This is one of those things that I go against the Lemmy hivemind on. I cut out pretty much every streaming service and sail the high seas for most of my media.But I consider YouTube Premium worth the cost.

I got grandfathered into it when Google Music shut down and I really haven't felt the need to change anything. YouTube music is better than Spotify. I don't have to constantly play the whack-a-mole game of ad blockers that will inevitably break during a YouTube update. I don't have to rely on finicky software to get videos to play in the background with my phone screen off.

Look, I get it. All these features used to be offered for free without ads. I think that more than anything is why people are so rabidly against premium, because they feel like they had that stuff stolen from them. But YouTube is a service, not a right. You were never guaranteed those features permanently. The cost of Premium is miniscule compared to the benefits I get from it. I use YouTube a LOT. Weather for how to videos, or ASMR, or background music, or documentaries, or podcasts. I like knowing that no matter where I use it, from my computer to my phone to the random smart TV in a hotel that I cast to, I'm not going to see any ads.

All this is based on the current services offered at the current price. If and when they start making those services shittier or increase the cost, then I will seek alternatives; but not before.

EDIT: I love all the many replies going "Yea but you could just use this program combined with this plugin on your locally hosted server. Just use these 3 different pieces of software. Have you tried Squootle? Just use Squootle and SEvR, bro. If you use Squootle you can download the video, recompress it, and play it from any desktop running Windows 7."

Counterfeit concerns, porch pirates, and also basic manufacturers warranty coverage is simpler in my opinion. I don't want to deal with cross shipping and email chains and off shore call centers when my gadget dies. I'll pay a 5% premium for that convenience.

Also shuckable hdds

Best buy has been on my "one-bad-black-friday bankrupsy" bet for years, yet they seemed to have survived the death of Sears, Radioshack, Circuit City, and Frys Electronics...

For me, as a customer, they are the shop of last resort. I will go literally anywhere else because they will likely have the thing, but no specific models. If you need an SSD, RAM (lol no in todays market) or a cable they will likely have it, but its going to be a smaller range than Microcenter, if time is no object, just order exactly what you need.

The thing I will give them credit for is keeping the home theatre market, I feel that only a fool will buy a TV without physically looking at it first (they turn the blue up, just an FYI).

Not just an actress. A commercials actress.
Roll out the red carpet.

I've had this weird thing lately where something keeps being mentioned or random things remind you of something and it's been boxxy. It started with me watching black sails for the first time some weeks ago and thinking one of the characters looks familiar, which I then realised was boxxy (not that she is boxxy, but that's who she reminds me of) then it just went as it always does; mentions of boxxy in the most random places, that actress appearing in stuff I'm watching and me thinking "that looks so much like boxxy" before realising it's the same actress (who isn't boxxy). It's always a fun journey when this happens, and it's the most random thing that it's about too.

And now that I'm thinking about it, I don't think I've ever watched an actual boxxy video, not back then or ever since. Just mentions, images and gifs on forums etc.