(Click here for a larger view of Gresso's Skeleton)

The "Skeleton" moniker for Gresso's new device is designed to evoke thoughts of skeleton watches, which have for centuries displayed their mechanisms through one or more holes in their cases. This new phone, of course, has no moving parts, but nonetheless Gresso has fitted a rear window (pictured above, and below right), said to use the type of sapphire crystal glass used in high-end watches, that provides a view of the device's circuitry.


Gresso's Skeleton
The case of the Skeleton -- "designed for those who have achieved everything and are accustomed to make great demands of life" -- is made of titanium alloy, protected by a special ceramic coating, according to the company. Meanwhile, the device features keys of "aircraft-quality" steel, plus a battery cover that is said to have a patented magnetic lock and to be decorated in leather.

Gresso's earlier Luna Steel (Click image for further information)

Oh, and in another "innovation by Gresso," the Skeleton's keys are said to be labeled via Roman numerals. This particular detail isn't claimed to be a first, since Roman numerals were also used on the company's previous flight of fancy, the Luna Steel (right) released in April.

The Skeleton also features state-of-the-art ingredients inside -- that is, "state-of-the-art" for other Windows Mobile smartphones selling for as little as $100. The device runs Windows Mobile 6.0 on an unspecified processor, provided with 64MB of RAM and 2GB of flash storage. Meanwhile, the screen, whose size is not specified, has QVGA (320 x 240) resolution.

Telephony is tri-band (900/1800/1900MHz) GSM, and the device also includes Bluetooth 1.2 and two megapixel cameras. It can play MIDI, WMA, WAV, AVI, ASF, and WMV files via Windows Media Player, says Gresso.

Technical features and specifications provided by Gresso for the Skeleton include:

• Processor -- unspecified
  
• Memory -- 64MB RAM and 2GB flash
  
• Operating system -- Windows Mobile 6.0
  
• Display -- Size unspecified, but features 320 x 240 resolution and sapphire crystal
  
• Camera -- 2 megapixel
  
• Wireless interfaces:
  • WAN -- Tri-band GSM (900/18001900MHz)
    
  • PAN -- Bluetooth 1.2
• Other I/O -- USB for PC synchronization
  
• Expansion -- none specified
  
• Battery type/life -- n/s, but previous Sol Steel and Luna Steel models were said to have 1100mAh lithium-ion battery, with 4 hours talk time, and 150 hours standby
  
• Dimensions -- n/s, but Sol Steel and Luna Steel were said to measure 4.7 x 1.9 x 0.6 inches (119 x 48 x 14mm)

Further information

The Skeleton is available now, priced at $5,000 in dollars or 4,000 Euros, according to Gresso. The device is sold by the Russian phone retailer Euroset.

Gresso says just 15 numbered samples of the Skeleton will be made. While this would be easy to mock, there appears to be an ongoing market for this sort of thing: The company's previously announced devices, which appear to use the same basic case and innards, are still listed as available, variously clad in steel, gold, or diamonds.

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