Microsoft scrambling to keep up with Kinect demand

Microsoft said Tuesday that it sold more than 2.5 million Kinect for Xbox 360 devices worldwide in the 25 days after that the gesture-sensing videogame controllers hit the market.

Microsoft is on track to meet its forecast of selling five million Kinect gadgets by the end of the year, according to Don Mattrick, president of Interactive Entertainment Business at the US-based technology giant.

"We are thrilled about the consumer response to Kinect, and are working hard with our retail and manufacturing partners to expedite production and shipments of Kinect to restock shelves as fast as possible to keep up with demand," Mattrick said.

Kinect is available at more than 60,000 retailers in 38 countries, according to Microsoft.

Kinect uses a 3D camera and motion recognition software to let people play videogames on Xbox 360 consoles using natural body movements and voice commands instead of hand-held controllers.

The standalone Kinect, which works with the 45 million Xbox 360s already sold worldwide, costs 150 dollars. A four-gigabyte Xbox 360 console that includes the Kinect and the "Kinect Adventures" game sells for 299 dollars.

(c) 2010 AFP