Lasers and LED’s will lead the way to new generations of brighter, larger and less power-hungry HDTV’s, if the early touts can be believed.According to the NYT, the lasers and LED’s in these new sets, first promised a year ago, now trickling on to the market in a small way, and set for a bigger splash at CES in 2008, beam white light’s three building blocks: red, green and blue. The Times says you can see “a palette of hues…in a wider range than in TVs without this technology.”

Samsung’s HL-S5679W is a rear-projection TV enhanced with LED’s that goes for about $1,500. But it’s not a delicate little thing – it weighs in at 90 pounds (40.8 kg).

We’re all for better TV’s. They are going to convince us all that watching video – downloaded, streaming, homemade or network quality – is better on our TV’s than on our piddly little computer screens. My wife and I have cuddled up in bed together with my 12-inch laptop and we have also glanced across the room at shows on our 19-inch computer monitor – and neither substitute for the experience of watching a big set with big sound.

With Mitsubishi promising a full-fledged laser-driven TV at CES 2008, and expectations of new and better TV-PC connection devices, it seems that next year is the year convergence will head for the mainstream.

We can’t wait.