PhoneLon

Frequent readers of the blog will know that every once in a while, we like to check out what’s going on in the realms of ultra luxurious and super exclusive (or ridiculously overpriced, to put it another way) mobile phones. From the stunning Vertu series to the Bellperre Nero gold, there’s something to satisfy even the most discerning billionaire playboys out there. Unless, you actually want your mobile phone to do something other than just sit there looking pretty.

You see, as exquisitely luxurious as these pieces of design are, as mobile phones, they’re more than just a little bit rubbish. While they may be draped in Gold and encrusted with stunning jewels, on the inside we typically find dumb-phone operating systems, sub-par cameras and an all round general lack of features. But what if you want the best of both worlds? Enter The Chairman.

No, this isn’t some aging wrestler, the Chairman, made by Swiss watchmaker Ulysse Nardin, initially looks like any ordinary luxury phone. Made from either stainless steel or pink gold and in various colours (all of which will be limited to a run of 1846, the year the company was founded), the Chairman will definitely stand out next to your friends iPhone. On the reverse of the phone, the Chairman displays its heritage with a watch-like kinetic rotor that can be wound to charge the battery.

In breaking from the norm though, the Chairman pairs the lavish design with a stunning feature set that would fit comfortably in any high end mobile phone. Gone is the dumb-phone operating system and in its place we find Google’s Android operating system paired with a 3.2 inch capacitive touchscreen display (with multi-touch) AND alphanumeric keypad. Not a bad start and we’re not finished yet.

The Chairman also includes a fingerprint reader for locking the device, an 8.0 Megapixel camera (putting it on a par with the recently released Sony Ericsson Xperia X10), 32GB(!) internal memory, HD video playback, 3G connectivity, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a USB port. The box contents are to a similarly high standard with Ulysse Nardin adding in Bluetooth Wireless speakers and a swish wooden dock for charging and backing up data on an external USB drive (also included).

Quite simply, if you stripped away the flash design and luxury materials, the Chairman would still be an excellent smartphone. Quite a departure from the normal style over substance rubbish we’re used to. All this doesn’t come cheap though with prices ranging from $12,800 to $49,500 (roughly between ?8200 and ?32,000) but then, if you have to ask, you probably can’t afford it. Oh, and if you’re reading this Mr Abramovich, the Ulysse Nardin Chairman is set to start shipping in around a months time.