The Microsoft Kinect is a home run. In less than a month Microsoft managed to sell over 2.5 million units and the demand shows no signs of stopping. Current forecasts put the yearly sales total in the neighborhood of 5 million units so the question becomes: will there be any Microsoft Kinects left for Christmas?
Neil Thompson, the general manager for Xbox in the UK and Ireland, has put an end to any rumors that Kinect shortages may have been used to stimulate demand. In fact, several key markets are seeing demand that outweighs supply. To manage the overwhelming buzz for Kinect, Mr. Thompson has confirmed to GamesIndustry.biz that “we’ve built a really strong supply and resupply chain over the coming weeks.”
When asked about the decision to launch Microsoft Kinect before the holiday season where a hot device such as the Kinect could sell out, Thompson said, “the choices you always have are: do we launch in November or do we wait until February, March when we could hit some bigger launch numbers but then we miss Christmas. It takes time to scale”.
With several key markets seeing an overwhelming demand, the question as to whether you’ll be able to get your hands on Microsoft Kinect this holiday season remains very much in question. We appreciate the news that Microsoft has building out a stronger supply and resupply chain over the coming weeks, but Christmas is only 17 days away.
Now it’s time to hear from you. We’ve checked with some local retailers and nearly half of the Best Buy locations we’ve called have three or less Microsoft Kinect bundles for sale. Is the Microsoft Kinect sold out in your neck of the woods? Let us know in the comment section below, thanks!
via BGR
