Blu-ray

[THE FOLLOWING IS A REBUTTAL TO "POINT: BLU-RAY'S ALREADY OVER."]

Corey, you ignorant misguided slut.

Corey, you flannel-clad dilettante

Corey . . .

Dude,

I understand your pain. We've all been there.

Industry analysts like to say that part of the reason Blu-ray won the high-def format war against HD DVD was because of Blu-ray promised Hollywood rock-solid copy protection against illegal pirating of movies.

They say the waiting is the hardest part.

For HD DVD early adopters and other Blu-ray hold-outs, a Blu-ray player priced around $200 would be the only motivation needed to make the plunge into that high-def format. Unfortunately, its going to be a while.

Now that it's a Blu-ray world in high-definition video discs, expect to see a lot more product available on both the hardware and content sides. That gives you a wide range of options when it comes to allocating your bucks.

Just how big a victory the Blu-ray Disc camp scored when Toshiba pulled the plug on HD DVD remains to be seen. Blu-ray may have won the hearts of Hollywood, which is dedicated to preserving traditional media (note Jon Stewart's jabs at viewing Lawrence of Arabia on an iPod during the Oscars), but the public may take a different route to movie playback.