You ask why you get labeled as obsessed. Look at the length, frequency, and tone of your comments.

Also, this is not a free speech issue. You, of course, have the right to say whatever you want. I have the right to say whatever I want. So does anyone who agrees or disagrees with either of us. I have the right to say "I don't understand this obsession of yours" and that in no way infringes on your free speech. Anyone can say what they want. It's one big happy interwebs.

I'm done.

Multi,

Refer to Krisjohn's earlier post and I think you'll see the attitude of most Blu-ray owners such as myself. No, I'm not "laughably bitter that Blu-ray did not take off as they had expected." In fact, I couldn't care less about sales numbers, market penetration or anything like that. You could be right, but I'm not going to invest the necessary time to find out because it doesn't matter to me. All that matters to me is that as a very happy Blu owner, I can watch pretty much every movie that comes out today as well as quite a few classics in the absolute best picture and audio quality available in the home today, bar none. Because of this, I don't have to obsess over statistics and sales numbers to make myself feel better. I enjoy watching movies in the best audio/video quality available. This is fun for me and I absolutely am happy with Blu. The end.

Really, I don't understand this obsession of yours. Live and let live. Relax and enjoy life. You should try it sometime.

Mike,

I think I know what you're talking about 'cause I'm in the same boat, but if you haven't priced things out, you shouldn't assume that it's more expensive. FiOS has rearranged their packages, and now to get all HD channels (sans premiums and foreign language channels) you need the Extreme HD TV package. Until September/October, this package was unavailable and nearly all subscribers had the Premiere TV package which would give you all HD channels (sans premiums, foreign language, and some sports channels).

However, I have not talked to a single person who has moved from Premiere to Extreme HD and found that it was more expensive. In most cases (including mine) you actually end up saving anywhere from $5-$50/month. And a lot of times, faster internet is included too. So look into it more. You may be HAPPY that you "have to" switch packages.

Actually, surprisingly, FiOS may get Comcast SportsNet if they ever do get into the city limits of Philly. I live in Bucks County 30 minutes outside of Philly, and was shocked to find out that when I switched from comcrap to FiOS I could still watch all my Phillies game b/c FiOS had Comcast SportsNet.

So yes, there is absolutely, positively, no reason whatsoever to stick with Comcast if you have the choice. So glad they're gone from my life forever.

Recon,

What it means is this:

1) Comcast has 37 HD channels.
2) FiOS has 104 HD channels.
3) To make people think that Comcast has more HD than FiOS, Comcast counts all their HD OnDemand content as "choices" along with their 37 channels and says "We have more HD choices than FiOS." They don't mention how the two numbers they're comparing were calculated and mislead Joe Consumer into thinking that Comcast has more HD channels than FiOS.

As a former Comcrap subscriber in the Philly area I feel exactly the same way. I always wondered how Comcast could claim to have more HD... So that's how. They count their VOD since they only have 37 HD channels vs. FiOS's 100+. Seriously Comcast is a joke.

Just like you said, FiOS has (WAY) more HD channels and much faster internet, for less money. It's a no-brainer. Oh, and the HD quality is better too:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1008271

And on the router, there are ways to set things up so you don't have to use their router:

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r17679150-Howto-make-ActionTec-MI424WR-a-network-bridge

If they were smart they would lower prices. It may not "mitigate the impact of the appreciation of the yen" as well, but it would better deal with other current economic realities (read: people not spending any money right now), and with the corresponding increase in volume of sales that lower prices would drive, would lead to greater profitability in the long run.

Seconded.

For short digital cable runs where construction quality won't make a difference, Monoprice's prices can't be beat (and their quality is good too!).

For the absolute best money can buy in cable quality, Blue Jeans Cable is unbeatable, and won't rip you off.

True. Unfortunately, Onkyo's customer service is ridiculous. In a very bad way. Try googling "onkyo firmware"

Wes, man, you need to check the headlines every once in a while. For pretty much everyone but Verizon (and for them, only with FiOS), their networks are absolutely maxed out. The buzzwords today are "traffic shaping" and "bandwidth caps" (read: artificial slow-downs on heavy users and paying extra if you go over a certain amount of usage per month). Not necessarily everyone will do both of those things (Comcast is already doing both), but the trend is definitely in that direction. Not towards better/faster service. You're right that for a while things we're trending upward, but there's only so much speed you can force out of coaxial cable...

See:

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/ATT-Again-Hints-At-Bandwidth-Crackdown-97753?nocomment=1

http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/its_official_comcast_announces_250gbmonth_bandwidth_cap