Google Offers Paid Storage Upgrades

And we thought Google promised we would never have to delete email again.  After all, every time you look at the Gmail Login screen storage is creeping up, right?  However, Google has decided to add paid storage upgrades for Picasa and Gmail users.
For $20 per year, customers can use up to 6GB of storage, $75 for 25GB, $250 for 100GB and $500 for 250GB. At the moment, the new storage applies only to Gmail and Picasa, but Google says the capacity will soon be expanded to cover Docs & Spreadsheets and other Google Apps.
$500 for 250GB of storage?  If I needed that much, I think I would do it offline, since I can get a 500GB external drive for $120 without even looking hard.  On the other hand, if you want all your stuff online ...