It was Dec. 18, 2009, when James Cameron left us in awe with his “3-D masterpiece” “Avatar.” Less than a month later at the Consumer Electronics Show held annually in Las Vegas, Nev., 3-D TVs, 3-D computers and 3-D Blu-Ray players were all the rage.

One movie had changed how the entire home entertainment industry worked. Or had it?

Ten months later, how many of us have 3-D TVs in our homes, have 3-D computers or have even seen another 3-D movie after “Avatar”? I don’t see many movies, but I can only name a few that have been released with the 3-D option, I’ve only seen one or two 3-D TVs in the store, and I have yet to bump into anyone with 3-D on their computer.

So, what’s the problem? The technology itself. Too much goes into the entire process. New shooting techniques need to be used to make 3-D content, which, quite frankly, takes a long time for the production of movies. And even if you do manage to find something in 3-D, how will you watch it?

You need to have a 3-D-ready Blu-Ray player and a 3-D capable TV to watch it. Or, if you don’t want those, you can go to the theater to watch “high-quality 3-D content at an affordable price.” In your home, 3-D also raises questions you might overlook such as at what viewing angles can you have your couch/TV to actually see the screen, or how many 3-D glasses do you need to purchase so everyone can enjoy the show?

However, there are some good uses for 3-D. Nintendo, for example, understands how 3-D should work. Early next year, they are going to release a Nintendo DS with 3-D built in. Why is this so special? It doesn’t require the 3-D glasses because it has such a small screen. A genius idea to say the least.

Gaming is where 3-D will really take off. Sony has been behind the 3-D movement by making their PlayStation 3 console 3-D-ready. This, of course, plays right into Sony’s hand so they can sell you a nice Sony Bravia 3-D TV to make it all work together.

Although gaming is cool, the only way the masses will join in will probably be with sports, and that’s what has been happening with ESPN broadcasting the World Cup and the Masters in 3-D. One can only assume they plan on doing the same for the NBA and NFL.

When this happens, 3-D might just become as essential as a big screen 1080p HDTV. Then, of course, you’d need 10 pairs of 3-D glasses for everyone who might want to watch. And those start at $149.99 each.

Eventually, 3-D will take off. But in reality, it’s a gimmick. Buy more of our TVs, set top boxes and movies is all this means. Give it two to three years and the pricing will come down, more content will be available and you might not even need the glasses anymore.

A real indicator of the market is when George Lucas said he was going to re-release his Star Wars movies in 3-D. Now, of course, it’ll take a while to convert the movies to 3-D, but one can wonder if Lucas himself understands how slowly it’s catching on since he’s not going to release them until 2012 and the last three starting in 2015.