HD Format War: Blu-ray Wins

Well, folks ... it is official.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080219/ap_on_bi_ge/japan_toshiba
http://www.toshiba.co.jp/about/press/2008_02/pr1903.htm

Toshiba has bowed out of the HD format competition with Sony's Blu-ray. It was Sony's race to lose considering that they had the most leverage.

1) Sony's Playstation 3 contained a Blu-ray drive
2) Sony and Walt Disney went exclusively Blu-ray
3) Blockbuster video went to Blu-ray
4) Netflix and Wal-mart decided to go exclusively Blu-ray a couple of weeks ago

I recently acquired a Playstation 3 and I must say I have been impressed with Blu-ray. In the past I have been adamantly against Sony products because their exclusive formats (ATRAC, MiniDisc, etc...) rarely survive. Also I had a Sony DVD player it died two weeks have the warranty expired.

After several losses (Betamax vs. VHS, ATRAC vs. MP3), Sony seems to be back on top. HD DVD prices will fall dramatically because retailers will be trying to get rid of all the discontinued merchandise. I think I may stock up on some HD DVDs if the prices fall below $10.

Since the format war is over, would you now consider buying a Blu-ray player?