Nokia has just introduced a new smartphone called the Oro, based on the existing C7, but with an added touch of luxury.
Nokia has a tradition of producing expensive, high-end luxury phones with its Vertu brand, but the Oro is branded Nokia through and through. It features 18-carat gold plating, hand-wrapped leather, and a sapphire crystal on the home key. The sapphire crystal is said to offer beauty and greater durability when compared with traditional glass.
Technology-wise, the Oro has the same guts as the C7, so you will find a pentaband 3G radio, a 3.5-inch AMOLED display, and an 8 megapixel camera with flash, but no autofocus. All the gold and leather in the world will not make that lens autofocus, unfortunately. Unlike the C7, the Oro will ship with the latest version of Symbian, dubbed Anna.
The Oro will be available in limited quantities in Europe, Eastern Europe, China, and the Middle East in the third quarter of this year. It will cost upwards of 800 EUR (US$1125), but if you have to ask the cost...you know the rest. And in case you were wondering, Oro means gold in Italian. Take a look at the video below where Alessandro Lamanna, Vice President of Marketing at Nokia pontificates about the new Oro.
