£6700 Phone Uses Android Instead of Windows

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£6700 Phone Uses Android Instead of Windows

Posted by timothy on Tuesday February 12, 2013 @05:22AM from the fool-money-separator dept.

judgecorp writes "Vertu, the luxury phone maker formerly owned by Nokia, has chosen Android over Windows Phone for its new £6700 Vertu Ti device. The bling brand is no longer part of Nokia, so is free to shun Windows Phone — apparently because there are not enough apps there for Vertu's rich customers." Previous Vertu handsets used Symbian. Note: £6700 is just over 10,000 USD.

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only 1gb ram?? cheaper phones have 2gb by Anonymous Coward · 2013-02-12 05:25 · Score: 4, Insightful

only 1gb ram?? cheaper phones have 2gb
Why do these phones always suck? by h4rr4r · 2013-02-12 05:29 · Score: 5, Interesting

I get it they are to show off how rich you are, but seems like for $10k I would want something a little better specced.
Why do they then always suck? You could get a real top of the line phone and have a custom solid gold body made for it for less and have a better device.
1. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by sharkytm · 2013-02-12 05:32 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  b-b-b-b-b-but it wouldn't be a LUXURY BRAND (R)(C). Heck, most of a Lexus is Toyota, Acura-Honda, Infiniti-Nissan. Wealthy ( and more importantly)Image-conscious people don't care about functionality, they care about appearances. Plain and simple.
2. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by Improv · 2013-02-12 05:32 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  The kind of person who would waste that kind of money on a phone merits a phone that sucks.
  
  --
  For every problem, there is at least one solution that is simple, neat, and wrong.
3. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by h4rr4r · 2013-02-12 05:40 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  That does not explain why they suck though. They could charge $12k and make it a decent device.
4. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · 2013-02-12 05:45 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  I get it they are to show off how rich you are, but seems like for $10k I would want something a little better specced.
  Why do they then always suck? You could get a real top of the line phone and have a custom solid gold body made for it for less and have a better device.
  Tech is a pretty brutal market to do 'luxury' goods in. R&D and design costs are extremely high, while manufacturing is (relatively) cheap per unit. So, the guy who is stamping out several million pieces of consumer shit can spend more on making the software not suck and the case(while possibly plastic) elegantly designed than the guy stamping out 1,000 'luxury' devices. It doesn't help that phones are harshly power constrained, so you can't even make something 'better' by splurging on fancy silicon(at least with a desktop, you could shove the fastest i7 that Intel makes and several times as much RAM as the customer could ever need into the chassis as a value-add). The thermal envelope and battery size are so small that mass-market junk, made in huge volume on refined processes, will offer a better experience than any custom or super-overclocked, or 'just-plain-excessive-amounts-of-RAM' configuration would.
  This still doesn't explain why 'Vertu' hardware is actively worse than generic Nexus gear, since they could probably just buy Nexus hardware at retail and rip the case off for less money than designing their own hardware; but tech in general is pretty hard to do 'luxury' in.
5. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by Graydyn+Young · 2013-02-12 06:07 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  The great thing about Vertu Ti is, unlike Lexus, it's not even a widely recognized brand. So when you're showing off you're fancy new phone and say "It's an authentic Vertu Ti!" nobody is even going to know what you're talking about.
6. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by afgam28 · 2013-02-12 06:23 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Not really. Lexus cars are always better spec'd than their Toyota counterparts. Same goes for Acura and Infiniti. The specs might not go up linearly with the price, but they are objectively better cars.
  Vertu's phones on the other hand are not as good as the iPhone and a lot of Android phones.
  The only thing that might justify Vertu's prices are the luxury services that come with the phone (Vertu Concierge), but forcing their customers to use such a crappy handset is a serious drawback that brands like Lexus do not have.
7. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by h4rr4r · 2013-02-12 06:34 · Score: 2
  
  They did not have to do any of that.
  You can call an OEM up right now and order X devices built for you. Hell make your own chassis for it even, or glass. Google does this with the Nexus Line. The Nexus 4 is pretty much an LG Optimus.
8. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by horza · 2013-02-12 09:22 · Score: 2
  
  As you are posting as anon I cannot tell if you are a billionaire or not, but I would say for it to sell in the luxury market it will need:
  1: any version of android, as long as it has a stunning wallpaper
  2: a processor of some sort
  3: at least enough memory to run Facebook and Youtube, possibly Angry Birds
  4: no card storage
  5: enough on-board to copy an iPod worth of contents
  6: a colour screen
  7: a stunning design case
  8: ok battery life
  9: a copy of something like Cerberus pre-installed
  10: good enough antenna
  It's all about style. Even the 1998 model Nokia 8810 fetches the price of a Nexus these days, and that has a mono screen. Think about it more like a pair of sunglasses than a car, something you put down on the table in the bar and others will judge you by it.
  Phillip.
  
  --
  Property for sale in Nice, France
9. Re:Why do these phones always suck? by R3d+M3rcury · 2013-02-12 09:49 · Score: 2
  
  So when you're showing off you're fancy new phone and say "It's an authentic Vertu Ti!" nobody is even going to know what you're talking about.
  "It's an authentic Vertu Ti!"
  "Never heard of it."
  "I'm not surprised. It's very exclusive."
  Sort of the rich equivalent of being a hipster.
You're not supposed to use it by Overzeetop · 2013-02-12 05:29 · Score: 4, Insightful

You're supposed to be seen with it. To be honest, I'm surprised they didn't buy an Iphone and re-case it from scratch. The market is clearly brand conscious people who get all hot and bothered about overpaying for mediocre performance. How does that not scream Apple?

--
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
1. Re:You're not supposed to use it by acariquara · 2013-02-12 05:34 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Because iPhones actually perform well?
  
  --
  Dear aunt, let's set so double the killer delete select all
2. Re:You're not supposed to use it by Anonymous Coward · 2013-02-12 05:41 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  [Citation needed]
3. Re:You're not supposed to use it by Anonymous Coward · 2013-02-12 05:51 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  Its all about position. Apple product is just to affordable for these people. Joe public can get an iPhone if he wants one. Might not be the best use of his money but its option for him. These people want to have something you and I just can't touch, or can't touch without make other sacrifices that would make us appear foolish ( you can't roll up in your 12 year old rust bucket and look cool even if you are holding $7000 cell phone to your head ).
  I was once out to lunch with my grandfather at the club he belonged too. It was just down the street from a similar institution widely regarded as somewhat more prestigious to which he had once belonged and claimed to have left for personal reasons ( I interpret that as a euphemism for being kicked out of for having opinions deemed to egalitarian). The club we were at was open to anyone who could pay the membership dues and could find a current member to vouch for you, the one he had left generally required you demonstrate you had relation to some old money. We are dining on an upper floor looking out the window, the other place had a roof top dining area. He commented "You know whats funny? here we ware looking down on them and there they are looking down on us."
  The point being that arguably we were in better facilities, physically up higher, eating food that was probably of the same high quality; and he was paying less for the privilege. Yet they were very pleased with themselves simply because they belonged to something more exclusive.
4. Re:You're not supposed to use it by amicusNYCL · 2013-02-12 06:34 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  How exactly do you expect them to get a license to use iOS? Apple doesn't give those out, their options are Android or Windows Phone. Of course they're going to choose Android.
  
  --
  "Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black
5. Re:You're not supposed to use it by greenfruitsalad · 2013-02-12 07:52 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Because iPhones actually perform well?
6. Re:You're not supposed to use it by rtfa-troll · 2013-02-12 09:08 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Key features of this are things like a sapphire display which is much better than and much much more expensive than gorilla glass. The other thing is the "I am rich" button - to call your conceierge. This is to an iPhone as an iPhone is to a really cheap Android phone. Which is to say, on a cheap Android phone you will get a bunch of features that the iPhone doesn't have, such as the ability to side load applications, but your iPhone geek will just say "don't want" and point at his better display. This is the reason why top end Android phones devices to outclass the iPhone on display technology. Everybody knows the iPhone fans have to grit their teeth as they pretend not to care.
  The other thing is that this is very clearly saying that their customers are wanting something that integrates with their surroundings properly. "You need to be part of an ecosystem," is the key quote in the BBC article in explaining why they avoided WP8. Coming from a former Nokia person, and almost directly a quote from Steven Elop on why they chose Windows, I think that could be a sign that Windows Phone will be abandoned sooner rather than later. Possibly with Elop going with it. It's certainly a pretty direct hint to the board members of his former employer.
  
  --
  =~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();
For $10K, don't give me a 1.5 year old OS. by Andy+Prough · 2013-02-12 05:32 · Score: 3, Insightful

Why Ice Cream Sandwich? 4.2 has more features.
Re:Apps by h4rr4r · 2013-02-12 05:37 · Score: 5, Informative

All the major apps? Yeah, right. Even top games are not available. Temple Run and the like. Hell they had to bribe Rovio to bring angry birds over.
What exactly does your magic phone do out of the box the others don't?
Considering the desktop OS in 2013 still does not support ipsec vpn out of the box I have a hard time imagining what they added to WinPhone.
Vertitude by Empiric · 2013-02-12 05:38 · Score: 5, Funny

Apple should now officially start worrying: Android has cracked a market segment with the stratospheric level of pretentiousness and narcissism that Steve Jobs can now only haunt wistfully from his new no-margin domain.

--
~ Whence do you come, slayer of men, or where are you going, conqueror of space?
For that much money... by jonadab · 2013-02-12 05:39 · Score: 3, Interesting

For that much money, I'd think these rich customers could hire a team of engineers to design a custom phone just for them, with their name spelled out in the actual circuitry as well as embossed on the case, which could be custom-ergonomized to fit perfectly in their personal hand.

--
Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
Choosing Windows would have been more surprising.. by dtjohnson · 2013-02-12 05:46 · Score: 2, Insightful

Let's see...should we choose: 1) the most widely used handset OS in the world with a huge number of apps and open-source code or 2) a much less popular proprietary system with more limited functionality, a limited number of apps, and proprietary code owned by one of the most overbearing software companies that has ever existed? Decisions...decisions...
That was my first thought. by Dr.+Manhattan · 2013-02-12 05:46 · Score: 2

My old Droid was RAM-limited (256MB), but I haven't run into any isues with my S3 with 2GB of RAM. I've got "889MB used, 705MB free" - of course, I don't run a bunch of stupid background apps.
When you're using titanium for the case and sapphire for the screen, you cant spring for a 2GB chip instead of 1GB? Seriously?

--
PHEM - party like it's 1997-2003!
Re:Apps by gl4ss · 2013-02-12 05:49 · Score: 2

modded up - why the fuck?
there's a bunch of apps you can't do on wp. it's not the number of apps, it's about what they can do. and out of the box wp does shit all nothing, it's just that you can't do add-on features as much.
and perhaps that's why they went with android. other reasons: choosing any hw they happen to want to run it, choosing any resolution they want, not being tied to ms ties for camera drivers, customizing the sw any way they want..

--
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
As a developer... by BenJeremy · 2013-02-12 05:52 · Score: 2

...I have a burning urge to repackage my current apps and make a few special for this phone, and charge $599 per app.
Re:Apps by h4rr4r · 2013-02-12 05:52 · Score: 2

The other phones have that built in as well. Often the replacement applications are just better or the users preference. Does winphone have skype working properly yet? Meaning it can fireup the app when a call comes in? I know that was a no go with 7.5.
You must not be using your device very often. I often work from mine, yes ssh on a 4 inch screen is not great but better than nothing.
10 grand for ICS? by tom229 · 2013-02-12 06:08 · Score: 2

Does it have CM10 support?

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If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Ten Grand for a Phone? by Westwood0720 · 2013-02-12 06:59 · Score: 3, Funny

I could buy 20 of my pickup trucks for that much. I must be out of touch with reality.
Re:Apps by rtfa-troll · 2013-02-12 09:39 · Score: 2

Agreed. The "not enough apps" conversation/excuse is a dumb one. 95% of the apps people are installing never get used. They just sit there for epeen measuring and "just in case I need it". If you disagree I dare you to actually count the number of apps you use in a day.
This is so; so horribly wrong. 99.9% of the time I don't care about having an up to date Stuttgart travel planner app in Android. It's the one time that I need it; that I'm late for my plane; that I can't get a taxi. That one time I manage to get my flight because my Android phone knows how to do it for me can be worth more than the entire phone and all the software on it. The magic app which saves you can be a simple ruler application which lets you call for the right screw to fix your car. It can be a medical app which tells you how to resuscitate your kid. Not everybody needs every app, but nobody knows exactly which app it is that they will need.
In any case, what's wrong with Windows Phone is not so much the lack of apps; that's a problem, but one you can plan around by having an Android or iOS tablet as well. It's more that, most of the apps were just brought in as the initial version required to get Microsoft's developer bounty and abandoned. With the lack of users everything is untested and there is no incentive for developers to update them after that first upload. The store is now even more dated than they were before WP8 launched. This means that you launch an app, hope it will work and find it doesn't actually do what you need. A bad tool may well be worse than no tool and no self respecting person should be caught out with one.

--
=~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();