“To date, however, no Linux-based products have shown up streaming Netflix beyond the Roku box.”

That statement is incorrect. The LG and Samsung blu-ray players each run Netflix and are each linux platforms. You don’t get access to a console, obviously, but the linux is there, verily.

OK, that’s enough … I really don’t expect this to be end-all box of all boxes. I just had to reply since the earlier responses had been negative and overly critical of its form.

So what if it looks different? Some of us appreciate being different. Don’t decide for the rest of us. Don’t decide whether or not it will / will not fit with MY set of equipments. Don’t decide HOW I organize my equipments. Sure, you can say it’s impractical for certain arrangements and I would agree with that.

Does form override function? For me, that’s not an accurate question. The form does not hinder its function, at my place. Let’s leave it at that.

@puddles: Does it connect to my speakers to pump out surround sound? Does it play and record DVDs, play Blue-Ray? Does it plug directly into my dish as a receiver? What about supporting picture in picture? Nope? Well, then it needs to stack on the things that do the job(s) that it can’t.

End result: it’s a pompous design.

Even if it did do everything that I want it to do, it would be priced too high, and as soon as a new format/device/capability came up that required another box (or the old one died), I’d have to sell my old all-in-one device to get the new one. It’s much easier to just replace/upgrade a single component. That’s why the marked has settled on distinct components, and will likely continue to do until the day that we all have completely software/hardware reconfigurable generic devices.

I personally have no need to be “stacking boxes” on top of each other at home. I do that at work, with rackmount equipments. At home, I would much rather have a single box (or two) that does everything.