The burgeoning luxury market in India has another contender added to its ever-growing list of products vying for consumer attention. Luxury phone maker Vertu's premium smartphone "Ti" has just hit the Indian shelves, but be prepared to dig deep into your pockets as it is priced at a whopping Rs. 6.5 lakhs.
According to an IBTimes report "British-based manufacturer and luxury mobile phone retailer Vertu has rolled out its next smartphone in India with a mind-boggling price tag of Rs 6, 49,990."
The ultra-premium Vertu TI smartphone apparently packs in 184 individual parts, which are made by craftsmen in England. The smartphone's body is made with Grade 5 titanium and the Vertu Ti has a set of Bang & Olufsen stereo speakers. Moreover, the sapphire crystal of the smartphone allegedly renders the screen virtually scratch-proof and has been tested to be four times stronger than other smartphones when it comes to impact resistance.
"VERTU TI is our most significant product for a decade. Android 4.0 delivers a proven and intuitive environment for users while the design and craftsmanship of the handset remains uniquely Vertu," notes Vertu President and CEO, Perry Oosting adding that "Vertu has pioneered and led the luxury mobile phone sector since we began in the late 90s and the great depth of our knowledge and experience can be seen in VERTU TI. There is nothing else like it."
While the Vertu Ti's price tag lives up to its luxurious nature, the specs of the handset leave much to be desired. At a time when the consumer market is flooded with 5-inch plus devices, which seem to be the emerging trend, the Vertu Ti comes with a 3.7-inch WVGA displayed. What's more the luxury smartphone runs on the aging Android 4.0 ICS platform.
Under the hood, the Vertu Ti packs in a 1.7GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. The smartphone also houses an 8-megapixel primary camera and a 1.3-megapixel one.
The Vertu Ti launched globally in February 2013 and has finally made it to Indian shores. However, currently, India's contribution to Vertu's sales volume is negligible. It remains to be seen if the Vertu Ti can carve a place for itself in the Indian luxury goods market despite being a niche product.
Would you be willing to shell out a mean Rs 6.5 lakhs to buy the Vertu Ti?
