Technology trends move so fast that one is barely begun before the next one encroaches. Even though hi-def is fairly new in the market, it is already primed to go to the next level—and the technology that will take it there is Blu-ray.

So, what is Blu-ray anyway? The name is derived from the blue-violet laser used to write discs, as opposed to the red laser used by the DVD format. The blue-violet laser has a shorter wavelength than its red counterpart, which means that it’s more precise and packs information more tightly. The result is that the Blu-ray offers up to 25GB worth of storage. That’s five times more than the DVD.

The obvious benefit of this is that the Blu-ray format is better suited for the hi-def lifestyle. The big name studios seem to realize this; companies like Warner Brothers, Disney and Fox have already announced that they’ll be releasing a whole slew of titles for Blu-ray, and Samsung and Sony are rolling out these cool products.

Samsung BD-P1000 Blu-ray Disc Player

This is one of the big guns of the hi-def movement, and Samsung wisely got in on the ground floor when they announced recently that their BD-P1000 Blu-ray Disc Player will be tentatively available in the fourth quarter of 2006. When placed against the resolution of a normal DVD player, it becomes fairly obvious that there’s no competition here; the BD-P1000’s picture quality stands remarkably tall over its predecessor. Audio output for the BD-P1000 is also noticeably better. All in all, this is a remarkable machine that’s poised to make heads turn.

Playstation 3

Although there’s no set release date for the local market just yet, the hype over the revolutionary Playstation 3 alone is astounding—and with just cause. The latest addition to the PS family will be sporting Blu-ray technology which will certainly give the Xbox 360 a run for its money, as far as graphics quality is concerned. The PS3 also features The Cell processor, which will help handle the console’s workload, and even offers compatibility between older PS models, including the Playstation Portable.

Check out some of the hi-defination gear on the market now.