Amazon lets you choose the Blu!

Source: Amazon.com

Pick your treasure!

Amazon.com is leaving it up to us to decide what will be included in the Blu-ray Gold Box June 7-11. The Gold Box is one of the best deals around and this is the first time that we, the consumer, have had options.

So if you have an Amazon account it is time to perform your civic duty as a lover of Blu-ray and cast a vote. Think hard and then pick the bundle of Blu-rays that you would want to see in that sweet Gold Box come June and if enough people agree with you it will happen!

Here are the choices, and I don't think the decision will be an easy one:

• The Ultimate Matrix Collection (All 3 Films plus The Animatrix)
• Band of Brothers with The Pacific: Part One
• The BBC High Definition Natural History Collection: Planet Earth, Wild China, Galapagos and Ganges
• The Universe Seasons 1-3
• Star Trek Motion Picture Collection: Includes first 6 feature films with a 70 minute roundtable discussion with original cast members called The Captain's Summit

Start figuring out what you will go with, I expect it to take the next couple of weeks for you to reach a conclusion!

Charlie's Angels

Source: Blu-ray.com

"Good morning, Angels."

This summer will see everybody's favorite threesome of ass kicking babes get a Blu-ray release.

That's right! On August 3rd the 2000 remake of the classic Charlie's Angels TV show will be on Blu-ray. The movie is an awesome compilation of humor, action and eye candy and what more can one ask for in their entertainment?

If you said acting then you got it. The titular characters are played by Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu and Cameron Diaz and they find some comedic relief in their handler Bosley played by the ever welcomed Bill Murray. But any good action movie worth it's ungodly pyrotechnic bill has to have a good villain and Sam Rockwell obliges with a devious performance.

The Blu-ray release comes fully loaded with a bevy of bonus features which include:

• Director and Cinematographer Commentaries
• Getting G'd Up
• Welcome to Angel World
• Angelic Effects
• Deleted and Extended Scenes
• Music Videos
• Blooper Reel
• BD-Live

No official cover art yet, so just be content to admire my personal favorite Angel for a while, the eternal beauty Farrah Fawcett, you're welcome!

RIP Martian Lander

Source: Popular Science

One of the most successful unmanned missions to the Martian surface comes to a close with the end of the the Phoenix lander.

The lander, which essentially went into hibernation for the long Martian winter back in 2008 did not survive intact. As pictures from the Mars Odyssey orbiter proved last week that the solar panels had been damaged by ice buildup.

There was hope for continuing the Phoenix's mission if all had gone smoothly and while it is disappointing to see this conduit of information cease to function it has been invaluable in it's research. One of the most astonishing discoveries of the mission was that of the Martian soil, which is similar to what is found here on Earth and should have the ability to sustain life.

That is cool and all but many (me) deemed completely unsuccessful as it failed to find even one, not even one, little green man.

While scientists continue to study the findings of the Phoenix mission they have already planned for the future. NASA doesn't like to waste time as late next year yet another lander, called Curiosity, will arrive to Mars to set up a small unmanned laboratory on the surface.

The Martian lander is dead, long live the Martian lander.

It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!

Source: HighDef Disc News

"I got a rock ..."

Warner Bros is finally getting around to getting some Peanuts on Blu-ray. Announced for a September 7th (The day that will live in infamy, my parents were married ...) release of the Peanuts classic It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.

The release will be a combination of both a Blu-ray and DVD copy and feature a bonus Peanuts TV special. While no other specs have been really released stay updated, because it is movie with Snoopy and he is awesome.

I don't profess to have any great moves on the dance floor, but I do a mean Peanuts shuffle!

It was only a matter of time ... 3D Porn

Source: Gizmodo

You know the theory about the porn industry and new technology? They say whatever format porno backs usually comes out on top.

It happened in the battle between Betamax and VHS and even played a role in HD DVD versus Blu-ray and now they have entered the third dimension. Which would seem to mean that, for better or worse, 3D isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

The skin-flick, entitled Kama-Sutra, was the first shot using 3D cameras and was not just converted from 2D. Now all you early adapters that have or are planning on having one of them new fangled stereoscopic 3D sets now have something to watch that wasn't made for kids.

All I really have to say is wow. But I guess it was only a matter of time ...

Google TV

Source: TechCrunch

Love them or love to hate them Google knows how to get things done, and the long awaited unveiling of their newest innovation that they are touting as "TV meets web. Web meets TV."

Google TV promises that with their service you will spend less time searching for videos and more time enjoying them while adding new elements of personalization. This should make watching TV a much more involved experience.

The TV can be hooked up to your existing setup, such as cable and satellite boxes, and the set comes packaged with a keyboard and mouse. Keyboard and mouse not your style? That's cool, especially if you have an Android phone, because Google has made the phone essentially into a remote control. Best news is if you lose the remote somebody can call it, no more missing remotes! This is the kind of innovation Google strives for people!

But wait, there's more!

Want to surf the web? They have Google Chrome pre-installed and ready for you to surf, both web and channel. As well as included software there are a few announced optional Google TV hardware additions as well as partnering up with the likes of Sony and Dish Network for an enhanced viewing experience.

No word yet on if getting a sweet slice of that advertisement pie ($70 billion in the US alone!) played a role in Google hitting the TV market next Fall. And before you start hating on Google, just remember their motto, "Don't be evil."