Posh mobile turns excess into high style

The Life: Vertu launches a new phone in the UAE with a concierge service and sommelier thrown in.

A technician polishes a Vertu Constellation mobile handset. Bloomberg News

Q&A: Steve Amstutz describes the type of person who spends Dh21,000 on a mobile phone

Is the Middle East a big market for Vertu phones? The [Middle East and North Africa] has always been in the top three markets for Vertu after Greater China and Russia.

Who can afford this phone? Obviously, they are high-net-worth individuals. They are predominantly male. However, we do sell many phones to female Middle Eastern customers.

Are you expecting strong sales? In the week before we launched in the UAE, we sold 70 per cent of our stock for the region. The volumes have been beyond expectations, so we think the phone will be welcomed.

We have had some expensive "big tickets" in this column. There was the all-singing, all-dancing television set for Dh12,900 (US$3,511), the bathroom worth millions of dirhams and the Porsche watch worth four times an actual Porsche car.

But a mobile phone with a starting price of Dh21,000 - this week's big ticket - seems Crazy.

Or does it? The new touchscreen Vertu Constellation, from Nokia's luxury subsidiary Vertu, is not just any phone. It is a phone with a concierge service at the touch of a button. Essentially, this is a personal-assistant service that works out at Dh57.53 per day. That sounds pretty reasonable. And you get a phone thrown in.

The moment you buy the Constellation, a "concierge lifestyle manager" will conduct a so-called fitting call to discuss your needs, wants and how you can make the most of the service. Vertu's "lifestyle" managers say they can help in many ways, including by delivering small luxury items or helping to buy and sell property. They have even provided a stand of flamingos for a wedding in India. Depending on how often you expect to use the service, there are three options, ranging from access to a network of lifestyle managers to a full-time assistant dedicated to you only. The better the service, the more you pay, but the basic level is provided with the phone.

Vertu's lifestyle managers are based in key time zones and in major cities such as London, Dubai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and San Francisco, and they provide regular updates on activities and attractions in their locations.

Managers are available around the clock and speak English, French, German, Italian, Russian, Arabic, Japanese, Mandarin and Cantonese. Vertu has also brokered deals with private members clubs around the world, and the phone comes with access to a security company.

And for those who always wanted to impress friends with their knowledge of fine wines, sommeliers from Berry Bros. & Rudd in London will be on hand.

Finally, and probably least important, there is the actual phone. It can be used to make calls, and it does not look too flashy, despite the price tag.

Vertu was renowned for making gaudy and glitzy handsets, but now the Constellation does not look out of place next to an Apple iPhone. But it offers so much more.

Top 5: Most expensive phones

1 Stuart Hughes-designed Apple 32GB iPhone 4 Diamond Rose – US$8.2 million (Dh30.1m)

2 Stuart Hughes-designed Goldstriker iPhone 3GS Supreme – $3.2m

3 Peter Aloisson-designed iPhone 3G called the King's Button – $2.5m

4 The Goldvish Le Million – $1.3m

5 Diamond Crypto Smartphone – $1.3m

Source: www.cellphoneinn.com

The Quote: There are 4 billion cell phones in use today ... Information networks have become a great leveller. - Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state