14 DAY TRIAL // Estimates from analysts point to the Nintendo 3DS handheld having sold more than 500,000 units on the United States market since it was launched, with the biggest reason being the strong pre-orders that have been registered for the device.
Michael Pachter, who is an analyst of the video game market with Wedbush Morgan, has said that he expects the strong debut of the Nintendo 3DS to have a negative impact on the normal DS models that are available, which will only sell half of what they managed during the previous month.
He also believes that the 3DS can help the industry see a growth versus the same period in 2010 during April.
Doug Creutz, who is analyst working at Cowen and Company, believes that the March sales for the 3DS have reached 750,000 units in the United States and that the device will continue to perform better in the coming months, stabilizing the whole industry.
The new Nintendo handheld came out in the United States on March 27, which means that the pretty impressive sales numbers were achieved in just a few days.
Piers Harding Rolls, who is the main games analyst at IHS, says, “Nintendo's accent on network services in the key U.S. market represents an attempt to convince users to carry their 3DS systems with them at all times and to engage with the platform everyday and in every place.”
He added, “This engagement strategy, alongside 3D graphics, camera and video, is key to Nintendo competing with upcoming devices from Sony and also from non-specialist smart phones, entertainment devices and tablets, which offer a legitimate alternative to handheld consoles.”
In Europe Nintendo has confirmed that, since it launched on March 25, the 3DS has managed to sell more than 300,000 units.
In Japan the device, which arrived in the middle of February, has this week gone below the sales figures posted by the rival PlayStation Portable from Sony.