Best Buy turning hundreds of stores into 3D TV meccas this month

Before you bring a 3D HDTV and Blu-ray player into your house, you may be able to give one a test drive at a nearby Best Buy. According to HDGuru.com, the company will be introducing 3D gear at 200 locations this week, including a kick-off event at the Best Buy store in Union Square in New York City this Wednesday.

Two hundred and fifty Best Buys will get things started with demos of the Panasonic TC-P50VT20 plasma 3D HDTV and DMP-BD350 3D Blu-ray player, which will show a disc of 3D content Panasonic has pulled together. By March 21 there will be over 900 locations that will display Samsung 3D sets and Blu-ray players.

Of course, checking out the full experience will require you sporting in public the special glasses needed to view any content in 3D. If you wind up purchasing the Samsung 3D TV and Blu-ray player at Best Buy, you'll get a starter kit that includes the 3D Blu-ray version of Monsters vs. Aliens and a pair of active-shutter 3D glasses.

But just how many people will take the plunge right away? Even in the FAQ on BestBuy.com, the company lists only two 3D discs slated for release this year, and the first 3D channels won't show up until June. Maybe you can take a page out of Best Buy's book, and start giving 3D demos at your house for $5 a pop to help defray the cost of your new 3D gear.