The BlackBerry Porsche Design P’9981 smartphone is coming to Malaysia and it is set to launch this Wednesday(20 June). Expect the BlackBerry Porsche Design P’9981 to be priced somewhere close to RM6,500. An exclusive device with an exclusive price!
Does this smartphone justify the cost? Maybe not from a technical perspective but according to RIM, the exclusive material choices for this unique smartphone include a forged stainless steel frame, hand-wrapped leather back cover, sculpted QWERTY keyboard, and crystal clear touch display. This customized Porsche Design P’9981 comes with an exclusive Porsche Design UI and a bespoke Wikitude World Browser augmented reality app experience. It also includes premium, exclusive PINs that help easily identify another P’9981 smartphone user.
“Since 1972 Porsche Design has presented milestone products with iconic style, and the P’9981 smartphone from BlackBerry will be our next landmark,” said Dr. Juergen Gessler, CEO Porsche Design Group. “The pure and distinctive design, coupled with authentic materials and an emphasis on the manufacturing process, perfectly match our philosophy and complement the Porsche Design product assortment.”
“This collaboration stems from a shared belief that form equals function ,” said Todd Wood, SVP for Industrial Design, Research In Motion. “The Porsche Design P’9981 is a truly modern luxury smartphone, where the timeless style of Porsche Design meets the unmatched mobile experience provided by BlackBerry.”
The BlackBerry Porsche Design P’9981 smartphone was announced in October last year. The smartphone has the same features of the BlackBerry Bold Touch 9900.
Like the Bold Touch 9900, the P’9981 uses a 1.2GHz single-core processor, 768MB of RAM, 8GB storage, OS 7.0 and 5MP camera. For connectivity, there HSPA, Bluetooth 2.1, WiFi, AGPS and Near Field Communications(NFC).
We received word that none of the mobile operators will be offering the Porsche smartphone(thanks to its price) but it will be available via Brighstar Malaysia with limited units.
[Update(22 June, 12pm)]: No official price from RIM yet but our source confirmed that the BlackBerry Porsche Design P’9981 will be priced at RM6388. First shipment is expected late next week with availability scheduled in early July. It will be available via Brighstar Malaysia and Maxis will be the only Telco to offer it.