Wow 51gb sounds real good so long as they work on the old players. I just got an Tosh A3 for $170, (well technically i wont have it till the holidays but still). Honestly I Hope for a stalemate. IT really is the best for the consumers which is what we all are. Cheaper players because of competition and more promos. MY $170 player got me over $175 in free movies (7 free, 2 in box and 5 by mail.) all because of competition. Can't wait to see what extras they pack into those 51 gb discs

 Why do we need super-HD levels? Is the eye capable of noticing the difference of 1080p and 1440p on a 50" HDTV??

 well IMax films and movies are 5k+ resolution and film makers love it that the resolution allows them to capture the iamges and make you feel like you can reach out and touch the image. With OLED tech coming and more pixels being jammed into a screen the resolution will be able to be doubled and (should be) noticable to the the eye. Its like a PC monitor, you can definitely see a difference between 1680 by 1050, 1900 by 1200, and 2560 x 1600. 

Yeah, but do wee need to mention why those films are in 5k+ resolution? (hint - it has something to do with the screen size) Honestly, I just don't think unless we start putting 150+ inch TVs in our living rooms resolutions that high are ever going to catch on, especially considering how HDTV still isn't a viable format if you consider the adoption rate. When everyone finally has an HDTV, which will be sometime past 2010, they are going to want to have to upgrade AGAIN?!?! I just don't see this happening, sorry.

It's not like a PC monitor, since people don't watch TV with their noses glued to the set. There's a reason why 720p is more than enough for most TV sizes.

 well like I said they can jam more pixels into a screen like PC monitors... there are 1900 x 1200 resolution 19" screens. There is no reason why 1440p+ is limited to large as heck screens. 

approved and manufactured are two different beasts. the only thing approval does is allow it to bare the HD DVD logo. Im afraid the OP doesn't quite understand the situation as it is not like these discs are being pressed and sitting in a warehouse ready to be used. It is merely like a parent allowing permission to wed...that is all.

Most people are 2 feet away or less from their PC monitors, but 8 feet away or more from their TVs. That's why PC monitors need about 4x the dot pitch that TVs need. You don't need an IMAX theater in your living room unless you plan to install stadium seating as well...

You need 51gigs for 1 movie..

Studios tend to favor HD DVD because the 30gb dual layer discs are cheaper to produce than dual-layer 50gb BD-Roms. I can't see them making too many movies on 51gb discs, considering how much they'll cost to manufacture.  It could be 6 months to a year before they're even ready o be manufactured in bulk.  This is the same problem the larger BD-Roms have been facing.  The 200gb disc was near completion at the beginning of the year, but it's not going to be manufactured anytime soon.

Also, it's still unconfirmed whether the 51gb discs will even work on current gen HD DVD players. Hitachi, however, has confirmed that their new 100gb BD-Roms will at least work on the ps3, and possibly all Blu-Ray players.