The first jointly developed mobile phone under the strategic alliance between Samsung and Giorgio Armani will hit the shelves in the Middle East in December and an Armani/Casa-Samsung luxury LCD television will be unveiled globally in January, an Samsung official said. The SGH P520 handset was unveiled at the Milan Women's Fashion Week on September 24.
"Giorgio Armani will create the design aesthetic and Samsung will provide the cutting-edge technology and function," said Sandeep Saihgal, general manager, telecom division, Samsung Mena.
Portable products will be developed for both the signature Giorgio Armani and fashion-forward Emporio Armani lifestyles, while home electronics products will be developed as part of the Armani/Casa home interiors lifestyle.
The new products will be distributed in upscale consumer electronics stores and through Giorgio Armani's direct controlled retail network,"
The credit-card sized handset, which is just 10.5 mm thick, sports a full touch-screen user interface and provides vibration feedback to users as they touch each of the on-screen icons. It weighs just 85 gm and will be a collector's item.
"It targets is a discerning stylish man or woman, who is looking for a mobile phone that reflects his/her own sophistication, style and elegance," Saihgal said.
He said both Samsung and Armani were considering a similar type of collaboration for the development of design-led portable and home consumer technology products. An initial exploratory meeting between executives of the two companies took place in Seoul in early 2006.
"The idea to bring together one of the world's iconic fashion designers with one of the world's leading consumer technology is a powerful one," Saihgal said.
This is not the first time designers have formed alliance with handset vendors. Dolce & Gabbana has teamed up with Motorola for a gold-coloured version of the RAZR mobile phone model and Prada teamed up with South Korea's LG Electronics to launch Prada handsets.
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