Thanks for the replies, I see it has gone a little off topic..
To stay off-topic, my statement that gear would become redundant was perhaps a little misleading. Perhaps I should have said "You don't need epix to play WotLK". While Blizz makes a bucketload of cash off the addicts (sorry, but if you play every day and get upset missing a raid, you ARE addicted) they CAN NOT ignore the people that will play from the ground up.
It MUST be possible for a solo player to play to 80. So while your epix makes the game easier, you simply don't need them. You are simply rushing to lv 80 to start the grind that Blizz knows keeps you hooked.
When I went from 40-70, I had ZERO epix and I made it just fine, the same progression will apply. I had a tough time in thrallmar and had to work hard, after that I was geared and things became the normal grind I had before.
Blizzard can say whatever they like about you not needing new epix, that simply means they are making THE GAME EASIER, rather than gearing you at 68 like they did in BC.
Blizz has also said they will make leveling 60-70 easier and they have dropped mounts to 30. They have done that for 2 reasons that I can see.
1) They want new people to have an achievable goal (a balancing act between maxing out how long someone stays active and keeping their interest)
2) Their business NEEDS new gamers
If their business needs new gamers, they are not going to throw them away when they get to 70 without epix, they are going to make it harder, but possible, to get to 80. (making it harder sets the addiction better, too easy lose interest, harder makes it a challenge and keeps the player on a few more months)
Look at Blizz decisions as business moves and you are MUCH more likely to see what they are going to do.
My 2c