Taking this new-millennium thing pretty seriously, consumer electronics manufacturers will usher in a host of new technologies and products this year that make most everything we currently use seem so "last century."

The good news is that many of these new gizmos will reduce the clutter in our homes and vehicles by packing more great entertainment and information options into smaller, integrated packages.

The bad news is that we may be called on to choose sides in some heavily contested, VHS-vs.-Beta-style rivalries among competing products that can't possibly all survive. ...