Die in a fire? More significant upgrade cycles? Rubbish.
I own every major gaming platform (PS3, XBox 360, Wii, PC, etc). They all have their strengths and weaknesses. Chief among the strengths of consoles is the fact that you don't have to upgrade them frequently. The average consumer doesn't want to replace a game system every other year. They also don't want to break open the box to install anything. Period. They want a system with high performance, is easy to use, reliable and long lasting with limited maintenance and user intervention. That's a tall order for any manufacturer.
But even with all that said, consoles don't hold back game development. They actually drive the industry forward. The reason for this is simple, economics. The number of console gamers dwarfs the number of PC gamers (leave aside the fact that many PC gamers also play on other platforms). Because of this, game developers are encouraged to actually produce games in quest of profit. Without the profit potential provided by the console market, fewer games would be developed. Ten years ago, I gamed almost exclusively on the PC. In those days, I would anxiously await the next big game. There were maybe two or three a year that were truly excellent. Today, because of the intense competition in the console space, that number is more like two or three a month.
Long live the consoles. Long live the PC.