The $150 mic:

I'm not counting pennies to get my empeg. However, I am very value-oriented -- I don't like to throw money at things, but I'm willing to pay for good stuff that I want. The empeg, to me, is a pretty nice little box, and is well worth the money. The voice recognition feature is pretty cool, and would be fun to play with. However, there have been some concerns voiced about just how well it will work, and if it's going to work well enough to be really useful. And you have to admit that $150 is kind of on the expensive side for a consumer microphone, no? It just doesn't seem to be that good of a *value*.

empeg on factory system (which I'm planning to do):

Quite simply, I'm not an audiophile. (Rather, I'd fit into your "computer geek" category. :) Heck, I'm not even a music buff. I just like to listen to music while I'm doing stuff. The idea of having my entire music collection with me all the time, and having any song instantly available at the touch of a button really appeals to me. Also, most of my music is in MP3 format anyway.

Also, remember that the empeg is much more than a head unit. In fact, I expect that I'm going to use it in my house 90% of the time. Being able to use it in the car is just icing on the cake.

Oh, and my car is leased. ;)

Alex