I don't know. I still don't like it. At the end of the day, it's just a book/movie, and if there's a continuity error, then that's just the way it works out. Sometimes, even the best storyteller will have a later idea that contradicts a previous minor detail. And sometimes it's okay, and the storyteller just needs to let it slide. It's just when it happens all the time (*coughPTcough*) that it becomes obvious that the storyteller may not be the best...

But I disagree with the changing of The Hobbit.