High-priced luxury phone comes from outer space

Canadian-based luxury mobile phone maker, Mobiado is paying homage to NASA's Pioneer 10 spacecraft with a sleek, limited-edition mobile phone.

The Pioneer 10 spacecraft was launched in 1973 with the objective of gathering information about interplanetary and planetary parameters and to photograph and observe Jupiter. It was the first man-made spacecraft to pass through the asteroid belt and cross the frontiers of our solar system.

Mobiado's Grand 350 Pioneer phone is a luxury phone targeted at fans of the Pioneer 10 spacecraft. The device is hand-crafted with outer-space materials. The Grand 350 Pioneer sports a four billion-year old Gibeon meteorite battery cover that originates from the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter.

Design elements have been incorporated into the phone to reflect a strong connection to space travel and the Pioneer 10 spacecraft. These elements are evidenced in the phone's spacecraft-aluminium outer shell and its engraved artistic rendition of the "famous pictorial message known as the Pioneer Plaque" that appears on the back of the phone.

"The 350 Pioneer body is CNC machined from spacecraft aluminium, and clear anodized to produce an elegant hard surface for demanding everyday use," wrote Mobiado in their October 19 press release. "The frame is then inlaid with sapphire crystal and the infrared window is made from a solid piece of ruby crystal. The screws are gold-plated stainless steel. The buttons of the 350 Pioneer are a dramatic combination of sapphire crystal and stainless steel."

Mobiado will only produce 37 Grand 350 Pioneer phones - one for each year the Pioneer 10 spacecraft has been travelling through space.

Along with a hefty price tag, the phone comes unlocked and is equipped with a 3.2 megapixel camera, multimedia capabilities, a 2.36" 16 million colors display, integrated GPS, and Bluetooth and micro USB connectivity. The phone is quad-band and will work within North America, Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific and South America.

The 350 Pioneer device will join another recently-released space-themed luxury phone made by Vertu in the high-priced luxury phone market. Vertu's Constellation Ayxta was released on September 24 and is the company's first "fold phone." The ceramic, leather and sapphire crystal Ayxta comes complete with aerospace grade aluminium parts and is priced from €4,900 to €6,500.

The 350 Pioneer phone is priced at $5,600 plus taxes.