Microsoft manager claims Kinect will "blow away" iPad sales
Citing strong pre-orders and a seasonal holiday lift, the spokesman for Microsoft's Kinect, a motion-tracking camera accessory for the Xbox 360, said the device would easily outsell the iPad.
Microsoft Game Studios manager Kudo Tsunoda made the claim in an interview with gaming industry blog Gamasutra at the Tokyo Game Show. Originally known as Project Natal, Kinect will launch in North America on November 4.
"The preorders have been really strong. As far as what we're looking at for Holiday, this is going to be stuff that'll blow away any of the sales you've seen with iPad," said Tsunoda, when asked about the device's chance of success.
Tsunoda remains confident that the device's deep gameplay and wide appeal will help drive sales past the iPad. "I think we're just getting back to a style of gameplay that includes more people and still has the depth of gameplay everybody loves," Tsunoda says.
Kinect will have high expectations to live up to. Apple sold over 1 million iPads in 28 days, and over 3 million in its first quarter. Earlier this month, analyst Katy Huberty with Morgan Stanley believes iPad production has reached 2 million per month. Apple reportedly hopes to reach production of 3 million a month by the end of the year.
Competition for retail floor space will be fierce this season. According to the Wall Street Journal, Best Buy plans to showcase the iPad and Kindle while also making space for demonstrations of Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Playstation Move.
Microsoft Game Studios manager Kudo Tsunoda made the claim in an interview with gaming industry blog Gamasutra at the Tokyo Game Show. Originally known as Project Natal, Kinect will launch in North America on November 4.
"The preorders have been really strong. As far as what we're looking at for Holiday, this is going to be stuff that'll blow away any of the sales you've seen with iPad," said Tsunoda, when asked about the device's chance of success.
Tsunoda remains confident that the device's deep gameplay and wide appeal will help drive sales past the iPad. "I think we're just getting back to a style of gameplay that includes more people and still has the depth of gameplay everybody loves," Tsunoda says.
Kinect will have high expectations to live up to. Apple sold over 1 million iPads in 28 days, and over 3 million in its first quarter. Earlier this month, analyst Katy Huberty with Morgan Stanley believes iPad production has reached 2 million per month. Apple reportedly hopes to reach production of 3 million a month by the end of the year.
Competition for retail floor space will be fierce this season. According to the Wall Street Journal, Best Buy plans to showcase the iPad and Kindle while also making space for demonstrations of Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Playstation Move.
Comments
How are Kinect and iPad even remotely similar? Okay, they're both electronic. Is MS THAT desperate to say it outsold Apple? Didn't they 'win' the desktop OS wars?
I am confuse.
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So can I run the apps on it?
I don't think it's necessary for AI to follow MS down that rabbit hole, reporting on their ravings as if it made a lick of sense.
Is this still topical to AppleInsider? Would I read this news in HotRod Magazine if he said it would outsell the Camaro?
Wow, what a silly thing to say. They are not competing products. They aren't even at the same price point. It just shows how much everyone has their targets on Apple I guess.
Agreed. Samsung, LG, and all the others have been talking about the iPad. " LOL THE SAMSUNG TABLET WILL SELL WITH EVERYONE IT'LL KICK BUTT" Then with LG "LETS FIRE THE CEO GUYS
As mentioned multiple times, the Kinect cannot be compared against the iPad no matter how you look at it.
Wow. That whole thing reads like one long non sequitur, assembled by cutting and pasting disparate press releases.
I don't think it's necessary for AI to follow MS down that rabbit hole, reporting on their ravings as if it made a lick of sense.
The original source reads like Mad-Libs: Journalism Edition…Seriously though, to me this shows just how big the iPad is if these non-tablet device that is just an accessory to a game console is being compared to the iPad. How many 260s have they sold and are they really expecting 2M (or 3M) units per month to be sold this holiday quarter or is just hyperbole?
Wow, what a silly thing to say. They are not competing products. They aren't even at the same price point. It just shows how much everyone has their targets on Apple I guess.
There is only one connection.
Microsoft is using the iPad to get visibility for their Kinect product. They want to latch onto the iPad free press to drive their own product that as we know doesn't compete against the iPad.
I don't see anything wrong with the comparison. If I say the iPad is the best thing since sliced bread, it doesn't imply that I believe that it is in any way a substitute for sliced bread. Perhaps ham, maybe cheese. He's only acknowledging the strong initial sales, for Pete's sake.
Um, "best thing since sliced bread" is a common and long standing turn of phrase, hence the fact that no one is confused about the actual relative merits of bread vs. whatever, whereas MS is making a specific comparison between completely unrelated products.
So it's sort of like imagining the phrase "there's more than one way to skin a cat" makes sense out of someone announcing that they're going to market a new device to crush your dog's head.
Wow. That whole thing reads like one long non sequitur, assembled by cutting and pasting disparate press releases.
I don't think it's necessary for AI to follow MS down that rabbit hole, reporting on their ravings as if it made a lick of sense.
Hmm...thanks for the input. I made a few changes, hopefully it reads better.
If it's not Apple then it's garbage - Big surprise on the comments.
Do you just copy and paste snark without bothering to read the thread or are you just kinda stupid?
We're talking about the utter inappropriateness of the comment, not the relative merits of the products. Because, you know, they don't have any relative merits.
If it's not Apple then it's garbage - Big surprise on the comments.
Whoa, you're an idiot.
Wow, what a silly thing to say. They are not competing products. They aren't even at the same price point. It just shows how much everyone has their targets on Apple I guess.
The Kinect Xbox 360 bundle will be at a similar pricepoint. 360 + Kinect Elite bundle should be around $399.
Given that Apple is pushing the iPad as a gaming device among other things, and Microsoft is pushing Xbox as a multimedia platform, I think there will be some competition.
I'm sure Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Sony are all very conscious of holiday wishlists. In that sense, they compete. Imagine some 13 year old kid who's going to get one big Christmas present this year: if he doesn't have a 360 or an iPad already, those are going to be at the top of his list.