[BredStik]

Here's my take on it...

Positives:

• Lets you play multi-region dvds and blu-rays
• Lets you play others media types (divx, wmv, etc)
• Lets you browse the internet
• Can serve as a media library for music and movies
• Offers tweaking options and postprocessing
• Completely updatable (software and hardware)

Negatives:

• Proper hardware needed for video and audio can be expensive
• Software for blu-ray playback and region-free playback is pricey
• May need tweaking for good playback
• Can be noisy