General Electric says it has achieved a breakthrough in digital storage technology that will allow standard-size discs to hold the equivalent of 100 DVDs. I had to read that twice myself. It’s just a laboratory success for now, until it can be made to work in products that can be mass-produced and affordable.

“This could be the next generation of low-cost storage,” said Richard Doherty, an analyst at Envisioneering, a technology research firm.

So you’re an old school kind of guy or gal. You miss those retro floppy discs and refuse to use Cd-Rs for anything but a coaster. Well, this Floppy CD-R disc will make it all right. They look like a standard 3.5″ floppy, but the underside has the shiny spankable bottom of a CD-R.

Since it’s square, it won’t be able to hold the standard CD-R amount, but that’s okay. 200MB is still 138 times more than the original floppy. The $10 price tag is a bit steep, but at least you can mesmerize your friends with your inability to let go of the past. A 4-pack will cost you $28, so you can save some money buying more than one.

It took long enough didn’t it? But it has arrived. The same benefits of HD DVD have finally made it over to Blu-ray. A Blu-ray/DVD hybrid disc. It features a single-layer of Blu-ray on one side and a standard DVD on the very same side (You won’t have to flip it).

As you are used to hearing, it’s appearing first in Japan, with something called Code Blue emergency helicopter doctor Blu-ray BOX as the first hybrid title. It’s a shame we have to miss that one. No word yet on when or if we will see this technology in the states, but a little backwards compatibility never hurt anybody.

The same dirty Wii syndrome that affected Super Smash Bros is now coming to the forefront again with the launch of Mario Kart. You may or may not be able to get the game to play, depending on how filthy your Wii is. The disc reading laser is having a hard time cutting through the dirt, due to the fact that it’s a double-layer disc with a large memory capacity. Those who may be heavy smokers have a layer of nicotine on the lens, for instance.

Reports of the launch of Mario Kart Wii this month in Japan show that the game is having this same problem just months after Smash Bros. Nintendo will clean it for you, but that means you’ll have to be without it for awhile and frankly that sucks. Keep your Wii clean. A clean Wii is a happy Wii people.

Last week we told you about how Activision was having some issues with turnaround time for the Guitar Hero III: Legends of rock discs for the Wii. The turnaround time was so bad that they are adding a refund to the list of solutions for the sound issues found with the original game discs. You might remember, the first batch of Guitar Hero III discs for the Wii only included stereo sound, as opposed to Dolby. Apparently Activision is taking 3-4 weeks to get new discs out to users. This sucks because you have to send them your old disc before they’ll send you a new one. Here are the details:

Activision and Nintendo re-mastered the game and will provide a replacement disc to consumers with Dolby digital surround sound. If you want a full refund instead of a replacement disc, you can download their refund form, which outlines the refund requirements.

Some Guitar Hero III owners for the Wii have been stuck in mono for months now, after a problem with some of the games. At long lat Activision is finally ready to start issuing replacement discs.

According to some end-users, Activision is now sending out pre-paid envelopes, so customers have to ship back their faulty GH III disc and wait “3 to 4 weeks” before getting the new, stereo-enabled one for free. I hear ya, fans. That sucks! Some of you can’t live without your favorite game for that long.