No, it isn’t a watch but it does tell the time – this is the exclusive debut of the Link Smart Phone with pictures and details. It started with the Meridiist luxury phone in 2008 and now comes the Link Smart Phone – the second major mobile phone from Tag Heuer. It will run Android and be tough as nails according to Tag Heuer. One major complaint many people have about super high-end phones (aside from the obvious complaints) is that they are no more, or less durable that normal phones. Drop many of them and bye-bye to telecom investment.

If I am to spend $5,000 and up on a cell phone, I want to know that it will survive drops, disasters, and the train crash from Super 8. Tag Heuer goes into great detail discussing how it is water-tight, fully air-sealed, shock-resistant, and used some type of a hard material over the screen called Gorilla Glass (is that related to Gorilla Glue?). I don’t know precisely what the phone will put up with… but at least it puts up with a bit of abuse.

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The case itself can be had in steel, 18k rose gold, and titanium. Trim includes rubber, alligator, leather, and other materials. Link Tag Heuer timepieces, the Link Smart Phone has a crown on the side of it. I am not sure what it is used for, but it might be part of the port above it that houses the charging port, SIM card, and memory card.

Most luxury phones are pretty limited in terms of their functionality, but Tag Heuer really wanted to make sure that the Link offered the experience more demanding clientele would want – so being an Android powered device is a good idea. While it does ship with the older Android 2.2, that will likely be upgraded down the line. On top of the base OS, Tag Heuer is said to throw in a bunch of goodies that will be anything from special ring tones to pictures, and so forth. Internal memory is scant at 256 megs, but the memory card that is included has 8 gigs. With the iPhone setting a lot of bars, I cant see how high-end phones don’t have at least 16-32 gigs of storage, but that is another discussion.

I do have to say that the Link does look very chic and good looking. Tag Heuer knows how to pull on my geek heartstrings with that very cool promo video. I’d be more than happy to tote around the black and gold model. Though it is going to cost more that the starting price of 4,700 Euros.

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The full details from Tag Heuer:

Unlike anything else on the luxury market, the TAG Heuer LINK is a high-performance machine of unprecedented functionality. Extreme reliability and robustness are guaranteed through a battery of quality tests well exceeding industry standards.
Stand out features include lightning-fast connectivity, 16-million color screen resolution, a large 3.5’’ display, a high-definition 5-mega-pixel auto-focus camera, 11 hours of music play time, and, through its avant-garde Android operating system, download access to over 250,000 applications. It also comes fully loaded with a host of TAG Heuer add-ons: customized screen designs,widgets, animations, wallpapers, icons and ring tones.

Swiss Watchmaking tradition allied with the latest in high-tech telephony

The TAG Heuer LINK is instantly recognizable as a top-end TAG Heuer product, avant-gardeboth for its ergonomic design and its very contemporary elegance. Motion, purity, curve, precision, a shimmering dynamism in its form and silhouette – these are its signature values.

The luxury handset is composed of classic watch components and cutting-edge technology. Fully shockproof, the body is engineered like the case of a TAG Heuer watch. As airtight and locked-down as a strong box, it provides full protection of the precious contents – your videos, photos, files and data – sealed in its interior.

Other signature TAG Heuer references include the screws on the handset’s reinforced chassis, which echo those on the casebacks of TAG Heuer chronographs. The unique autolock system on the side, which gives quick access to the SIM card, the connection port and the memory card, sports the TAG Heuer’s shield in black lacquer and looks like a classic TAG Heuer timepiece crown.

A luxury design object of ultimate prestige and performance

Luxuriously crafted and detailed, the TAG Heuer LINK incorporates the most prestigious materials and advanced components in the watchmaking and automotive worlds, including black PVD, diamonds and rose gold. The mirror-polished and fine-brushed stainless steel is premium grade surgical 316L, corrosion-resistant and hypoallergenic. The big display front is made from visually stunning, lightweight, and highly damage-resistant Gorilla glass®. The exclusive, hand-worked coverings are in calfskin, alligator or lizard. Every material, precious stone and exotic skin or leather is sourced within the strictest industry standards.

Exclusively launched in TAG Heuer retailers in July 2011, the TAG Heuer LINK is the essential work hard/play instrument, ideal for business and entertainment. Like thewatchmaking heritage that inspires it, it delivers avant-garde luxury with uncompromisingstrength, precision and reliability. A communications instrument of uncompromised calibreand capabilities, it shares the pinnacle of high-performance engineering and innovation with its partner, the MERIDIIST.

The TAG Heuer LINK seriously upgrades the way the world connects.

Main characteristics
Size: 118mm (H) x 67mm (W) x 16.6mm (D)
OS: Android 2.2
Form factor: Bar type touch screen
Weight: 200 grams (battery included)
3G Talk time: 6 hours 30 minutes
Stand by time: up to 330hrs (~14 days)
Battery included: Li-lon 1400mAh

Messaging
SMS / MMS / Email (Predictive Text Input XT9)
Image formats supported: JPEG / GIF / BMP
Sound formats supported: MP3 / AAC / AAC+ / RA / WMA

Connectivity
Stereo Bluetooth
AGPS, Wifi, WAPI
Compatible with any SIM card

Radio
Edge & HSUPA (3G)
4 Band GSM/Tri Band WCDMA

Music / Photo & Video
Internal memory: 256 MB
Memory card: 8GB
Music play time: 11 hours

Photo & Video
LCM Screen: TFT 3.5”
Screen resolution: 800*480 pixels — 16 millions of colors
5 Mega Pixel Camera Auto Focus
Video player and recorder

Applications
Android Market with up to 250 000 applications such as:
Adobe Flash Reader
Google Search, Google Maps
GMail , You Tube , E-Blogger

Phone Materials
316L Stainless steel, Gold, Diamonds, Black PVD, Titanium, Rubber, Calfskin leather,
Carbon leather, Alligator and Lizard

Price
An entry price of 4700.


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