Microsoft moves 10m Kinects in record time

Microsoft reached a pair of milestones today with the Kinect that also gave it a minor win against Apple. The company said it had sold 10 million of the Xbox 360 motion controller since its November 4 debut, eight million of which were in the first 60 days. It averaged about 133,333 of the add-ons.

The achievement was enough to be certified as a Guinness world record for the fastest-selling home electronics device. The figure was enough to beat both the iPhone and iPad over similar timeframes, officials said. It would officially reach paper in the next version of the Gamer Edition of Guinness' World Records book.

Microsoft's achievement may have finally seen it reach expectations set by the company's Game Studios manager Kudo Tsunoda, who anticipated that Kinect would "blow away" iPad sales months before it went on sale. The record wasn't necessarily difficult, as a Kinect costs $150 and isn't tied to a service plan like the iPhone. It was still partly unexpected as it came despite its having to appeal either to existing Xbox 360 owners or to newcomers willing to spend at least $300 for an Xbox 360 Arcade bundle with the Kinect included.

Apple reached the 10 million mark for the iPad only sometime in the fall, roughly half a year after it shipped. Limited distribution and supply were partly to blame, since it didn't expand outside of the US until May and didn't escape display-related shortages until the summer.

The iPad 2 may create a challenge for Microsoft, since international buyers will get it just two weeks later. US distribution will also be much wider at its launch on Friday.

By Electronista Staff