MS ups Kinect sales estimates

As Kinect goes on sale for the first time in America today, Microsoft has significantly increased its projected sales for the device in the current quarter.

In September product director Aaron Greenberg predicted that Kinect would sell in excess of 3m units” this Q4.

However, Bloomberg reports that Microsoft has now upped that forecast to 5m units.

UK retail is anticipating massive interest in the device, which has already been capturing the appetite of gamers in-store. Kinect demo units have been set up in thousands of retailers this week, allowing consumers to get their first taste of the device.

Microsoft is expecting Kinect to be a day-one sell-out in the UK, but it has pledged to replenish stock consistently throughout the remainder of the year.

In fact, Microsoft expects so much from its Kinect launch that it believes the Xbox 360 console will sell in bigger numbers this year than it did in 2009 – no mean feat for a console that has passed its fifth birthday.