Blu-ray

There are so many ways to interpret statistics. Lately, there have been a rash of stories, reports, and blogs on the rise or fall of Blu-ray. One of the more fascinating reports was over on Engadget. They report on how — depending on what week you look at — sales of Blu-ray are dismal compared to DVD, or they're phenomenal.

A lot can get lost in translation, but it looks like Panasonic has big news coming out from CEATEC, the Japanese electronics trade-show that's coming up shortly.

Panasonic is releasing a home theater package that's bound to raise some interest. The bundle will include a 103-inch plasma HDTV ($$$), a Blu-ray Disc player, and at least one pair of 3D glasses.

Sony's Blu-ray Disc writer is hitting its third incarnation. The new BWU-300S is the third-generation burner, and the price ain't too shabby.

For months, it's seemed like the $300.00 price point was the magic number that Blu-ray players had to hit before they went mainstream. For a while, it looked like that $300 point is shattered, as two players — name-brand, full-featured players — had fallen below $200. Yup. Two-hundred buckaroos.

Is it live, or is it Memorex? Not sure, but we do know that finally a Blu-ray Disc player is available for well under $300 — $269.00 to be exact. The Memorex MVBD-2510 is under that magical price point that analysts have said would mark wide-spread acceptance of Blu-ray. The MVBD-2510 has HD resolution of 1080p, with frame rates of 24p film or 60p video playback.