Yes please

A PS3, ... in late 2007 or so, ... once the price has dropped to something reasonable.

Currently I'm being moderately underwhelmed by the Avel LinkPlayer2, the capability of streaming video to my HDTV is great, the streaming video quality is very good, being able to display slideshows in widescreen HD is a treat. But the usability is horrible, the dvd player is a chore to use, and the remote is a mess. It works, but it's a chore to use, maybe the X3000 is easier to use? Or is an iTV my only hope of a non-MCE solution for streaming video to a HDTV?

Partially it would be for use with my 5 year old PIII-900 Dell laptop (when can I win a new Core 2 Duo laptop from you guys?); but primarily just for checking early-starting games from work, or scheduling recordings on TiVo.

I've long since given up eagerly anticipating anything related to Microsoft. Although, if I had an Xbox360, I would probably eagerly anticipate the Halo 3, since I only have a PS2, and have never played either of the first two Halo iterations.

no cable card (although there is a slot in my now-old Samsung DLP tv), DirecTV HD TiVo for now, that is until DirecTV stops supporting them and the cablecard TiVos come down in price and I make the switch back to cable.

Avel LinkPlayer2 direct from IO Data US for 250. It has several minor issues: remote is crap, front panel buttons are crap, dvd video quality is good but not great, file selection interface is good but not great, fast forwarding through streaming files is clunky, no Quicktime, no HDMI, doesn't upscale DVDs apparently. But, the video file playback quality is great, both streaming HD and playing HD from discs (free HDNET content came with the player). I download some 16:9 BBC content and although it's not HD it looks good and is much more enjoyable to watch than on the computer. I'd be happy to find something better/cheaper, but for 250 it's the best divx/hd content streaming device that I've found.

In response to Grouchie: Interesting, I wasn't aware that there were receivers on the market doing component to HDMI conversion. That combined with scaling all of the input sources to whatever format a HDTV displays would be very convienient, but it's more than what I think most people would need. I think one output HDMI connection for digital sources and one output Component connection for analog sources would suit the majority of people, and spare the cost of additional electronics to do conversion/scaling (except for composite/s-video to component). The RX-V are close, but my main complaint is that they try to make them "future proof" when there aren't even enough HDMI connections for today; and won't let go of the past and remove most of the analog connections.

As for dvd-audio/sacd: a) I've never met anyone who has every used dvd-audio or sacd, b) why wouldn't you connect the dvd-audio/sacd player via a digital optical/coax connection?, c) worst case, a "modern" receiver should still have a couple audio rca pairs for legacy devices (just not 10).

In response to Mike F.: An HDMI-only receiver is a nice thought; maybe in a couple years it'll be possible. In the meantime, Blu-ray, HD-DVD, PS3 are a ways off both in timing an acceptable pricing, XBOX 360 doesn't even come with an HDMI cable, and what about connecting up an ipod, current game consoles, etc. I'm looking for the middle ground of more digital connections, fewer analog connections, in a smaller package, and hopefully a smaller price.

What I want to know is where are the receivers that are phasing out analog in favor of digital/HD? How many people (or at least readers of HDBeat) really need 5+ composite/s-vid inputs and 7+ stereo audio inputs? Where are the streamlined models with 3xHDMI/DVI, 3xComponent, 5xdigital optical, 2xComposite/S-vid (converted to component output), and 4xStereo Audio. How much would that shrink the box/cut down on price. And don't name the inputs, just number them and store the config on a memory card or usb drive that can be plugged into a computer and edited.
It's good to see more component and optical connections on the Denon, but why keep all of the analog around? I may be bitter because I have a HDTV with just one HDMI input; but why isn't anyone making small and simple recievers with a focus on digital?

What's wrong with soy mayonnaise? I assume your anti-soynnaise position is based on the versions with textures more akin to jello, which I also abhor, which is why I'm glad I found a version that is very good. We started buying Spectrum's organic mayonnaise (because it wasn't labeled as "soy"), and found it's texture and taste as good or better than the domestic brands. And that includes my girlfriend from the deep south, who is attempting to convert me back from vegetarianism.