You could not possibly be ore wrong in your definition of bandwidth. While bandwidth of cable used is part of the HDMI specification, that is not what bandwidth means. Bandwidth is a physical property existed by all conductive material – this includes cable. Bandwidth is the highest frequency signal a cable can pass without attenuation. There are many factors that contribute to the bandwidth of a cable like capacitance which is directly influenced by the type of dielectric (cheap plastic insulation) that is used. Signals in frequency above the rated bandwidth of a cable begin to pass through the insulation as if it were a short circuit.

An other factor to consider is the quality of cable construction. If you have a TV and Blu-Ray player sitting on top of a cabinet and your wires are just hanging out the back is the $50 HDMI cable worth the extra dough? Probably not, after three or four years when the cable starts to get staticy you toss it and buy a new one for $8. If you have a more permanent type of install where your cables are bundled and dressed or installed in walls, cable runs, racks, etc. it's a pain in the rear to replace the cables and you will want to install one that will outlast your equipment/installation. This is where the expensive cables are a good investment.

If you look at a television station you will find incredibly expensive cables in the racks (Gepco, Canare, Belden – not Belkin, Monster, Mogami, etc.) connecting the equipment for the reasons mentioned above. TV stations tend to upgrade equipment frequently, and by having a wiring infrastructure that is specked above what is required in 2010, when the gear of 2011 comes out the wiring infrastructure will not have to be re-installed.

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