I used to run enterprise grade drives in the 90s because desktop drives were largely unreliable and slow. HDD reliability had improved dramatically in the late 90s up until the late 00s. Then pricing turned cut-throat and SSDs became affordable (putting price pressure on the older technology). Makers had to cut workforce, warranties and parts costs while offering increasing performance. A lot of the makers became unprofitable, hence WD and Seagate were able to acquire the other makers (the consolidation trend). In the light of these big changes, we have to accept that some unintended lemons would likely make it out to the public, especially in the consumer space. Makers are pushing the boundaries of cost-effectiveness to deliver a balance between short-term profitability and long-term business survival.
Because of the recent consolidation, WD and Seagate are reaping the rewards of only having to compete with each other for the most part (they had gobbled up most of what was the competition). They are doing what most businesses would do in the situation... cashing in. I don't think they'd engage each other in a pricing war, as that would hurt both parties. Their recent price reductions were probably just a side-effect of price pressure from big OEMs and retailers.
That being said, I think product reliability and consistency will improve again (slowly) as we move forward. However, I think consumer-class product life would continue to be short (or even further shortened).
