I understand the frustration of many who were hoping to have a 998 but I also have to say that I am still willing to wait.

The reality is that there are plenty of boring products out in the marketplace, lots of ridiculously overpriced products, no shortage of poor quality products, and a remarkable dearth of things to spend my money on...

I do think that Outlaw is smart not to have brought an unstable / quality impaired product to the market, any boost they would have gotten from hype would quickly have been overwhelmed with complaints and losses from returns.

While I am not thrilled that Outlaw is currently "passing along" marketing of products they have had no hand in developing, I understand the reality of them needing to offer a range of products that complement their custom offerings while the unforeseen development problems are worked out...

Frankly, I am painfully aware of the collapse of most A/V retailers. When I visit the handful of survivors in what used to be a VERY robust range of shops in the greater Chicago region I do not see shops that are healthy. They are dusty, with an ugly mix of old equipment that is not going to be easy to sell at any price. Fortunately Costco sells only really awful stuff, with HTIB and low end sound bars crowding out everything else. Best Buy continues to try and expand their Magnolia stores but with the awful economic conditions the ability to sell other than lower priced products with low paid staff remains limited...


The "penetration rate" of HDTV is hard to judge, and the number of people that have spent more than a few hundred dollars on Home Theater is shockingly low.

If Outlaw can keep their balance sheet from going "red" by selling quality equipment at a fair price that complements their custom designed / made offerings I have nothing against this.