Sorry to be the bearer of bad news for those of you pumped up for the Xbox 360, but it looks like Microsoft is going to slow production of the newfangled console. In a bid to keep expectations low (and really, what's better than low expectations?), Microsoft says it will not spike production during the holidays to meet demand as many had expected (or hoped for).
Microsoft's Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell said there wouldn't be a big initial spike and promised that the software giant would be able to ship between 4.5 and 5.5 million Xbox 360 consoles by the end of the business year to June 2006.
For the actual launch on November 22, expect between 1.5 million and 2 million consoles on the market. Those will get snapped up by pre-orders, so you may as well set your eBay search bot right now. Or you could just wait: It looks like Xbox 360 games aren't due in large capacities until at least the second quarter of 2006 anyhow.
New Xbox set for slow start [Reuters]