Apparently following Comcast's lead, Apple couldn't wait to get started with the celebrating this morning, eagerly pointing out that it's online store features primetime TV content from all four major networks (yep, NBC is back, in case you missed the news) and can call itself the "most popular online TV store". At 200 million episodes sold, with 1 million of those in high definition -- no word on how many couch purchases that includes -- we wouldn't say McDonald's billion's served score is in trouble yet, but we can see why someone wouldn't be all that enthused by Blu-ray.

Straight from El Jobso's mouth at today's notebook keynote: "Blu-ray is just a bag of hurt. It's great to watch the movies, but the licensing of the tech is so complex, we're waiting till things settle down and Blu-ray takes off in the marketplace." Phil chimed in with "We have the best HD movie and TV options in iTunes." Damn. As if that weren't enough to make Mac-lovin' home theater junkies cringe, Steve also commented (when asked about the dearth of HDMI in his introductions) that HDMI was "limited in resolution," and Philip Schiller elaborated by saying that "for typical computer use, DisplayPort is the connector of the future." So, does that mean we can't count on Blu-ray support in OS X 10.5.6?

One of the reasons we love HD so much is because it's so complicated, sure that makes us uber-geeks, but we're comfortable with that. You'd think that if nothing else, the definition of High Definition would be pretty straight forward, but when PR departments get a-hold of a phrase, things have a tendency to be as clear as mud. But it isn't just PR spin, ask HD enthusiasts what the definition of HD is and you'll almost always get a different answer. Ask a few industry groups and we'd bet you still won't get a consistent response. There was a time when the CEA would allow any TV with more than 480 lines to use the HDTV logo, but these days 720p is the minimum. On top of all this, some manufacturers have adopted the term Full HD to describe 1080p. So why should we expect a big wig like Steve Jobs to get it right?

Is that Blu-ray drive-sporting Power Mac Mac Pro just around the corner? Maybe, maybe not, but for Apple users who like to stay ahead of the curve they can expect to see the new Toast 7 w/ BD support bundled with Blu-ray recorders shipping soon. The Toast Dynamic Writing feature makes the jump to next-gen, allowing Mac users to drag-and-drop to 50GB BD-R or BD-RE discs with ease. No mention of whether the automatic disc-spanning feature is intact, at $47.99 and 50GB each a dual layer disc (whenever they are available) should be more than enough. Still, with pricetags of at least $750 it may be some time before even deep-pocketed Apple aficionados jump in. The Logitec LBD-A2FU2 Blu-ray burner for Macs & PCs we previewed back in April has apparently slipped, Amazon Japan dates its release as July 31, for 132,762 yen ($1,136 US).

This is as good a time as any to (re)start an Apple rumor about a Blu-ray burner in the next product refresh. All we need to do is check our calendar for Lord Steve's next public appearance and there is your totally unsubstantiated predicted release date. We'd express more concern about the lack of consumer edition HD DVD recording software if there were, you know, any burners available or even officially announced in the U.S.

[Thanks for the tip Joe L.!]