Vertu is back - the
luxurious maker introduced a new smartphone with pompous design and massive
price tag. At a launch party in Beijing the company announced the Aster P with
titanium alloy frame, sapphire glass screen and back panels from real leather.
Internals are nowhere as flashy, but they aren't bad either - Snapdragon 660,
12 MP camera and a 3,200 mAh battery.
The phone arrives
in two series - Baroque and Gothic, with the differences being mostly in the
appearance. The Aster P has two panels on the back that open in a wing-like
motion like the doors of a Mercedes SLS. It is simply the place to put the SIM
cards, but under one of the panels is the signature of the person that
hand-crafted the phone.
Vertu is a brand that
screams luxury above all and the new Aster P does not disappoint. It comes with
a traditional concierge button on the side that connects you to a personalized
service that can help you make travel plans, book you a table for dinner and
just about anything else you can think of.
The Vertu Aster P's
sapphire glass protects a 4.97” 1080p display, while its chipset is coupled
with 6 GB RAM and 128 GB storage. You get a 20 MP selfie shooter and the phone
is running Android Oreo 8.1, although it being exclusive to China there are no
Google services.
Since the phone is
powered by a Qualcomm chipset, the battery arrives with Quick Charge 3.0. There
is also V Talk encryption technology to keep safe calls and messages and there
is an exclusive security app that immediately locks the device if it falls in
the wrong person’s hands.
There are at least
seven different versions of the Aster P. The Baroque series arrives in Black,
Gentleman Blue, Caramel Brown, and Twilight Orange. All of them are available
at the online retailer JD.com for CNY 29,800, or about US$ 4,200.
The Gothic series
is available in Black Jade and White Moon for CNY 35,800 which is just over US$ 5,100. The most expensive one is Vertu Aster P Dazzling Gold for CNY 98,000 or
exactly US$ 14,120.82.
