A little over a year ago, Toshiba stuck its tail between its legs, and rode off into the HD disc sunset, officially ending the HD format war against Blu-ray. Or so we thought. Since then, a group of Chinese companies holding many of the HD-DVD technology patents have been pushing China Blue HD (CBHD), and this week they are shipping the first players. Similar to, but not compatible with HD-DVD, CBHD is aimed primarily at the cost conscious Chinese market. Without Blu-ray's stiff royalty fees, CBHD players cost about 40% less than equivalent Blu-ray players, while the discs run from around $8 to $12 each. So far Warner Bros has signed on with a promised 100 CBHD titles this year.

So, will CBHD ever make it to the States? Personally, I hope not, as further confusion would probably kill both formats permanently. What do you think?

CDR Info, via Engadget HD