ECM on 27 September 2012
I'm sure this has already been said, but not having a disc-based machine would be akin to committing suicide: retailers aren't going to give you much support if their only way to make money in this equation is on slim-to-non-existent hardware profit margins, and accessories--they'll hand that 'extra' space over to the hardware that gives them a steady income stream.
(And no retail presence=vastly diminished sales to the point where there's no way, unless they're handing retailers a sizable hardware margin (which will drastically reduce their competitiveness), that this happens.)
(Also: CliffyB has about as much a clue of the business end of this biz as your grandma, judging by this and myriad, non-Gears of War-related, commentary.)
