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The $17,000 Apple Watch will help sell this $26,000 Vertu phone

Vertu, Nokia’s former luxury brand, announced a new smartphone today called the New Signature Touch. It runs Android 5.1 Lollipop and features a 5.2-inch 1080p display, a 21-megapixel camera, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 octa-core processor, 64GB of internal storage, and 4GB of RAM with leather and titanium used to encase the electronics. While the specs are respectable, what sets Vertu apart from commodity smartphone makers is its appeal to the luxury market.

Each New Signature Touch model is hand-assembled in England by a single person from start to finish and will cost £7,000 (about $11,000) or more depending upon your choice of materials. If you wish to purchase a gold model, for example, you’ll have to pay nearly £17,000 (about $26,000). While those prices are premium, Vertu says its product is no longer exclusive to the super rich. “You do not have to be a millionaire to own a Vertu,” chief executive Max Pogliani told the Financial Times. Pogliani credits Apple with expanding the luxury technology market by giving it more exposure with the marketing of the Watch Edition. As a result, Vertu says its sales are growing in the Middle East, Europe, and the US, and it’s reaching out to a female audience and younger crowd to gain new customers.

The New Signature Touch will be available from October 16th. You can preorder the phone exclusively at Harrods in the UK and other select boutiques around the world starting tomorrow.

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