Looks great. My only issue of having the valuable stuff checked is loss either through theft or damage. I don't think it's a big issue generally; but in many parts of the world it is. Stuff goes missing or is opened in transit. I would get...
In my opinion, the answer is NO. I believe this was a deal (led by our friends over at Apple) to spare them from the widespread speculation that price increases for MacBooks and iPhones were imminent. Others will benefit a little as well but...
Of course each airline may have different restrictions. I fly to the UK often and carry a lot of camera equipment.
My bag of choice is the Thinktank Airport International™ V3.0. It is designed to protect fragile photo gear and is a little smaller...