Luxury car maker Bentley->ke15 and smart phone counterpart Vertu have just released the latest fruit of their long-standing collaboration. It’s called the Signature Touch for Bentley, and it’s the third handset to come out of the Bentley-Vertu partnership. That’s the gist of it, but the more important question you should be asking is this: at the price it’s going to cost - reportedly over $9,000 - is it even worth it to buy one?

To give you an idea on why the Signature Touch for Bentley costs that much, let’s take a look at the physical tale of the tape of this fancy new Android-powered smartphone. It features a two-tone Beluga and Hotspur Bentley leather with Hotspur stitching. Sounds pretty fancy, right? In addition, it also has knurled side keys, a pillow rail and sound bar, and a 3D Bentley logo. All these components have the feel of exclusivity to them, but there is one problem. Vertu actually released the exact same phone in 2015, except that those models didn’t come with the leather and the 3D Bentley logo. So basically, you’re paying for those things, in addition to what Vertu says is a unique Bentley app that “delivers exclusive content to customers”.

On the technical side, the Signature Touch for Bentley smartphone is powered by Android’s 5.1 Lollipop operating system and has Dolby Digital Plus virtual surround sound capabilities. It also comes with a new Lost Phone service, which allows owners to remotely lock and wipe the phone in the event that it gets lost or stolen. Something tells me that it functions the exact same way as the iPhone’s “Find my iPhone” app.

And as an extra treat, Vertu is offering customers a chance to personalize their Signature Touch for Bentley phones by offering a choice of eight leather and 16 stitching options. It may not be the smartphone for regular folks like you and me, but for those who can afford it, the new Signature Touch for Bentley smartphone is the perfect embodiment of status and exclusivity.

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Why it matters

Here’s where I’m at with this thing. I get it that Vertu knows who its market is. The luxury smart phone builder has never been shy about knowing that. It’s always intended its phones to be used by people who have no problems dropping close to $10,000 on a new phone. In a lot of ways, it’s a brave business model that’s to be admired. But from the looks of things, the Signature Touch for Bentley is a recycled phone that only differentiates itself because of the 3D Bentley logo and the offering of all those leather options.

The technical features are really nothing to get too excited about because you can get the same software and systems from phones that are significantly cheaper than the Signature Touch for Bentley. Think that Android Lollipop 5.1 operating system works differently on my Samsung Galaxy S6? It doesn’t. It’s the same thing. Even that exclusive Bentley app is of little use to anybody who doesn’t own a Bentley. Maybe if you do own a Bentley, you can double up on the exclusivity by buying this phone, but other than that, there’s really no point at even looking at the Signature Touch for Bentley.

Even if i did have the money to buy one, I wouldn't do it for the simple reason that I don’t need a $9,000 smartphone when I can get a lot of what I need from a phone that costs a tenth of that. I know it’s easy to get lost in the hypnotic appeal of owning a Vertu, but if you do find yourselves in a tempted position, tread carefully because you might end up regretting it in the future.