Luxury

We suspect that some New Year's Eve merriment was involved in the bidding, but the much-hyped albino PlayStation 3 sold for $1,425 when it finished its eBay run Dec. 31. Nevertheless, the lucrative auction definitely proved that there was a market for the console in custom colors.

Now, we're shocked to find that the same guy who sold the white PS3 will be offering even more colors--shocked because it took an entire three days before it was announced. Joystiq says Michal Berecki of PS3 Center will add red and silver consoles to his repertoire "in the … Read more

We try not to be too judgmental about luxury items here at Crave, being of the capitalistic ilk ourselves. But this is one example that even we find galling: a diamond-studded cell phone strap.

Renowned Japanese jewelry designer Diaddict has created a one-of-a-kind strap that boasts a 6.02-carat yellow diamond, .61-carat blue diamond, .36-carat pink diamond and 2.1 carats of white diamonds, according to Luxist. The price: 100 million yen, or about $842,000.

At that price, you'd be hard-pressed to find a phone that cost more than the strap, even if you were an Egyptian queen.… Read more

With new phones coming out daily, it's rare to see one that stands apart significantly from the crowd. Mobiado's "Luminoso" does just that but, to truly appreciate its uniqueness, you may want to turn out the lights.

The most striking feature of the handset is, of all things, its buttons. Made of sapphire and stainless steel, they are highlighted in a "dual illumination technique that lights the keypad area from beneath and above," according to the luxury phone maker's site. The 3G handset is also packed with features inside, including a 2-megapixel camera … Read more

Items like this appear to leave little doubt that Western capitalistic values have taken firm hold in China.

Lenovo and the Beijing Zhongshi Boda Company have released a pair of gold and silver USB drives made from 30 grams of the precious metals. Spluch says they're being sold as a limited-edition set to commemorate the "Year of the Pig" according to the lunar calendar, inscribed with Chinese proverbs, for $1,280 in Beijing. That's a lot of money, especially in China, but it's still a bargain compared with this single USB key from Japan that … Read more

Stretch limos are for wimps. If you really want to make a statement, check out the "world's longest motorcycle," which Red Ferret says measures a full 31 feet and 4 inches.

The bike was created by a Russian inventor named Oleg Rogov who reportedly died this summer in an accident. According to the blog English Russia, he was inspired to build it "probably after he got too much beer inside."

So maybe you think living in a building inspired by a certain ubiquitous digital audio player--or, let's be real, ANY sort of gadget--sounds silly. We don't blame you.

But check out the new pics of the iPad anyway--they're actually kind of fantastic.

The budget for the 23-story Dubai apartment/office building, announced last week, is $800 million (or 3 billion Dirhams), and developers plan to open the iPad's doors in 2009.

And, yes, that is a "docking station" the building will be resting on at an alarmingly accurate 6-degree angle.

Now that plasma TVs have reached the point of no return, we've been wondering what furniture makers would do to replace the cumbersome faux armoire that had become a fixture in so many living rooms in a somewhat vain attempt to conceal the tube. It's probably too early for a definitive standard to take hold, but we're starting to see a sandwich-board design gaining popularity for TV stands.

The latest company to take this approach is Alivar, an Italian (of course) designer of contemporary furnishings that has come out with a sandwich stand made of aluminum in … Read more

We're continually surprised at the things we learn while assembling material for Crave. We had no idea, for example, that Karl Lagerfeld was such an iPod fanatic. So much so, in fact, that he has more than 100 of them, according to Sybarites, and has even designed an iPod trunk for Fendi. (Maybe he needs one for each new recipe he concocts.)

But if you're a simple person and just want an individual case, the uber-designer has created one made of leather and velvet with Fendi's trademark Zucca print. Regardless of whether it's your color, we'… Read more

As fellow Craver Erica Ogg noted while wearing another of her many hats recently, domestic appliances are getting hipper than ever. And one of the more popular household items to get a makeover is the lowly vacuum cleaner. (No, we're not talking about the Wiimote-controlled Roomba.)

Industrial designer Karim Rashid has applied his considerable talents to transform the "Dirt Devil," of all things, into a cone-shaped functional sculpture, according to Popgadget. The tarted-up cordless appliance, which comes in six colors, has a vertical design to save space as well. If nothing else, it proves that a vacuum … Read more