This very special limited edition of the M7 35mm camera comes in silver chrome with calfskin leather accents in two colors, orange and the mysteriously named "etoupe" (sic). Brian likes the orange but I prefer the etoupe—the orange version seems like the one you'd take on a hunting trip, while the etoupe seems like more of a safari jaunt. What can I say, I love animals, and Brian loves eating them.

The M7 includes a Leica SUMMILUX-M 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH. wide-angle lens, lens hood, LEICAVIT M winder and a matching carrying case. There aren't too many changes from the original M7, just a few cosmetic things mostly so the original styling doesn't clash with your new baby cow skin leather. It's pretty much the best-looking camera I've ever seen, and commands the kind of price you'd expect: £8550, or about $14,400 USD. That's incredibly expensive, sure, but the standard M7 costs about $5,000 and these things last forever, so it's not like you'll have to buy the Leica "M7S" (zing!) in six months. The M7 Hermes edition will be available in the UK sometime in December. [Pocket-Lint via Engadget]

Rumors surrounding the launch of this expensive little retro looker have been with us since about November 10, when the expertly named Leica Rumors site broke word that the company sharing their namesake was all but prepared to reveal a limited edition film camera.

Two weeks before that, the M7 Hermes camera was showcased in Tokyo, looking gorgeous. Its presence there was no accident, apparently, as the latest tidbits, mentioned above, are that this M7 Hermes thing is about to skip onto the scene in a mere 24 hours.

For the price of a compact sedan, it could be yours. [Leica Rumors]

Designed by luxury fashion company Hermes and ship-builder Wally, the $142 million WHY 58x38 is more floating mansion than yacht. Those figures stand for its peculiar 58 by 38 meter dimensions, which is unlike any other vessel in the world. It features solar panels that will save 200 tons of diesel fuel per year, as well as 3,229 square feet of windows designed to bathe its interior with natural light.

According to Luca Bassini, founder of Wally, "I think the best part of this boat is the stern. It's not like the usual stern of a boat, it's more like the real beach of an island; a beach which is protected from the wind and the waves, where you can really relax." You are so damn right, Luca. If you are reading this, please move it somewhere near New York so I can lease one of its six suites for a year or two (and be a pal and make that the 2,152-square-foot master suite, please). [Daily Mail]

If you're brave and really want WM6 on your phone, give it a shot. Just don't be a afraid to get your phone a little bricked. – Jason Chen

WM XDA Live [XDA Dev via Engadget Mobile]

The sucessor to the HTC Wizard, which is the design all the above phones are based on, the Hermes has a 2.8-inch screen, scroll wheel, UMTS, Bluetooth 2.0, video calling, 2-megapixel camera, and 400MHz processor. And since it's quad-band GSM, you can only import it to use on Cingular or T-Mobile. All these improved features do come with a price, as it's around $800 to $900 depending on where you look online. – Jason Chen

The HTC Hermes / Dopod 838Pro Review [Gear Diary via Slashgear]

No other information is available now, but you bet our resident HTC fanboy (me) will update when news hits. – Jason Chen

HTC Herald: first photos and detailed lists. SoloPalmari exclusive right. [SoloPalmari via Engadget]

Cingular 8525 [Via CrunchGear, Engadget]

It's going to be available from Singapore (Dopod is primarily a company that services the Asian market) for $1,398 SGD ($884) or $1,248 SGD ($789) with a contract. $884 is actually fairly decent for a Hermes-based device, seeing as pre-order units for the TyTN are around $1000 USD online. – Jason Chen

RELEASE: Dopod introduces the Dopod 838Pro 3G Pocket PC Phone Edition [The Unwired via uber phones]

Chief mob-ologist Dave at Mobility Today got some hands time with the HTC TyTN, the in-house model name for the HTC Hermes.

Besides the speedy 400MHz CPU, Dave's impressed with the better keyboard, second camera, and small-ish dimensions—it's the same size as the Treo 700p and other similar devices. Check out his video to see all his thoughts. – Jason Chen

HTC TyTN [Mobility Today]

The HTC Breeze, on the other hand, is a candybar style phone with 2.2-inch QVGA screen and microSD slot. It's got miniUSB, Bluetooth, IR, 128MB of RAM and 64MB of internal memory. Check out the link for loads of pictures. – Jason Chen

HTC Breeze - Windows Smartphone - Picture Gallery [Phone Arena]

HTC Hermes [Phone Arena via uber gizmo]

And then there's the StarTrek, which looks not so much like the gadget that beamed up Captain Kirk, but a lot like a RAZR (the photo doesn't do it much justice). The StarTrek has nearly the same dimensions as the RAZR, along with a 320 x 240 QVGA screen, 2 Megapixel camera with flash, Bluetooth, a Micro SD slot and compatibility with EDGE, GPRS and GSM Quadband networks.

There does not appear to be any connection between the StarTrek phone and the official Star Trek licensor, Paramount. Did HTC put down money to use that name, or do they think that closing the space between those two words would somehow let them off the hook? I suppose we'll find out by March 2006, which is when this phone is expected to go on sale.

HTC StarTrek appears - and it looks fantastic! [CoolSmartPhone]
EXCLUSIVE: photos of HTC Star Trek smartphone and HTC Hermes Pocket PC phone [MSMobiles]