This is right now, give it 2 or 3 years. Technology, especially internet technology, advances stupidly fast now and even more so if there is a demand for it. My computer here at home has a 6mb connection and I download all sorts of things is a pretty resonable time that are several gigs.
What is the global penetration of high-speed internet access? Do you really think it's enough to support download-only games? Don't be misled by the fact that simply because
you have something, most of the world could have access to it. Until high-speed home internet access reaches the same popularity as analog phone lines (which also isn't 100%), no major game maker is going to bother with download-only.
And how long ago was 720 standard? As long as there are people wanting bigger and better things companies will be producing them. At Best Buy they have a 70" 1080 HDTV which looks like crap because the resolution can't go that high. People are going to want TV's like that. The only bits and pieces I have heard about the next generation TV's are from a friend who sort of works in the field, which is hardly creditable.
Er, 720p and 1080i (among other formats) were all "standard" at the same time. In fact, 1080i was more popular early on because it was easier to display and marketed better than 720p. Not everyone understands the difference between 'i' and 'p'. Among the HD standards, there is no set resolution that any broadcaster/studio/developer has to limit themselves to. They can all stick to 480i if they want. Sure, it may not grab the most eyeballs, but it's up to them what they want to do. Nintendo's doing just fine with 480p, as I'm sure you know.
And never judge any TV on display at Best Buy or any other major retailer. They're all set up to be as bright as possible with the sharpness cranked up, so as to appear "bright and sharp" to the uneducated masses. That's just the beginning of retail setup issues, though.
Backing up data would be quite easy as well, just run a RAID set up and everything is backed up....which leaves me with this question, can I do that on the PS3?
And what version of RAID should that be? The two reasons anyone should be running RAID is for real-time failover or increasing the speed of data access. No one ever uses RAID as a backup; if they do, they shouldn't be in IT. Backup always consists of something off-line, or, at most, near-line. As in an external drive, be it tape, disc, or optical.
I guess I misspoke there. 1080p is not standard either, nor will be. HD is (will be) the standard. And we only did that because the FCC forced them to. HD has been around for decades.
Why can't 1080p be standard (I'm sure you meant "commonly used") when BD's are routinely 1080p and just about all new models of displays (LCD, plasma, SXRD, etc) are 1080p native? The FCC has exactly zero to do with resolution, or even HD. The only thing the FCC has been pushing for is the changeover from analog TV broadcasts to digital TV broadcasting -- all of which is over-the-air only. As in, if you have a yagi on your roof, you need to pay attention. Otherwise don't worry. At all.
FoolKiller
Plus, any TV that size will have issues with digital signals unless you go projection.
With digital signals the resolution will have to increase or anything over 60" may need to be projection, but as all the broadcast stations have just replaced, or are in the act of replacing, all their equipment to at most 1080p I don't see anything higher being used outside of gaming.
Care to explain why? I see no logic behind that statement.