Since March, we've been given 2-3 previews of upcoming books each week. It's an awesome way to find out more about the book, use pieces of it even if we don't own it or DDI, and is a nice gesture all-around for WotC.
I don't know how much longer these high quality previews will last, but before they end and people complain about WotC taking away their previews, I'd like to say one thing. Thank you to everyone who makes the previews possible. It's a great way to advertise the books, and we all like it.
Todays Thainborn Barbarian armor set has got my juices flowing as I have a Thainborn Barbarian in my group and she would 'love' this set. (Yes, thats right, I have a woman in my group that plays a Barbarian.) So now I'm trying to figure out where I would squeeze into my already tight timeline schedule for the game, a way for her to go on a quest to gain the set.
I have almost every book released so far. If it were not for DDI and the previews, playtests and wicked early content (psions for example,) I probably would own the core 3 and one to three others at best. But because I get to see what each book is going to offer, I am crazy excited for its release. Not to mention the fantastic release schedule, lineup and the fact that each and every book released thus far is IMHO a treasure trove.
Cant wait for AV2. :D
[edit] Yes, I think its a cool thing to.
Wizards does a great job of making their products lines feel alive and well with so much community interface.
Lovin' every second.
Link to previews? Oh its a DDI exclusive. Figures.
Oh God, they're trying to make a profit! Oh, the horror!!
:P
The previews mentioned by the original poster, which are released typically Monday, Wednesday and Friday of each week, are not DDI exclusive. They are free to absolutely everyone, and have been running since the launch of 4E - each new release gets about a month of build-up and previews. They are listed on the Editorial Calendar, and clearly labelled as free excerpts.
Also free, though labelled in the calendar as part of Dragon, is "In the Works", a column at the start of each month that takes a look at upcoming products for that month and the next few, and provides selected previews from each.
Finally, DDI insiders receive their own extra previews - often shared in Ampersand or other editorial-style columns, as well as found in the form of playtests (such as the Monk and Wilden), and finally the PHB3 exclusives (of which we currently have seen the Psion and the Githzerai).
So yes, DDI subscribers get some nifty previews, but WotC also release an absolute ton of material, completely free to anyone interested, and it can be incredibly useful for seeing the sort of material in an upcoming product and deciding whether it is worth it to you or not.