@Mark: While there is always the danger of taking a performance hit with storing configuration in the database, the ease of development & maintenance of the site can be a mitigating factor. And with Display Suite, I'm not convinced that there is much more stored in the database. The module seems to be about accessing what's already stored in a more flexible way.

@Dougzilla: It's good to hear from someone who has used it! Thanks for your comments. I feel like there is a lot more under the hood than I even realize at this point. I can't wait to use it on a site build, soon.