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All week long we've been talking about the popularity of 3D technology, both in the home and in the theater, and we've finally decided to invite someone on the show to answer our questions on the future of home theater. David Katzmaier, senior editor of TVs and home theater for CNET, joins us on today's episode to fill us in on the latest developments in the world of 3D TVs and what we can expect to see down the line.

3D TVs were easily the biggest trend at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, but they've only recently started becoming available to consumers. Panasonic announced its first 3D TV bundle at Best Buy earlier this week, but before you run out and drop $2,900, make sure you know exactly what you're getting into.
For example, David talks to us about the extra hardware you'll need to purchase along with your 3D TV. Aside from the obvious 3D-compatible television set, you'll also need a 3D Blu-ray player (unless you have a Sony PS3, which will get a 3D firmware upgrade in June 2010), and a couple sets of 3D glasses, since some companies like Sony won't include them with the TVs.

David also points out that although the concept of 3D TVs are definitely exciting, it'll be awhile before enough 3D video games and 3D DVDs come out to justify the high price of the hardware. In the meantime, it's worth the experience to head out to a theater and view a 3D movie, especially with so many titles coming out this year. "Avatar" and "Alice in Wonderland" in 3D are still in theaters, and with "Titanic" and In "The Beginning" (adaptation of the Genesis story) coming down the pike, there are plenty of opportunities to familiarize yourself with 3D before writing it off or becoming a fanboy.
We tried to answer as many of your 3D TV questions as possible, but don't stress if we didn't get to yours--there's a good chance that CNET's comprehensive 3D TV FAQ and 3D TV resource guide have your answers. We'll also have David on the show again soon as more 3D TV news unfolds. Have a great weekend everyone!

Our friend Dan Evans at PCMag.com's Gearlog was fortunate enough to be rebuilding his home desktop this weekend. We say "fortunate" because after calling a mutual friend and neighbor (Microsoft TechNet contributor Greg Steen) for some thermal paste, Dan came to find that Greg had fallen victim to the fake Core i7 scam plaguing NewEgg.com customers over the last week or so.

You can read Dan's hands-on with Greg's fake chip here. He was kind enough to bring the box over for us to check out, too. We were struck in particular with how heavy the box felt. In talking to Maingear CTO Chris Morley about it later, we learned the weight was likely not an accident. In addition to counterfeiting the packaging to look convincing enough to pass through the distribution system, the scammers also had to account for the scales along the way that measure package weight.

It was obvious as soon as you opened the box that its contents were fake, and a careful reading of the sticker on the packaging would have revealed suspicious-looking typos. But assuming the weight of the box was purposefully calibrated to trick the distribution path, the scammers apparently knew they had to account for more than just a visual inspection to get through the system.

Powerline networking adapters tend to suffer from slow speeds, especially when compared with regular wired Ethernet connections. However that's about to possibly change with two new products from Netgear.The company announced this week at CeBIT two new HomePlug AV-certified Powerline kits, including the Powerline AV 500 Adapter Kit (XAVB5001) and the Powerline AV+ 500 Adapter Kit (XAVB5501).

Powerline networking kits allow you to expand your local network via the electrical wiring, sparing you from having to run network cable to a far corner of the house. This is especially helpful when the corner is so far away or obscure that the wireless signal can't get to it.
Netgear claims that both of these kits offer speeds up to 500Mbps. To put this in perspective, wired connections have speeds of 100Mbps (for Ethernet) or 1,000Mbps (for Gigabit Ethernet). This is about 2.5 times the speed of the previous generation of HomePlug AV products, such as the PowerLine AV Ethernet Adapter Kit PLK300 from Linksys .
Though they share the same throughput speed, the two new Powerline kits have some major differences. The Powerline AV 500 Adapter Kit is really compact; it's smaller than a deck of cards. According to Netgear, it's about 50 percent smaller than competing products.
The Powerline AV+ 500 Adapter Kit, on the other hand, is bigger, but it comes with an integrated filtered power socket for "pass-through" capability, which means you can still use the wall socket to power another product. Note that Powerline adapters need to be plugged directly into the wall socket to work properly.
Netgear says that both new adapter kits are compatible with the draft international IEEE P1901 Powerline standard. This means they provide greater speeds for bandwidth-intensive applications such as lag-free Internet gaming, voice-over IP (VoIP), large file transfers to networked devices, and even simultaneous 1080p HD video streaming to multiple devices.

While it lacks the bombast and sheer size of major technology trade shows such as CES and the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the annual Game Developers Conference has quietly become one of the most important events on gaming's calendar.

This relatively small conference, held in San Francisco, is where game designers and programmers, as well as publishers, developers, and the third-party technology companies they work with, come together for panels, classes, and keynotes. As the show has traditionally been (until a few years ago) largely under the press radar, you're just as likely to rub elbows with actual game auteurs such as Cliff Bleszinski or Sid Meier than a phalanx of PR people.
Of course, now that GDC is a bigger, better-attended show, the major console makers and game publishers all use it to reveal, unveil, and otherwise promote their latest wares. Here are some noteworthy developments we virtually guarantee you'll hear more about this week.
Sony's Motion Controller
The biggest story of the week will be the official coming out party for Sony's Wii-like motion controller device. Briefly glimpsed at E3 last year, its capabilities and details remain largely unknown. Look for it at Sony's March 10 press conference. Not expected to make a big showing is Microsoft's Project Natal -- another entry in the motion-control gaming sweepstakes. Microsoft recently wheeled out the system in NYC for hands-on press and industry demos (we'll detail our hands-on impressions later this week), but the company says it's not showcasing any new developments at GDC.
Don't count PC gaming out yet
Discussing the death of PC gaming is one of the all-time great tech fan arguments, and an easy way to inflame passions on both sides. While the glory days of Quake and Unreal may by long gone, companies such as Intel, Nvidia, and ATI are not going to let the PC gaming market simply vanish beneath the waves. While these companies may not have much in the way of new public product announcements (they largely attend GDC to brief the industry on background about upcoming hardware developments), we're particularly interested in talking to chip-maker Qualcomm about its laptop-lite Smartbook platforms, which seem like a natural growth area for gaming.
Hands-on with Holiday 2010 games
This is where the big titles we've seen briefly at past events get their first hands-on stress-tests in anticipation of the all-important Holiday season. We're especially keep to see more of Star Wars: The Old Republic (a Lucas-themed MMO), Mafia II (a 1950's GTA-style game), and the latest life-extending DLC add-ons for powerhouse titles Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2.
Stay tuned for news, photos, and video all week long from the 2010 Game Developers Conference. For a look back at scenes from last year's show, check out the photo gallery below.