Analysts: 3m Xbox 360s by December
And they've got an inkling of the price too.
The console hasn't even been unveiled yet and already analysts are weighing in with estimates of how many units Microsoft will ship by the end of the year. The company is expected to have a whopping 3 million Xbox 360s on store shelves worldwide by the end of 2005, according to US research firm Goldman Sachs.
This estimate is in line with earlier numbers whispered by insiders. In March, a report by UK trade paper MCV cited an unnamed source at a senior US publisher who confirmed that there should be 1 million Xbox 360s available in Europe by the end of the year and 1.5 million by the end of March 2006.
But perhaps more interesting than the raw shipment numbers is the predicted selling price of the console. Goldman Sachs estimates that Xbox 360 will arrive in the US at a selling price of $249-300 (£130-160), putting it cheaper than or at the $300 Xbox sold for when it debuted in 2001.
Microsoft said earlier this week that it would show off Xbox 360 for the first time during an MTV special, set to air on the 12th and 13th of April around the world. No one knows if the price will also be revealed then, but if it isn't then it is sure to come out at Microsoft's pre-E3 conference on 16 May.
Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games
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