The must have electronic gizmo for 2009 will be much the same as it was in 2008: the Blu Ray high definition player. The difference between Christmas last year and Christmas yet to come will be an entry level price below $100 — thanks to the Chinese.

The Blu Ray Disc Association reports that in order to induce Chinese manufacturers to make the units they had to not only share the technology but also had to create a licensing format which would provide them the edge on the low end of the retail price scale.

These new low end players could be leading to the speculation surrounding Sony’s Playstation 3, which has been rumored for a while to be dropping it’s price by as much as $150 before the 2009 holiday season.

In a down economy, these fast moves in a hot format are sure to make Black Friday a more predictable event.