Quote - I always by tech at least a year old, because the drivers are mature, and the prices are good at that point.

Not a bad idea, really, especially if you deal with Vista (like I do), and particularly with sound cards for some reason. Sound cards are always behind and I have yet to figure that one out...

But I'm replying to this because you bring up a very valid point I didn't think to address - know the hardware, know where it's heading, but realize the "next big thing" is probably ahead of your needs, and even ahead of your software's ability.

We're never completely on the bleeding edge - no matter how great our hardware is, there's always a ton of apps which still can't utilize it fully. ;-)