Looks like Microsoft’s Xbox One S gambit was a success- the redesigned, slimline console appears to have taken the UK market by storm, where sales of the Xbox One rose by 989% week on week following its launch. That’s not all, either, as for the week ending September 24, Xbox One S held a staggering 71% of the hardware market- up 76% year on year.
The really interesting thing here is that even Sony’s launch of the PS4 Slim, the redesigned, smaller PS4 console that they launched on September 15, was not enough to hold off the assault of the Xbox One S- PlayStation 4 had a market share of just 19% for the same week, meaning it was down 66% year on year. That said, Sony did at least see higher sales week on week, with sales increasing to the tune of 22%.
But the launch of the PS4 Slim next to the Xbox One S 500GB and 1TB models appears to have been a damp squib, with MCV UK estimating that the Xbox One S’s launch was stronger by a whole 361%.
“It’s great to see how popular both the Xbox One S and the FIFA 17 Xbox One S consoles are with fans, not just over the last week but since the Xbox One S was released in August. 4K video streaming and 4K UHD Blu-ray have been extremely well received and we believe there is no better value right now for those looking to upgrade their console,” Xbox UK marketing boss Harvey Eagle told MCV.
“It’s a fantastic time for gamers with the range of upcoming titles appealing to all audiences, from Gears of War 4 to Skyrim Special Edition and the release this week of the acclaimed Forza Horizon 3. There’s never been a better time to own an Xbox One.”
An argument can presumably be made that prospective PlayStation purchasers are holding off till the launch of the PS4 Pro, and not investing in the Slim. But that same argument would also apply to the Xbox One S and Scorpio, especially since the Scorpio promises to be a more radical and appealing redo of the Xbox One compared to the PS4 Pro, which is ultimately a very iterative upgrade.
As of right now, it does sound like Microsoft may have managed to turn their fortunes around a but with the Xbox One S’s launch.
