Is the Nokia Oro a beautifully crafted and exclusive handset with will impress people with your good taste? Or is it a just tarted up Nokia C7 with a bit of bling and costing nearly four times as much? The truth is that it is a bit of both.

Nokia are remarkably honest about their target customers  - they say that "The main markets for this sort of device are the Middle East and Russia.. premium products like Nokia Oro have always been best sellers in Russia.. In some areas, possession of such premium products is the passport to being taken seriously." In other words, the Oro really is about showing off and Nokia are not ashamed by it.

Fortunately, the Nokia C7 that this is based on is a pretty decent Symbian handset, and Nokia are shipping the Oro with the latest version of the OS called "Anna" plus custom themes to match the handset's exclusive design. On the front is a 3.5" 360 x 640 pixel touchscreen, there's an 8 megapixel camera with 720p video capture on the back plus support for HSPA high-speed data, WiFi and GPS and even NFC support. Where some other luxury handsets - including Nokia's Vertu brand - basically sell gold plated crap, the Oro is at least a very capable smartphone underneath.

Nokia Oro "Oro" means "gold", and the handset's scratch resistant 18 carat gold plating is certainly distinctive. On the back is a premium leather finish, and the home key has is protected by a sapphire crystal. It does all look rather tasteful and not too garish in both "light" and "dark" versions, so Nokia have done quite well here too.

The Oro also ships with a gold plated "Nokia J" Bluetooth headset, although other than that the standard sales package is pretty sparsely populated and lacks a microSD card (although there's 8GB built in) or a case.

Nokia say that the Oro should be available from Q3 in "selected countries" in Europe, the Middle East and China.

The price is quoted as being upwards of €800, so expect it to retail for about €1000 when you add tax. It may be expensive, but bear in mind that a Vertu will cost you at least €4000 and will have only about as much functionality as €40 entry level phone.. and with the Oro you're are at least getting a €270 smartphone underneath all the gold, so in that case the Oro does look like a bit of a bargain.

The Sharp Aquos Phone Hybrid (also called the Softbank 007SH) is an Android clamshell phone with 3D capabilities. It will be available next month on the Softbank network in Japan.. and there's a small possibility that Sharp might sell it elsewhere too.

The Japanese phone ecosystem is pretty much unique. Japanese manufacturers still dominate their domestic market where they have faded in the rest of the world, Symbian is still a very significant player on the NTT DoCoMo network and clamshells never went away.

It's been a while since we last looked at a Sharp device, the SX862 from 2008, and this Aquos phone is very similar in looks, retaining a style that goes all the way back to handsets such as the Sharp 902 which we did see outside of Japan. It's worth pointing out that Softbank's mobile network used to be Vodafone Japan before it was sold off five years ago.. at which point the supply of Japanese-style 3G phones to Europe began to die off.

Back to the matter in hand though - the Aquos Phone Hybrid looks rather odd on the surface, but underneath this is a somewhat familiar Android 2.3 device that isn't a million miles away from the sort of smartphone you might see everyday.

Sharp are well known for their "Aquos" flat panel TV technology which finds its way into the Aquos Phone Hybrid. It's a fairly compact but very high resolution 3.4" 480 x 854 pixel touchscreen which is 3D capable. The display swivels around, so it can be used as a large clamshell phone or a conventional tablet arrangement. The 3D is a glasses-free affair, whether or not this type of thing on this type of device is anything more than a gimmick is questionable. Outside is a small semi-concealed 0.7 inch panel for displaying the time and status indicators.

On the outside is a 16 megapixel camera, which is probably a bit excessive but then this is Japan we suppose. Video capture is 720p HD, and you can output video clips and media via an HDMI cable to a compatible HD TV or via DLNA.

Sharp Aquos Phone Hybrid (Softbank 007SH) The keypad is a pretty standard numeric affair with the Android keys put on in seemingly random places. There's quite a lot of empty space on it, because the Aquos Phone Hybrid is a seriously big device. Measuring 113 x 52 x 19mm when closed, the Aquos Phone opens up to be a huge 216mm device (or 8.5 inches in old money). It weighs 140 grams.

An unusual feature in this phone is that it is water and dust resistant, as far as we can tell to IP57 standards which makes it as robust as the Samsung B2100, which is very impressive. We suspect that it lacks the shock resistance of some of the super-tough phones on the market, partly due to that big screen and hinge arrangement, but the Aquos Phone Hybrid should certainly survive most encounters with real life.

Underneath, this is a UMTS 2100 MHz capable handset which would theoretically work in Europe, and it also has tri-band GSM. Softbank customers will be able to roam pretty much everywhere with this device. There's a microSD slot, Bluetooth and surprisingly the Aquos Hybrid packs an infra-red port, an interface which is still popular in Japan.

We would love to see this device available to more that just Softbank customers. Although Sharp have been concentrating almost exclusively on the Japanese market lately, some other recent models have turned up in other Asian markets. It would be great if Sharp had the courage to return to the European market with this device as it would certainly shake things up a bit!

From time-to-time we like to run stories about retro devices, and you might think that the Motorola GLEAM is such a device. After all, these days Motorola is that Android smartphone maker, right? And the GLEAM looks like it has popped out of a time warp from 5 years ago.

Well, the GLEAM is a very current device.. and Motorola's own marketing materials acknowledge the heritage in the ancient RAZR line of fashion phones. It is really a reinterpretation of the old RAZR with modern features, and actually it's a rather pleasing device aimed at consumers with less demanding tastes.

In terms of size and weight, the GLEAM is almost identical to any number of RAZR phones from the past. Measuring 106 x 53 x 14mm and weighing 105 grams, the GLEAM is actually quite large when closed. Of course, open it up and the whole point of the design becomes apparent, with a relatively large 2.4" 240 x 320 pixel display and a big keypad underneath. Outside is a glossy case with a semi-concealed display (popular a couple of years back) which comes in a variety of colours, and the GLEAM also has some cool lighting effects built in.

This is a GSM-only device, so don't expect luxuries such as 3G or WiFi.. rather surprisingly, the GLEAM doesn't seem to support EDGE Motorola GLEAM data either, so you're stuck with plain old GPRS speeds equivalent to a dial-up modem. There is a web browser of sorts and an email client, but at these speeds you probably won't want to do much on the internet.

Music is a stronger point. The media player can cope with MP3, AAC and AMR audio, plus the Motorola GLEAM has an FM radio. Video playback is more basic, but this really isn't that type of phone. There's a 3.5mm audio socket (which is useful) and a microSD slot (which is essential).

On the back of the GLEAM is a basic 2 megapixel camera with video capture capabilities, suitable for the occasional snapshot and low-res video clip and probably not much more. Other features on the GLEAM include Bluetooth and USB connectivity.

If you remember the interface on the original RAZR.. well, it was horrible. Motorola have learned a lot about interface design recently though, and more modern Motorola handsets are much easier to use than the old ones.

The 750 mAh battery is quoted as giving over 6 hours talktime and 20 days standby time, which is one of the areas that a phone like this really wins out over power hungry smartphones which sometimes need to be charged at least once a day. You can keep the Motorola GLEAM in a pocket or bag for days on end and not have to worry about charging it if you want to make a call or listen to some music.

There's a big market for relatively basic handsets like this, and the GLEAM's looks certainly count in its favour. After all, most RAZR phones are long gone and almost forgotten, and the clamshell design has a lot going for in terms of usability. Of course, it would be really cool if Motorola made an Android phone like this.. but perhaps not yet.

The Motorola GLEAM is available now through the Carphone Warehouse in the UK starting at ￡50 for a prepay model. It is also available at The Phone House in Germany for €99 SIM-free, and we would expect it to be available in certain other territories later.