Now that Microsoft has officially backed out of the HD DVD market, discontinuing their Xbox 360 HD DVD player, there needs to be a next step. While the jury is still 'officially' out on the HD DVD vs. Blu Ray war, its fairly apparent that the Blu Ray technology is going to become the next standard and HD DVD is the new beta max. So, here is what Microsoft needs to do.

Introduce the Xbox 360 Blue, along with a buy back program supported by Microsoft through major retail chains, to help people ease the pain on the wallet when they upgrade. But there are a few things I suggest they keep in mind, and implement in this newest Xbox 360. Along with the standard features of an Xbox 360 Elite, the new Xbox 360 Blue should have, at a minimum, these additional features:

• Built in Blu Ray DVD player
• Built in wireless connectivity that supports the N standard
• Built in support for Bluetooth headset connections for Xbox Live communications

Of course, these are just my suggestions. The buy back program needs to be there as an incentive to choose the Xbox 360 over the PlayStation 3, because as is, even though the current game line-up for the PS3 is limited, it is an enticing piece of hardware because of its range of capabilities and built-in support. So, what do you think? Feel free to post a comment.