"But there's no hard drive install option on the PS3!" True enough. That's because Sony's optical drive is comparably subdued (about 10 dB quieter, in fact -- a 10 dB increase in volume is perceived as a doubling in loudness).

So even though the new hard drive install option gets thumbs up from me, it's worth remembering that it's a band-aid to a hardware design flaw, and if you're a 20GB (or no) hard drive owner, also a pricey one.

Kicks With Net Flicks

Otherwise known as , these are the highly successful folks that let you rent flat-rate videos through the mail (aka "renting for either extremely busy or pathologically agoraphobic people"). With the NXE, they've also made themselves nice and cozy with Microsoft as part of a resource-pooling strategy that could well launch a digitally downloadable video empire.

How's Netflix work? On its own, it's a simple monthly fee based service that lets you select so many videos in a given time period, then hold onto them for as long as you like. No late fees, and as far as I know, no relentless collection agencies barking threats at your answering machine. The kicker: You have to return your current holdings before you can rent something new. Doesn't matter what you've paid, you only get new stuff once you've mailed back your old stuff. I've never used it, but most of my friends do, and they swear it's fast and friendly and (for at least a few of them) now completely indispensable.