Good post Krakn3Dfx but I think you are off the mark on a few points.
While xbox was designed be an easy transition for PC programers, on paper at least, it still shows a lot of potential room for improvement. Whether it ever approaches its theoretical maximum performance remains to be seen. IMO if the graphics of xbox don\'t improve dramatically within the next six months it could be outsold by PSone and N64 next xmas. PS2 and GC will bury it in sales.
I don\'t know why people keep wanting to hand NGC the short end of the stick. Their market share maybe smaller but it remains solid. GC is a great looking next generation machine, all that was required for it to be a hit.
Forget about the $150 HD/broadband/modem being a problem. Sony is very serious about hooking as many PS2 users as possible up to the internet and will do whatever it takes to get them online using their PS2s. A low priced bundle is only one route. There is talk of a low budget 10 GIG HD, free HD and broadband/modem with subscription, a variety of options to make going online via PS2 very affordable and attractive. Full browser capabilities, downloading music, movies all of which MS has repeatedly claimed the xbox will not do being the pure "games only"machine it is. Xbox being equipped with HD and broadband is no doubt a plus but considering the low % of households with broadband access and that the advantage would be soley for online gaming, most consumers won\'t find it much of a bonus for several more years, if ever.
