Digital Home Thoughts: Leica M9: Fascinatingly Designed; Breathtakingly Priced

"For most amateur photographers, Leica's legendary M System represents a virtually unobtainable holy grail, a line of cameras so unspeakably expensive, rare, and coveted that even having the opportunity to hold one -- much less own one -- is a somewhat unrealistic goal. ... [W]hat, exactly, does it feel like to carry $11,695 worth of rangefinder body and lens around?"

From Chris Ziegler's "hands-on" review at Engadget, carrying around the Leica M9 feels very good indeed. This is an absolutely fascinating camera: a compact sized, retro-look digital rangefinder with an 18MP full-frame sensor and magnesium alloy chassis, that also includes a copy of Adobe's Photoshop Lightroom in its rather substantial list price of just under $7,000 (US; body only). My introduction to serious photography was with a Yashica Minister D 35mm rangefinder, and there is much to be said for the simplicity and speed a rangefinder can provide; still, I cannot help but find the pricing to be somewhat breathtaking! Read the Engadget review for more insight into this highly regarded camera, and then post your opinion: do you see this as a serious alternative to a DSLR, given the price range?