The confusion, complication, waste and simple stupidity that Microsoft have introduced into what should be a straightforward upgrade process is the clearest possible demonstration of just what we lose when we cede control to the content owners.

Thanks, Bill Thompson, and nicely put as usual.

I particularly enjoyed the part about having to buy a dedicated cable for the purposes of upgrading an Xbox.

Oh, and there's one last insult; the cable you get has been specially designed for the purpose, so you're supposed to use it once and then throw it away - or rather, dispose of it "in accordance with the Disposal of Waste and Electronic Equipment Guidelines".

How boneheaded is that? Still, I suppose we should consider ourselves lucky that Microsoft doesn't also make portable music players.

Oh wait. Apparently they do. And...

You can't kill an iPod if you can't get close to it.

OK then. Let's consider ourselves lucky that Microsoft doesn't also make (oh, I don't know) coffee tables.

Oh wait. Apparently they do.

Lucky they don't have any really important products, like an operating system for example.

Category: Gadgets
Technorati: Microsoft Xbox Zune Surface Vista

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