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[szaromir]

Good, because the 3DS clocks well over 7 hours while playing Bejeweld and Plants vs Zombies. While the iTouch is closer to 2.5 hours.

That's pretty decent, although lower than my NDS.

I use a 'dumbphone' and will continue to do so (battery life is a priority for me), I will always potentially want a dedicated portable gaming device. Howeer as of now, 3DS has given very few reasons to upgrade. I may buy a 3DS or a Vita sometime next year though, I don't know.

 

[I NEED SCISSORS]

So how terrible are SotD's sales?

To be honest, I don't think they are that terrible - for one, he's not giving away signed toilet roll or begging random people in the street to buy it.

 

[Skilletor]

Yeah no, people aren't buying iphones because they can't play Angry Birds or soemthing.
they're buying it because it's a cool phone that's my point.

I don't care what your point is, you're obviously missing mine. I never mentioned sales, just pointing out that when used for a similar purpose, the battery life for these devices is comparable.

 

[SkylineRKR]

No idea. They had the Black Ops bundle and a ton of gift card promos.

It should've been hitting its stride.

Maybe an outage after effect playing its part there, too? In any case, the Ps3 can drop in price but it still doesn't offer something unique like Kinect. Move wasn't anything different from Wii mote, and also being ignored by Sony itself pretty much.

 

[Gravijah]

Well whatever the case is, I really doubt they would increase their production by a significant amount just so they could give a bunch of consoles away. The fact still remains that they wouldn't run a promotion like this if they didn't have a ton of excess supply for whatever reason that they needed to get rid of, and hence it would be unrealistic for Sony or Nintendo to run a similar promotion if they don't have excess supply themselves.

promotion like this helps get even more 360s into the wild-> "hey now we can buy a kinect!"

 

[VanWinkle]

The Vita res is purposely doubled so PSP games can scale perfectly onto the screen.

The iPhone 5 will not have a better resolution unless it gets a much bigger screen. You end up having diminishing returns for what you can fit on screen verses what you can see at one time.

I think it's actually quadruple resolution.

 

[Mael]

I don't care what your point is, you're obviously missing mine. I never mentioned sales, just pointing out that when used for a similar purpose, the battery life for these devices is comparable.

I'm saying people are not buying these products for the same reasons, so they view it differently and have different expectations for them.

 

[Opus Angelorum]

I think it's actually quadruple resolution.

The Ipad 3 possibly, not the iPhone 5.

 

[Stumpokapow]

And yet people count free Angry Birds downloads in its sales.

That's not true and another dumb comparison.

When Apple reports App Store downloads, they report app store downloads. Not paid downloads. Not specific types of downloads. Just downloads. They don't report sales. When they report sales, they do it in dollars.

When Rovio report Angry Birds numbers, they also typically report downloads. I am sure they have reported sales in the past, but typically they report downloads. This includes free downloads because the free downloads are generally ad subsidized. As far as the company is concerned, revenue is revenue. I don't know if they end up making more per-user from ad subsidies than from the cost of the application, because I don't know CPM for phone apps, but that's why it makes sense to count them.

Beyond that, no one directly compares cell phone games to console games on a 1:1 basis to begin with. They do in aggregate (size of market comparison, total hours played comparison), but not on a 1:1 basis. Clearly one free app != one paid app != one full price game.

Nintendo can feel free to report the number of downloads of the various free things they give away (just as Microsoft can do so). Whether or not it makes sense to do so depends on the context for which they're reporting it.

 

[Jokeropia]

My two younger brothers (aged 12 and 14) exact words on the 3DS are "it's rubbish blocky graphics for kids", they are massive xbox 360 fans and also love their iTouche's, they got rid of their DS and PSP's years ago, this is the market your dealing with today, their market.

Haha, actually, that's exactly the kind of market that is Nintendo's weakest, tweens and younger teens who're deathly afraid of "kiddy" games. This has been shown both in Nintendo's own demographic charts and Sony's revelation that 13-17 year olds were the strongest PSP demographic. Usually, people grow out of that phase when they mature.

 

[StevieP]

Haha, actually, that's exactly the kind of market that is Nintendo's weakest, tweens and younger teens who're deathly afraid of "kiddy" games. This has been shown both in Nintendo's own demographic charts and Sony's revelation that 13-17 year olds were the strongest PSP demographic. Usually, people grow out of that phase when they mature.

PSP advertising reflects that. It, and the Vita's, strongest demo will be the 13-17 male. DS (and likely the 3DS) will swing in the opposite direction both ways with more gender appeal.

 

[Karma]

more importantly, it didn't work as well as this laptop promo.

MS just went outside the obvious "game system + TV" combo, targeted the student demographic with a laptop promo, and it worked.

How do you know it didnt work for Sony? They have ran the free promo far more times than Microsoft. Do you know how many FREE PS3s they have given away?

 

[Skilletor]

I'm saying people are not buying these products for the same reasons, so they view it differently and have different expectations for them.

And I'm saying if you're using them to play games, the battery life is comparable, so bitching about the battery life on a 3DS/PSP/Vita is silly.

 

[mckmas8808]

I expect both Vita and 3DS to combine for the lowest generation of handheld sales ever. Welcome our new mobile overlords people.

I don't think so buddy.

 

[see5harp]

Well whatever the case is, I really doubt they would increase their production by a significant amount just so they could give a bunch of consoles away. The fact still remains that they wouldn't run a promotion like this if they didn't have a ton of excess supply for whatever reason that they needed to get rid of, and hence it would be unrealistic for Sony or Nintendo to run a similar promotion if they don't have excess supply themselves.

Dude they have been selling great numbers for the last year or so. I don't think any of the consoles have been supply constrained for a while.

 

[MDX]

386,000 DS
143,000 3DS

Obviously the "DS" brand is pretty strong.
Nintendo does not need to drop the price of the 3DS to increase its sales, they simply have to drop the other DS models. But why should they? They are making profit on each model of the hardware either way.

Another point is, the 3DS has not even had a X-mas yet. By that time it will have like 2 Mario branded titles? I dont see why Nintendo should be worried.

 

[SkylineRKR]

Its a different ballgame, I don't see the likes of Birth by Sleep and Peace Walker, at their prices and sizes, go to mobile phones.

Mobile gaming is great when the games are simple, effective and cost only a buck or 2, but not beyond that.

Would angry birds be such a success if Rovio charged like 7 bucks for it?

 

[Mael]

And I'm saying if you're using them to play games, the battery life is comparable, so bitching about the battery life on a 3DS/PSP/Vita is silly.

No it is not since you (not the specific you) have different expectations.
Let me put it this way :
you buy a sports car and a smart regardless of price,
they're both cars but if the smart use more oil than the sports car you have reasons to be dissappointed since it's supposed to be less oil heavy.

 

[VanWinkle]

The Ipad 3 possibly, not the iPhone 5.

Sorry, should have clarified. I meant that I'm pretty sure the Vita is quadrupled , not doubled, the resolution of the PSP.

 

[Himself]

Well, I tried. Please don't leave us Mikami/Suda/Yamoaka.

 

[skyfinch]

How do you know it didnt work for Sony? They have ran the free promo far more times than Microsoft. Do you know how many FREE PS3s they have given away?

They also had a promo in Canada with Rogers. Sign up with some kind of phone plan and get a PS3.

 

[shinnn]

Xbox 360 2010 vs 2011:

      2010   2011    YoY
Jan   333K   381K   + 14%
Feb   422K   535K   + 27%
Mar   338K   433K   + 28%
Apr   185K   297K   + 61%
May   195K   270K   + 38%
Jun   452K   507K   + 12%

 

[RurouniZel]

Yeah no.
Psp's battery is mitigated by the fact that it's actually rather hard to turn it off (instead of putting it on sleep mode) so it's less prone to crap battery life.

My brain... it hurts...

 

[Bigfoot]

The Ipad 3 possibly, not the iPhone 5.

Exactly... the iPhone already has "retina" display. There is no need for a better resolution since our retinas will not be able to notice any improvement.

 

[Zuhzuhzombie!!]

<25K combined.

Are you serious?


W....wow.

 

[jkanownik]

There is no technical way for NPD to exclude the free 360 units. They receive data at the UPC level and the UPC for a free unit is the same as a paid unit. Based on the receipt posted the free unit would actually be reported at full price too.

It would be pretty easy to back into an estimate though. It was only the base 4GB systems, so by comparing the month/month trend of all four versions of the system you could get a sense of how the 4GB performed versus the other three. If Pachter keeps getting bugged about it I wouldn't be surprised to see him comment more specifically.

You could also do relatively similar analysis on Amazon sales history. Although it may skew the impact of the promotion a little heavier than would be seen in the total market. If you look at the bestselling products in June, the Xbox 360 4GB w/ Kinect was actually #1, so that immediately pours some water on the conspiracy theories. The base 4GB was #17 for the month. In May the base 4GB was #18 and the 4GB w/ Kinect was #41. In April the base 4GB was #10 and the 4GB w/ Kinect was #29. It's hard to read any impact from the free promotion when you look at those numbers.

One other thing I'm not noticing being ignored is the fact that June is a five week month. It's also the start of summer for many kids in the US and traditionally drives in increase in hardware sales every year. http://vgsales.wikia.com/wiki/NPD_sales_figures

 

[Urban Scholar]

A little food for thought. I recall selling 2 copies of sotd and 2 copies of child of eden since their release to date. As a niche fan of games it sucks but that's how it goes.

 

[larvi]

You could also do relatively similar analysis on Amazon sales history. Although it may skew the impact of the promotion a little heavier than would be seen in the total market. If you look at the bestselling products in June, the Xbox 360 4GB w/ Kinect was actually #1, so that immediately pours some water on the conspiracy theories. The base 4GB was #17 for the month. In May the base 4GB was #18 and the 4GB w/ Kinect was #41. In April the base 4GB was #10 and the 4GB w/ Kinect was #29. It's hard to read any impact from the free promotion when you look at those numbers.

Amazon isn't participating in the Windows 7 "free" 360 promotion, just BestBuy, Dell and HP. So the base 4GB sales on Amazon wouldn't reflect any increase from the promotion.

 

[BurntPork]

Xbox 360 2010 vs 2011:

      2010   2011    YoY
Jan   333K   381K   + 14%
Feb   422K   535K   + 27%
Mar   338K   433K   + 28%
Apr   185K   297K   + 61%
May   195K   270K   + 38%
Jun   452K   507K   + 12%

Wow. So, in reality, the free units didn't impact sales at all. Looks like 360 is the new market leader. Wii U is in for an uphill battle.

 

[CaseyTappy]

I can't believe MS cheated like this for this month's NPD. I am selling my 360 and buying a PS3 for sure now.

Don't, buy a new Sony HDTV and get one free like anywhere in the world or is that different ?

 

[jkanownik]

Amazon isn't participating in the Windows 7 "free" 360 promotion, just BestBuy, Dell and HP. So the base 4GB sales on Amazon wouldn't reflect any increase from the promotion.

It's the lead banner ad on their laptop page right now.

 

[Loudninja]

That promotion did help the 360 sales, but they are still fantastic.

 

[walking fiend]

Wow. So, in reality, the free units didn't impact sales at all. Looks like 360 is the new market leader. Wii U is in for an uphill battle.

you are reading it wrong, the point is that even free units couldn't help to increase YoY more than 12%.

it is strange actually.

 

[Speevy]

Wow. So, in reality, the free units didn't impact sales at all. Looks like 360 is the new market leader. Wii U is in for an uphill battle.

What does that have to do with next generation? Sony had the best selling console of all time last generation, and look where they are now.

I swear you may yet rival me for ridicule in these kinds of threads.

 

[larvi]

It's the lead banner ad on their laptop page right now.

I stand corrected then. I should have said wasn't participating then, at least not when I bought mine.

 

[StevieP]

Wow. So, in reality, the free units didn't impact sales at all. Looks like 360 is the new market leader. Wii U is in for an uphill battle.

... market leader? :s
Speevy said it all.

 

[szaromir]

you are reading it wrong, the point is that even free units couldn't help to increase YoY more than 12%.

it is strange actually.

Nothing strange, the whisper quiet 360S model launched in June last year which started 360's domination ever since (except last December). So it is expected not to see such strong YOY gains from now on (unless something big happens).

 

[GTP_Daverytimes]

Wow. So, in reality, the free units didn't impact sales at all. Looks like 360 is the new market leader. Wii U is in for an uphill battle.

Coming off 2 months of being in the 200k range i think it had a massive effect, at most the 360 sales would be 340,000 units the rest will be the result of promotions and giveaways. I still think it's MS's responsibility to explain the massive climb before bragging about being on top, otherwise great numbers for them.

 

[Infamous Chris]

Lots of damage control going on due to the success of the Xbox 360 in it's 6th year on the market.

 

[BurntPork]

you are reading it wrong, the point is that even free units couldn't help to increase YoY more than 12%.

it is strange actually.

The YoY was think for last month compared to the months before. It would have been around 500k even without the promotion.

Nothing strange, the whisper quiet 360S model launched in June last year which started 360's domination ever since (except last December). So it is expected not to see such strong YOY gains from now on (unless something big happens).

DOH! Forgot that lol.

 

[dvolovets]

I apologize if this was already mentioned, but any word on Child of Eden sales? If I had to guess, probably about as dismal as Shadows of the Damned...

 

[Stumpokapow]

I apologize if this was already mentioned, but any word on Child of Eden sales? If I had to guess, probably about as dismal as Shadows of the Damned...

Less dismal, ~35,000.

 

[Jin34]

Are you serious?


W....wow.

You surprised? I didn't even know what that game was, when I saw it was Suda/Mikami's game and that it came out last month I was in disbelief. I hadn't heard a thing about it since it was first shown, worst marketing campaign ever.

 

[EagleEyes]

Lots of damage control going on due to the success of the Xbox 360 in it's 6th year on the market.

It makes for great entertainment. Speaking of 6th year, is the 360 selling better than the PS2 did in its 6th year? Curious to see if the 360 is in unprecedented territory at this point.

 

[BurntPork]

What does that have to do with next generation? Sony had the best selling console of all time last generation, and look where they are now.

I swear you may yet rival me for ridicule in these kinds of threads.

For it's first 2 years, Wii U will be competing against PS3 and 360.

 

[Gravijah]

The YoY was think for last month compared to the months before. It would have been around 500k even without the promotion.

What do you think YoY stands for?

 

[GTP_Daverytimes]

What do you think YoY stands for?

lol, i don't think he knows.

 

[CadetMahoney]

There were only 3 vendors where the purchases quailified for the promotion, Best Buy, Dell and HP. And it had to be a $700 and up purchase and even then Dell and HP limited it to only specific models. And you had to purchase it with a valid student ID. So this was a very small subset of the laptops purchased in the month.

Conversely that would mean PS3 figures are far less given they give away shitloads with Bravias.

who knows for sure, would be intetresting to find the exact numbers.

Sony am doomed (without price drop). Definitely don't think they're going to overtake the 360 any time soon, despite all the predictions of apologists.

To be fair it was universally accepted that the PS3 was never going to catch the 360 in the total NPD's, so ppl refer to worldwide all the time now.

 

[StevieP]

For it's first 2 years, Wii U will be competing against PS3 and 360.

1) Wii is the current market leader in the 7th generation of consoles, and it will end up that way.
2) The PS4 may be out in 2012 or early 2013 according to the latest rounds of the rumour mill.

 

[Stumpokapow]

It makes for great entertainment. Speaking of 6th year, is the 360 selling better than the PS2 did in its 6th year? Curious to see if the 360 is in unprecedented territory at this point.

PS2 launched in October 2000 -> 6th full calendar year would be 2006.
360 launched in November 2005 -> 6th full calendar year would be 2011.
Hope the one month offset in initial launch doesn't prejudice using a calendar year comparison.

PS2 2006 -> 360 2011:
January 272,4xx -> 381,xxx (360 beats ps2)
February 309,2xx -> 535,xxx (360 beats ps2)
March 276,8xx -> 433,xxx (360 beats ps2)
April 206,9xx -> 297,xxx (360 beats ps2)
May 231,6xx -> 270,xxx (360 beats ps2)
June 311,9xx -> 507,xxx (360 beats ps2)
July 241,9xx
August 262,4xx
Sep 306,5xx
Oct 235,0xx
Nov 664,xxx
Dec 1,394,xxx

So, uh, yeah.