The firmware mod is of cause only free if you do it yourself. I have the impression that 90% or so, who have their xbox 360 firmware patched, actually payed some one else to do it for them.
Of cause if you put up a poll on this site, the result would properly, show that people do it them selves - but most people who payed to have it firmware modded properly don't even visit here.
The point is: most people pay to have their box modded, and the price difference for a chip mod and a firmware mod is next to nothing. So even though people may argue that the firmware is free and the author of the firmware are not making money off this - other people are. And therefore it is not a valid argument to firmware flash over chipping, only because it is free.
There may however in the future be other arguments, that firmware flashing is a better solution than chipping, but the reason is not that it is free, unless you can do it yourself (which most people can't or are willing to).
/Darkwing8888
This post has been edited by darkwing8888: Nov 23 2006, 11:48 AM