Of course, what I would -prefer- is to ditch Comcast, and yes, watch at a higher resolution, and I will at the first available opportunity. But can't. Because monopoly.
There is Capitalism ... but it's been corrupted. Economic systems are morally neutral. How people employ them determines the morality. The U.S. is, in general, pushing Capitalism to its logical end, in which the system consumes itself in the name of its constituents' "best interests."
I only buy HD on iTunes, but I only watch SD for 99% of my TV shows. Movies it depends. If it's a kid's movie we've seen already: SD. Also if it's the latest action rental: SD. I rarely rent in HD unless cinematography plays a large role in the film.
480P looks surprisingly good on iTunes. Much better than DVD typically. I'm OK with that for the most part.
OTOH Netflix's auto-scaling is clearly the future.
There are several situations where I would be perfectly fine with 480 if it meant I didn't have to deal with loading issues. Watching a cartoon in a lower resolution doesn't detract much from the experience (IMHO).
Of course, what I would -prefer- is to ditch Comcast, and yes, watch at a higher resolution, and I will at the first available opportunity. But can't. Because monopoly.