zombie84 said:

The Blu-ray MASTER (not the BD compressed version itself) was the "for all time" version of the SE.

I don't think so. I think that these were actually going to be the masters for the first Blu Ray release, but the demand was great enough that they just said screw it and reused the 2004, since it is 1080p. I think they actually intended to have a proper (SE) HD release of the films on Blu Ray with proper color correction (I think the color correction for the 2004 versions was an honest mistake as a result of a rushed project). I think they would have then added the additions from the 2004 masters and whatever else George felt like. I do think that it is possible that these masters were going to be used for the 3D release as well, since it would have taken so long for the films to be released theatrically, giving them plenty of time for the project. I think that they probably didn't bother with doing a full 4K version of PM so that it would look more like AOTC and ROTS, creating a more consistent look for the PT (sort of like how over DNR'd the Blu Rays were).

Also, regarding the 97 SE's, what is most likely going to happen is we will never have a complete release. What is more likely to happen is we will get a set with the theatricals and 2011 versions, with the 97 footage that is not in one or the other included as deleted/alternate scenes. I seriously doubt we will ever get more than that for the 97 versions.

So all this being said, what they are showing off is probably the 97's will all the automated clean up and restoration done on them. As far as the lightsabers go, I don't think that comparing them to the GOUT will really get us anywhere. The 2004/2011 versions could be what they looked like on the negative. We just don't know. I have doubts that these are the theatrical versions, however, but just because I don't know if an IP scan would look that good (which would be the most likely source for the OUT). I could be wrong, though, when it comes to IP quality.