After getting all sorts of stark denials out of Cupertino, it has now been officially confirmed by Philippe Starck himself that he isn’t working on a new Apple product at all. Instead, it was a private project that he’d been doing for Steve Jobs, which has now been passed on to Laurene Powell, Steve Jobs’ widow. He was tasked with designing a luxury yacht for the Jobs family. It might end up looking nice, but it is certainly not a product that will be released under the Apple banner.

So, at the end of the day, the rumor initiated by Starck himself was really just a way for him to get into the public eye and get all sorts of free press from media outlets and the blogosphere. It worked, perhaps, but may have sullied his name.

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Inspired by nature, Turkish designer Ezgi Aksan and Italian designer Ambra Ceronetti designed the Allochroous yacht, which has been announced as the winner of the 2012 Millennium Yacht Design Award (MYDA) in the Dream Boat category. The Allochroous, which will be ideal for conducting a summer concert at sea, features transformable body and color via innovative technologies. So the name Allochroous, which means “changing color”, is perfect for the new concept.

As you can see in the above photo, the new yacht concept has been designed specifically to host concerts, private parties and other events. The use of glass tiles which change color depending on the outside temperature results in the Allochroous transforming its color by day or by night. And not only that, it can even change its shape.

The 40 meter-long yacht’s design resembles a fish out-of-water and it features twin floating arms and a motorized torpedo.  Allochroous’ hull will descend to sea level when it’s not moving and rise when in motion.

There is a lounge area with tables and chairs, a concert floor and a cocktail bar. Private bathrooms, cooking facilities and other services are in the lower deck, and the yacht’s base structure, which is constructed using recycled aluminum, is similar to a honeycomb structure. And they are going the eco-friendly path for energy needs; the solar panels on the roof will be providing the required energy. It also features “Corian” flooring.

What you see above is the Cronos by young designers Simone Madella and Lorenzo Berselli. The design was awarded special mention by the jury. Cronos features a design with a strong focus on wood elements.

Check out the gallery below for knowing more about the two designs.

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Are you frustrated about millions of dollars just lying there in your bank account? You might wanna check out the new superyacht concept from Feadship. The luxury watercraft maker has just unveiled their Future Concept vessel Qi (pronounced “chee”) which will be shown off (scale model only) at the upcoming Dubai International Boat Show.

As you might agree with us, a superyacht is called so because of two reasons: super luxury and super price tag. Therefore Feadship’s Qi, which is named after the Asian concept for life force, is indeed a superyacht.

It took a team of designers and naval architects ten months to come out with a design which includes several innovations. The 56 meter vessel is coming with a combination of main engine and diesel electric generators, which will allow it to travel with a top speed of 16 knots. At 14 knots, the Qi will have a maximum range of 5500 nautical mile.

The Qi’s wedge-shaped hull has just one main propeller (for eliminating drag) and in case there is any problem with that, there is also a separately-powered stern thruster. On the luxury side, you get to play around in a gym/spa, a movie theater, and there’s even a topside Jacuzzi which surrounds a fire pit.

But unfortunately, there are no hints on the price so far. But we do know that the company’s 44.65m yacht Helix was recently sold for around $45 million. The Qi will certainly cost even higher. If that’s going to be a problem for you, at least you can play with your own life force.

Take a peek at the gallery and the video for knowing more about the Qi.

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For people in my income bracket, owning a yacht at all is pretty far out there. But when all of your peers are multimillionaires, it almost becomes a necessity and it constantly becomes a game of who’s got the bigger boat. Venture capitalist Tom Perkins is among the top, cruising around the world in his Maltese Falcon luxury sailing yacht. It’s fast, it’s luxurious, it’s techie… and it’s expensive.

Worth about $130 million, the Maltese Falcon measures an impressive 289 feet long and 40 feet wide. It has fifteen sails across its three masts, soaring as high as 20 stories above the deck. The speedy devil can reach up to 18 knots, crossing the Atlantic Ocean in just ten days.

Speed is one thing, but when you’re rich, you want to be comfortable too. There’s no shortage of plasma TVs and yacht-wide WiFi connectivity, of course, as well plenty of high-end finishes. It can accommodate up to 12 guests at a time quite comfortably with its five lower deck staterooms and one VIP cabin on the upper deck. Need to get ashore (or bail)? There are two 32 foot RIB tenders, four laser sailing boats, and one 14 foot Castold jet tender.

This third largest sailing yacht in the world also comes with the Falcon Rig, a DynaRig sailing system that can adjust those masts with the push of a button. Who has time to actually push masts and things around when you’re sipping on champagne and snacking on caviar?

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