Tyler

I'm in the same boat as a few people here: I'm debating between Samsung P3 or the Cowon S9. I'm also hoping for 32GB versions though and reviews of both before I decide.

I can speak for both camps because I currently own the P2, and I previously owned and used the Cowon A2.

Sound Quality: There's no comparison between Cowon and Samsung. My Cowon A2 sounded leagues above the Samsung P2 with my Grado SR-80 headphones or any headphone I used for that matter. And that's saying something, because I keep hearing people say that the P2 has really good sound quality. That's why I bought it after I broke my A2. I was pretty disappointed though after having my A2.

User Interface: I can't give a winner on this one yet. They both are improvements to previous products, and are both looking pretty slick. Whichever one I buy, it has to have a smooth and responsive touch UI. I like eye candy, but it's not the biggest "feature" for me.

Other: I think these are the two-best non-Apple products and can easily compete with iPod in some areas. I've never bought an Apple product, and I don't plan on to thanks to Cowon and Samsung. They both have Bluetooth which are really cool features.

Ah yes, I almost forgot codec support. Cowon is a definite winner here too as far as video goes. I loved that with my A2, I never had to transcode any videos so they could play. I just dragged and dropped my videos over and they worked like a charm. On the audio side, they both support Ogg and FLAC, so that's good for both of them too.

After laying it all out, I think I definitely leaning for the Cowon S9. If it turns out to be a poor product for some reason (and I don't think it will be), I'll just have to get the P3. And that's not really a compromise either :)

Wow, I'm glad there's someone around here (other than me) that still likes Blu-ray and can tell the difference. I'd have to agree with how you rank your HD options, except I don't have HD cable. However, I do watch HD OTA to Vista Media Center, and I'd have to say that's on par or better than the HD downloads.

I will still go out of my way to watch a Blu-ray movie because of the superior image and audio quality (love the lossless 7.1). But now with the ability to stream Netflix to my Xbox 360, I definitely love the option to instantly watch a movie and some TV shows (albeit at lower quality than I like).

In today's market, I don't think we'll ever see one HD service control all. Disc media (Blu-ray) and HD download and streaming will complement each other. It will just be a matter of quality vs convenience, and even that depends on the content you watch.

Harley3k, I don't want to sound like I'm trashing on you, but you can't over-generalize the rest of America's buying habits. Even though you don't care about Blu-ray anymore, it doesn't mean that America as a whole doesn't care either. Even with the economy tanking, it's effect on people varies incredibly. Especially during these hard times, people want to be entertained and movies are one of the cheapest ways to do that. Yes, even purchasing a Blu-ray is still way cheaper than taking the family to the movies.

All I've heard the last few weeks is how Blu-ray is doomed, digital distribution has already won, blah blah blah. Yes, digital distribution is here to stay, but for the most part, it's main selling point is renting...not buying. It will complement hard disc technology like Blu-ray, not supplant it.

If people want convenience, they will stream or download it. But if people want the BEST video AND sound quality, there is only one choice--Blu-ray. And, if people want to OWN the movie, I think that most people will buy a disc for a number of reasons: 1) it's what they're accustomed to ever since VHS and DVD (includes ease of use), 2) they aren't restricted to DRM on a certain computer or device with HDD, and 3) they won't have to worry about hard drive failures, whether the movie server is on and configured correctly, etc.

It is unfortunate that the battle between HD DVD and Blu-ray lasted so long as has delayed many people's interest and purchasing of hi-def movies, but I just jumped on to Blu last week after having an HD DVD player and movies. All I can say is that it is much worth it for me since I want to watch and own my favorite movies in the best video and sound quality I can buy. Even though my projector isn't 1080p, the difference is still amazing. And don't get me started with PCM, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS-HD MA surround sound :) You have to hear it to believe it.

To me, Blu-ray isn't just watching a movie...it's experiencing it in ways I haven't before in home theater. And I can't get that experience through AppleTV, Vudu, Xbox Live Marketplace, Netflix, or anywhere else. So I say bring it on digital distribution!

Glad to hear that I'm not the only one. You guys all put it well--now that we are growing up, getting jobs, starting families, or whatever, we just don't have the time to play as much like when we were younger. But that doesn't mean our passion for games is any less! :)

Crabbyman,
I couldn't agree with you more. Now that I have the money to buy all the games and gadgets I want, I no longer have the time to play with them :P

I feel really pathetic here since I feel less and less as a "hardcore" gamer and more and more like a "casual" gamer. I still need to finish Bioshock, and I haven't even touched GTA4! How's that for lame?! And now Fable 2, Fallout 3, Gears 2 and so many many more are coming up so soon.

It's weird, I still keep up-to-date with gaming news and events, but I play a lot less than I used to. Sure, I still play Halo 3 and Cod4 online every once in a while, but gone are the days when I could sit down almost every day until I finished a game. Maybe because my tastes for entertainment are changing as I get older, or maybe because now I have much less free time since graduating college, or maybe something completely different. So my question is this: is there anyone else out there that has similar gaming habit changes?

Xbox 360

I spent my last chunk of change on upgrading my home theater surround sound speakers. Games and movies have literally transformed. All I need now is GTA IV :)

From the above video, the only major discernible difference was color saturation, brightness, and contrast--all of those that could be a result of a TV or monitor's settings (and that could be tweaked by each individual user to his liking). IF, though, these are real differences on how the PS3 and Xbox 360 renders the game and shown on identical TVs that are both ISF-calibrated for each console, THEN we can start a discussion/argument/flamewar :)

I'm using the Vista View Saber DA-1N1-I Combo Analog/Digital PCI TV Tuner Card, and it works wonders for me. I'm using it with regular 32-bit Vista though. The product page at Amazon.com says it "comes with Microsoft Vista and MCE certified BDA drivers, which work flawlessly with Microsoft Vista" but doesn't say anything about 32 or 64 bit versions. You can also get a PCIe version. I get great reception and picture quality using the ATSC tuner (the NTSC tuner works just as great too).

http://www.amazon.com/Vista-Saber-DA-1N1-I-Analog-Digital/dp/B000TQ9L9G/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1209044776&sr=8-2

Thanks for the info devwild! I didn't know you could do that. I'll have to buy my points that way next.

3D may end up being the future of movies and games, but until you can go watch a movie without wearing lame glasses, I'm not buying it.