10 Must-Have Items for a High-Style, High-Tech House

Samsung’s BD-P1000 is the first disc player compatible with Blu-ray, a new disc format which, with its rival, HD-DVD, is the next wave of DVDs. Blu-ray discs can hold more data than a regular DVD, allowing images with a higher resolution (1080p). But don’t throw your old DVDs away yet. The BD-P1000 has technology that will increase the resolution of that Tombstone DVD you bought in 2001 and make it look sharper than it did on your old DVD player. Blu-ray is in a format war with HD-DVD (remember VHS vs. Beta?), and there’s no clear winner yet.

Like all first-generation products, there are bugs, so the general consumer will want to wait for the second round of players. But early converts will want to splurge and have the first Blu-ray movie player on the block.

Pro: Watch movies in high-definition!
Con: Requires HDTV to fully enjoy benefits, the bugs haven’t been worked out, and a nascent format war with HD-DVD means you may be selling your Blu-ray player at a garage sale in three years for a couple of bucks.