It’s been a long time in the making. Three and a half years after TiVo’s last major hardware introduction, TiVo finally announced something new today at their New York City unveiling.

For much of the last month, TiVo watchers have been waiting to see what was coming after images of the press event invitation was leaked, claiming that the invention of the DVR was “just a warmup”.

So, did TiVo succeed in making the late 1990′s invention of the DVR look like a warmup?

For a company that hasn't announced a new hardware platform in years, TiVo seems to be all abuzz in recent weeks.

It's been a long time since TiVo released a major new hardware product - about 3 1/2 years since the last major DVR release, the high definition Series3. Sure, they also released the TiVo HD and HD XL, but those were just variations on the Series3 with no significant new features.

Investors need something to cheer about. For pretty much the last three years, TiVo has been losing subscribers every quarter.

Fans like me were waiting for something new. I speculated on (or rather dreamed about) what might be coming prior to the start of CES. But TiVo disappointed us and announced nothing new at the big show.

But now TiVo looks like it's waking up from its hibernation and is ready to do something. Oh, but what? ...

OK, I don't own a Sony OLED TV. And at today's prices and screen sizes I wasn't going to buy one! Apparently, I'm not alone. So Sony has decided to pull out of the OLED market.

But, with the way that this news came out, the announcement from Sony can only be interpreted as a black mark on OLED technology. That's too bad, since OLED was the hot topic at the Consumer Electronics Show for the previous two years. And if you've seen it, it's very clearly the best display technology out there - the technology of the future. There are only two reasons why OLED is not the technology of the present - cost and small display size.

But as is with much new technology, things are always expensive when you're on the cutting edge. LED and plasma is no longer cutting edge technology. LCD is now the mainstream. And to a certain extent, plasma is perceived of as the past.

Plasma and LCD each still hold on to their own benefits. LCD tends to be more energy efficient, inexpensive, and thinner. Plasma tends to offer a better contrast ratio, which many videophiles love.

But to the general market, it was very difficult to explain why OLED is worth a cost premium. Sony, failed to convey the message of OLED as a premium technology.

But more than that, Sony just screwed up. Present cost aside, OLED is better than both LCD and plasma technology.

OLED could (and should) still be the technology of the future. But what could Sony have done differently? And are there any opportunities for Sony's competitors? ...