Let the hive mind of Engadget get that for you.
"I've found myself using my PC for a lot of conversations lately, and I'm also considering recording a podcast to share with anyone who will listen. There are tons of USB headset / microphones out there, and I'm hoping someone has some solid recommendations based on experience. I'll consider both headsets and standalone mics, by the way, but I'd like to keep the bill under $100 if possible. Help!"
Maybe Cable will be using MPEG4 to receive programming from providers but I don't understand how they will be sending MPEG4 to consumers when.
All those old Motorola DCT series STBs do have MPEG4 decoders in hardware and the CPUs aren't powerful enough to do it in software. I am not sure on the DCH and SA/Cisco stuff...but are cable companies really ready to mass upgrade even just the HD subscribers?
All Digital Cable Ready TVs sold both currently and in the past don't have MPEG4 decoders either.
Maybe for Pay Per View and things that require a two-way STB anyway...but I can't see mainstream linear HD channels going to MPEG4 anytime soon.
They'll have to replace the boxes. This happens every few years anyway.