So I've been wanting a Leica system for a LONG time. But it's soooooo cost prohibitive. A brand new setup is like $10k (M9p + 50mm lens). A good condition used, older digital system is around $3-4k (M8 + 50mm). And even a 35mm system is $2k plus film/processing (M6 + 50mm). I talked with some photo friends and did a bunch of research and didn't know what I was going to do. I can't carry a 5d Mark II or 7d with me everywhere, it just gets annoying. But I want an every day camera. When I went to South America I bought the Canon G12 to shoot with down there and that won't work for a photographer. The controls on it sucked. Then I read Zack Arias' review of the X100 [read it here] and he called it "the greatest digital camera ever made and may just be the greatest camera I have ever owned". Talk about a convincing review. I took the plunge and this was my first weekend with the camera. Learned a ton and I'm 50/50 on keeping it ($1300 is a lot for a carry around camera). But we'll see, it feels great and the images look great so I'm sure it'll make it's way around my shoulder.