Nokia's first Android-powered smartphone appears to be the Vertu Ti, a device belonging to the Finnish handset manufacturer's former luxury brand.
The company previously owned Vertu but sold 90 percent of it to EQT in 2012. The firm that acquired the majority stake, however, is said to have chosen Nokia as its handset manufacturer. The new owner has promised to "drive the development of the luxury mobile phone category through significant investments," which translates into a price tag of $4070 for the Vertu Ti -- the price is said to represent the cheapest Vertu Android smartphone EQT will launch.
The Vertu Ti has been given the model number RM-828V, which strikes similarities to the Lumia 920's slate (RM-820/RM-822) and Lumia 820's RM-824/RM-826. A BL-5K battery pack, which is built by Nokia, will be utilized by the Vertu Ti.
Made out of leather, stainless steel and sapphire glass, the device is powered by a dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm MSM8260 Snapdragon processor, which is found on Nokia's Lumia 920 and 820 smartphones. Its WVGA touchscreen display sports a resolution of 480 by 800 pixels, accompanied by a front-facing snapper for video chats and a main camera that boasts dual-LED flash.
NFC, WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 support are also rumored to be offered in the device, as is a 1,250mAh battery. The Vertu Ti will purportedly run on Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich.
An official unveiling is expected to take place sometime during February -- possibly at MWC, which runs February 25-28.
Nokia, which has previously been rumored to be developing an Android smartphone, recently criticized Google for making the operating system a more closed mobile platform.
