.
Powered by Android, the latest Signature Touch Vertu comes in at a whopping $21,900. For the tech-heads out there, here are some of its specs:
- 4.7-inch 1080p display
- 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 chip
- 64GB of storage
- 13MP back camera, 2.1MP front camera
- 2,275mAh battery
- Qi wireless charging
- NFC and LTE bands
And how about the perks?
Well for one thing, every Vertu phone is handmade in England, by a single craftsman. Each craftsman, according to their website, undergoes extensive training before they are allowed to begin the ‘painstaking work of creating a unique Vertu’.
The design of each phone in the Vertu collection is designed… to impress, really. One of their models utilises cutting-edge technology in Sapphire Crystal engineering. In other words, the phone is made from Sapphire Crystal, and cutting Sapphire Crystal is really, really, super hard. The patented keypad to this same model is set with 4.75 carats of linear ruby bearings, again, according to the website, so that each click is perfectly smooth, and wearing is minimal.
(As a side, thinking about it, I would often become irrationally angry at how un-smooth the clicks to my old keypad-phones sometimes were. Looks like Vertu’s got me covered.)
The sound is pretty cool, too. There’s ‘stunningly clear call quality and on-board stereo ported sound for a truly moving acoustic experience.’ As for its ringtone designs? For the Signature models at least, they are unique, and performed by the London Symphony orchestra. No biggie. It should also be mentioned that the speakers are developed in partnership with Bang & Olufsen, a big-player in distinctive music systems.
Arguably, the best part about this $22,000 (literal) gem, is that it comes with its very own personal concierge service, which operates 24/7 and is complimentary for one year.
The basic model of the Vertu starts at a measly $10,300 – it’s got a titanium frame, and a few leather straps. If you have a squiz through Vertu’s website, you’ll find a whole collection of Vertu phones, each seemingly trying to outdo each other on the scale of superfluous grandiosity. There’s a wide range of Vertus to pick from, too, from the Signature, with its varying styles of brushed stainless steel models with ceramic pillows, to its Signature Touch, featuring brushed and polished titanium, available in all sorts of different colours.
I can’t say that I’ll ever be forking out that kind of cash for a phone any time soon. But it’s fun knowing something so utterly ridiculous is out there.