Xbox 360 sells out quickly across U.S.

Weary of lines
Dozens of consumers who e-mailed MSNBC.com expressed disbelief that so few consoles were available.

“The distribution of Xbox 360 is a joke,” wrote Shawn Smith of Massachusetts. Smith said he went to six stores without finding a console. “Of the stores I heard a count on the quantities available, [there] were five at one store, eight at another, and 12 at another. … If the company could not make much more beyond the preorder of units why keep hyping it?”

Others said they had pre-ordered with GameStop and EB Games, both units of GameStop Corps., only to be told they may not see the console until early 2006.

“There are going to be a lot of disappointed kids on Christmas,” wrote Karin Roach of Canton, Ohio.

“I think the system is great, but I’ve grown weary of the long lines and not enough systems shipped so as to cause a buying frenzy,” wrote George Fuentes of Northridge, Calif. “If you know the launch date is Nov. 22 then manufacture enough for the demand.”

Microsoft’s Hufford said the company was “very concerned and sensitive to the fact that some consumer don’t have an Xbox 360 today that want one,” but defended the decision to launch now, in time for the holiday season.

“Consumers have been hearing about the Xbox 360 for more than six months now, they’re ready, we’re ready, so that’s why we moved forward. … Our job now is to get [the consoles] into the country as fast as we can,” Hufford said. He noted that supply problems were historically common when game consoles were first introduced. “These launches are not easy to undertake.”

Best Buy's Musolf agreed. "We always want more. Anytime there’s a big launch — particularly of a video game console — people are excited and demand’s always going to be high."

To those still waiting, Hufford offered the following advice:

“Contact your local retailers as often as you can and ask very specific questions: ‘When are you anticipating the next shipment and specifically, do you have pre-orders that you will be fulfilling before you fulfill walk-up demands.’” It’s important, Hufford said, for consumers to find out whether they’re competing against other people walking into the store, or with a long line of back orders waiting to be filled as well.”

There's always eBay
Many people did succeed in acquiring an Xbox 360 on Tuesday, and were happy to have done so.

“The console looks great, the [high-definition] graphics are incredible – what a gaming experience,” Joshua Abbot of Wildwood, Mo., wrote to MSNBC.com. “It was worth the wait in freezing conditions all night to be the first to get one.”

Graduate student Christopher Thompson set out early on Tuesday morning for a Costco in Santa Clarita., Calif. He was sixth in line when he showed up at 4 a.m. A winning raffle ticket let him snatch up one of 48 Xbox 360s in the store. “I feel great that I have it, but I feel bad that people who were there before me didn’t get one,” he told Reuters.

Some people fortunate enough to get their hands on an Xbox 360 immediately resold it on eBay, occasionally fetching thousands of dollars for packages that sometimes also included games and other add-ins. About 1,800 Xbox 360s were sold on the site between midnight and noon Pacific time Tuesday, the online auction company told The Associated Press.

EBay said the average price for consoles, including those sold with games and other add-ons, was $660. However, the company said some console packages were selling for as much as $2,500, with bidding and sales prices varying widely. Spokesman Hani Durzy said he wasn't surprised by the frenzy, calling it “par for the course” whenever a hot new electronics item is released in limited numbers.

“What you see on eBay is a classic reflection of supply and demand,” he said.

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