Vertu, UK-based manufacturer and retailer of luxury mobile handsets, has launched its new smartphone - the Android-based `Vertu Ti' - which is a notably classy handset; thanks to its encasing by titanium, polished black ceramic and black leather.

The launch of the new Android-based handset by Hampshire, southern England-headquartered Vertu clearly indicates that the company has parted ways with Finnish handset-maker Nokia.

Vertu, which was once a part of Nokia, was sold by the Finnish firm to Swedish private equity firm EQT last year. Since the earlier Vertu devices ran Nokia's outdated Symbian OS, the company - which was desperate to undergo a software update - decided to build its new handset running Google's Android OS.

The Vertu Ti handset is a 3.7-inch smartphone which, priced at a whopping cost of approximately $10,000 for the entry-level model, is apparently the most expensive Android handset available in the market.

Running the Android 4.0 `Ice Cream Sandwich' version, the new Vertu Ti handset is pre-loaded with a number of apps, including Google's wide-ranging suite of location services.

Terming the Vertu Ti handset as a pivotal device for Vertu, Ignacio Germade - the company's head of global design - said: "It (Vertu Ti) is where the timelessness of Vertu design meets contemporary technological elements."