• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Ladies and gentlemen, I saw something over the last 48 hours that hasn't happened yet this (next) gen...

Deerock71

Member
First, hear my tale of woe. It is true, 100%. I actually purchased a year long membership to WAL-FUCKING-MART, so that I might get an early-bird shot at a PS5 for my 14 year-old son. I am one of the lucky few that got placed in a virtual line, which seems to be a clever way to avoid crashing the website, and they tell me it could take up to 33 minutes. FUCK YEAH, I'LL WAIT!

I've got my AMEX lined up for this purchase. I barely use it and they're always, and I mean ALWAYS, emailing me telling me they've increased my spending limit. THIS baby's got my back! The minutes tick down...8...7...6...

SUDDENLY, I'm in line with a 10 minute timer to complete my purchase. WOOHOO! IT'S IN THE BAG, MY SON!!!




[DECLINED]




WTaF?!?!?



The timer is counting down...7...6...


An email pops in from AMEX: Did you just try to make a 499.00 purchase from Wal-Mart?

[YES] [NO]

It's like a FUCKING love letter from a 5th grader!

...5..

say what again pulp fiction GIF


Thank you for you response. Feel free to go back and resume your purchase.

There's still time on the clock! I press purchase...

Your shopping cart is empty.

Meme Reaction GIF by Tyler


So, that was my PS5 tale. On to my point. I went back in to the Wal-Mart website to see what I could salvage. PS5 Hah! Xbox Series X Hah! Xbox Series S wut? There it sat. I put it in my cart and purchased it; half because I couldn't believe it was happening. It arrives Saturday. The thing is...I kept checking, and the Series S was available for...like...24 hours on Wal-Mart during full-blown Black Friday madness, when LITERALLY nothing else next-gen or Switch OLED had stock.

This is either going to be a breakout month for Microsoft for the November NPDs, or nobody wants an Xbox Series S, of which I am no longer a member of. Has Microsoft been stockpiling Xbox Series S' in conjunction with Wal-Mart on Black Friday?

george w bush strategy GIF
 
Last edited:

Rykan

Member
Xbox Series S wut? There it sat. I put it in my cart and purchased half because I couldn't believe it was happening. It arrives Saturday. The thing is...I kept checking, and the Series S was available for...like...24 hours on Wal-Mart during full-blown Black Friday madness, when LITERALLY nothing else next-gen or Switch OLED had stock.
Well well well....
 
Last edited:

Deerock71

Member
Well well well....
Right? And if you're quoting me because I said I wouldn't have room on my shelf for a digital only system...I couldn't have NOTHING for my middle child to unwrap this Christmas. And if I DO snag a PS5...I could always resell it.
 

Rykan

Member
Right? And if you're quoting me because I said I wouldn't have room on my shelf for a digital only system...I couldn't have NOTHING for my middle child to unwrap this Christmas. And if I DO snag a PS5...I could always resell it.
Nah I'm quoting you because I've been saying this for days now: Series S is the least desireable next gen machine. There's a minor but vocal group on GAF that insists Series S is secretly the most popular Xbox. Thank you friend, You have given me new ammunition and I will continue the good fight. To War!
 

Deerock71

Member
Seems like an overly long tale to say you were able to buy an XSS, which is widely available.
They're not that easy to get ahold of either, and they're not there any more. I don't know how many they had, but it seemed to be an ideal time to have them.
 

nush

Gold Member
Has Microsoft been stockpiling Xbox Series S' in conjunction with Wal-Mart on Black Friday?

Probably, they did for 360 before the launch of NXE. I saw it personally. With all the 20th anniversary content they are sure to want to capitalize on that by having consoles available.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
They're not that easy to get ahold of either, and they're not there any more. I don't know how many they had, but it seemed to be an ideal time to have them.

No bit according to the geniuses on this website, any stock in stores means a console doesn't sell. (Switch says hi all year)

That sucks you got robbed, hopefully you enjoy the S for now and grab ps5 down the road. Do a little gamepass and you have tons of games to play right off the hop.....
 
That's so shitty. I specifically prevented American Express from ever doing such a thing with any of my purchases.

I actually managed to buy another PS5 through that same membership, this one is for a friend. I didn't purchase a year's worth, though. I just signed up for the monthly. Initially thought I'd go trial, but thank god I read the fine print saying that I wouldn't be able to purchase with a trial account, and would need to pay for a membership.

9SsSIqB.png
 

Rykan

Member
No bit according to the geniuses on this website, any stock in stores means a console doesn't sell. (Switch says hi all year)

That sucks you got robbed, hopefully you enjoy the S for now and grab ps5 down the road. Do a little gamepass and you have tons of games to play right off the hop.....
Switch isn't a new console.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TLZ

Deerock71

Member
No bit according to the geniuses on this website, any stock in stores means a console doesn't sell. (Switch says hi all year)

That sucks you got robbed, hopefully you enjoy the S for now and grab ps5 down the road. Do a little gamepass and you have tons of games to play right off the hop.....
I have actually purchased a year of Gamepass and a year of PS plus for my son (I pray I never have to handle his PS4). I also have a ton of old digital Xbox and Xbox 360 titles that will likely get a spec bump, which I look forward to seeing. If he gives it a shot, he might actually like it.
 
Last edited:

Topher

Gold Member
They're not that easy to get ahold of either, and they're not there any more. I don't know how many they had, but it seemed to be an ideal time to have them.

XSS is available on bestbuy.com right now.


It has been for a while

No bit according to the geniuses on this website, any stock in stores means a console doesn't sell. (Switch says hi all year)

The fact that XSS is more widely available isn't up for debate. It simply is. That doesn't mean it "doesn't sell" at all.
 
Last edited:

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
I have actually purchased a year of Gamepass and a year of PS plus for my son (I pray I never have to handle his PS4). I also have a ton of old digital Xbox and Xbox 360 titles that will likely get a spec bump, which I look forward to seeing. If he gives it a shot, he might actually like it.

That's good, some of the old games look fantastic upscale, and you might be surprised by a few hidden gems on gamepass. (Not to mention of course stuff like forza 5 and Halo infinite) You could also do some serious emulation on the S.
 

Rykan

Member
Thanks for that, changes nothing. There could be 5 units a week moving out of each store or 500, you wouldn't know as long as they kept stock on the shelf........
Yes it does. One is a nearly 5 year old console that already supplied most of its potential audience. The other is a console that has been out for one year. Saying that they're in the same situation is straight up wrong. It's pretty telling that you insist on comparing it to a nearly 5 year old console instead of the other 3 consoles that have recently been released that are all sold out.
 
Last edited:

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
Yes it does. One is a nearly 5 year old console that already supplied most of its potential audience. The other is a console that has been out for one year. Saying that they're in the same situation is straight up wrong.

Your missing the point completely. I never once said they were in the same situation, oy that you can't tell anything from store stock levels in terms of if something is selling out.

I can make 100 loafs of bread a day and sell 90 a day, you have no idea how many I sold. I can make 1000 loafs of bread and sell 990 a day and you have no idea how many I sold.
The availability on the shelf tells you nothing in terms of sales. Absolutely zero. Even if I was sold out every day you have no idea what I sold.

Even if you want to play the game of comparing them (which wasn't happening), it's not the same market at all, one is a portable, the other is a home console.
 

MrFunSocks

Banned
Well that took a sad but kind of expected turn into stealth console warring and concern.

I guess the iPhone 13 series is just a bomb that no-one wants since they're readily available. Someone should tell apple and their ATH share price.
 
Last edited:

Rykan

Member
Your missing the point completely. I never once said they were in the same situation, oy that you can't tell anything from store stock levels in terms of if something is selling out.

I can make 100 loafs of bread a day and sell 90 a day, you have no idea how many I sold. I can make 1000 loafs of bread and sell 990 a day and you have no idea how many I sold.
The availability on the shelf tells you nothing in terms of sales. Absolutely zero. Even if I was sold out every day you have no idea what I sold.

Even if you want to play the game of comparing them (which wasn't happening), it's not the same market at all, one is a portable, the other is a home console.
Yes you can tell something if a system is sitting on shelves. Just because we don't know the exact amount of consoles they've sold doesn't mean that the fact it is sitting on shelves says "Absolutely zero". That is ridiculous. If 4 next gen systems release during a massive shortage of components, 3 of those are sold out instantly as soon as they arrive at stores and one of them is sitting on shelves, it absolutely is saying something even if we don't have the full picture with all the exact details.
Well that took a sad but kind of expected turn into stealth console warring and concern.

I guess the iPhone 13 series is just a bomb that no-one wants since they're readily available. Someone should tell apple and their ATH share price.
No console warring going on here, this thread is literally about Series S and its availability.
 
Sorry to hear that mate. Just call your credit card company and clear a limit as your standing amount so it doesn't happen in future. Most Aussie banks have a soft limit like that you can set yourself in your internet banking and receive an SMS message to your phone for approval of larger ones instantly. No hassle that way.

As someone who used to be a business merchant for AMEX and has to dev websites with AMEX from time to time, they suck.
 
Last edited:

pqueue

Member
They're not that easy to get ahold of either, and they're not there any more. I don't know how many they had, but it seemed to be an ideal time to have them.
Costco North Seattle had a fuckton today, and you can assume the other stores in the area did as well.
 

Deerock71

Member
Costco North Seattle had a fuckton today, and you can assume the other stores in the area did as well.
I'm kind of sensing a pattern here. They're deploying the ground troops because there are no bombs dropping.
 
Last edited:

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
Yes you can tell something if a system is sitting on shelves. Just because we don't know the exact amount of consoles they've sold doesn't mean that the fact it is sitting on shelves says "Absolutely zero". That is ridiculous. If 4 next gen systems release during a massive shortage of components, 3 of those are sold out instantly as soon as they arrive at stores and one of them is sitting on shelves, it absolutely is saying something even if we don't have the full picture with all the exact details.

No console warring going on here, this thread is literally about Series S and its availability.

Your still missing the point completely, regardless of the shortages, regardless of if it's the least popular of the 4 consoles, you have zero idea how many series S are being sold. They could be selling 5 a day or 500 a day, you literally could not tell. It could easily be outselling the X if they built more units than the X. Denying this fact does not make it so. This isn't complicated.
 

Rykan

Member
Your still missing the point completely, regardless of the shortages, regardless of if it's the least popular of the 4 consoles, you have zero idea how many series S are being sold. They could be selling 5 a day or 500 a day, you literally could not tell. It could easily be outselling the X if they built more units than the X. Denying this fact does not make it so. This isn't complicated.
I'm not missing the point at all. You are just in complete and utter fanboy denial mode here. There is a massive shortage of components hitting every tech industry right now and the gaming industry especially. All new consoles are sold out. Every new GPU is sold out. The only exception to this is the Series S.

No, we don't know how many units its selling. What we do know for a fact that it is unable to sell out and sitting in shelves in an environment in which literally every other new gaming related piece of hardware is sold out instantly. Saying that fact is "meaningless" because we don't have the exact numbers is ignorance. This shouldn't be hard to grasp.

We don't know how many units the ouya sold, guess we shouldn't speculate about that either.
 
Last edited:

MrFunSocks

Banned
No console warring going on here, this thread is literally about Series S and its availability.
I’m sorry but a thread about concern for how many series S consoles are in store shelves is dubious, especially given the context of someone going to buy a PS5 and had one in their cart then it sold out seconds later and then just going “oh well there are lots of series S’s that no one wants so I’ll just casually buy one of them”.

We know the Series S is selling well. Have you ever thought that maybe they’re making enough of them so they’re available? There’s nowhere near enough information available to come to a conclusion that they’re not selling. Have you gone and marked all the ones with a red X on the box and then gone back a week later to see if they’re all still there? No? So how do you know they’re not selling out and just have a good supply of new stock? The switch isn’t sold out yet is having no problem outselling all. The iPhone isn’t sold out yet is outselling all.

You’re fanboying. In stock != no demand/selling badly.
 
Last edited:

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
I'm not missing the point at all. You are just in complete and utter fanboy denial mode here. There is a massive shortage of components hitting every tech industry right now and the gaming industry especially. All new consoles are sold out. Every new GPU is sold out. The only exception to this is the Series S.

No, we don't know how many units its selling. What we do know for a fact that it is unable to sell out and sitting in shelves in an environment in which literally every other new gaming related piece of hardware is sold out instantly. Saying that fact is "meaningless" because we don't have the exact numbers is ignorance. This shouldn't be hard to grasp.

We don't know how many units the ouya sold, guess we shouldn't speculate about that either.

Just re-read what MrFunsocks just wrote. I'm pretty secure in my non-fanboy status of owning a switch oled, a pc, series X, series S and a PS5, I have no horse in the race. Again, stock levels on shelves does not tell us how many are selling, it's a fact. And it's hardly sitting in most places, here in most stores they come in they sell out........not as fast as PS5 and Series X but they are moving.
But again, don't confuse speed of movement with number of sales.
 

Rykan

Member
I’m sorry but a thread about concern for how many series S consoles are in store shelves is dubious, especially given the context of someone going to buy a PS5 and had one in their cart then it sold out seconds later and then just going “oh well there are lots of series S’s that no one wants so I’ll just casually buy one of them”.

We know the Series S is selling well. Have you ever thought that maybe they’re making enough of them so they’re available? There’s nowhere near enough information available to come to a conclusion that they’re not selling. Have you gone and marked all the ones with a red X on the box and then gone back a week later to see if they’re all still there? No? So how do you know they’re not selling out and just have a good supply of new stock? The switch isn’t sold out yet is having no problem outselling all. The iPhone isn’t sold out yet is outselling all.

You’re fanboying. In stock != no demand/selling badly.
Oh they are absolutely making enough to meet demand. But that's because demand is fairly low int he first place.

You're constantly trying ignore basic logic. If an entire tech industry is dealing with supply issues that causes their products to be sold out instantly, Including Microsofts own Xbox Series X, you either convince yourself that Microsoft has some magical sollution that allows them to ignore these supply issues that everyone else is dealing with for their Series S, or you accept the much more logical conclussion that the demand for the Series S is significantly lower.

The iPhone is a completely different beast. Aside from the fact that it actually was sold out for months after it just came out much unlike the Series S, iPhone releases a new model every single year and gets the highest priority when it comes to supplies due to the vast amount of hardware they sell. The way people buy phones is also totally different from consoles. You can't compare an upgraded model that comes out every year to a new console that comes out every 6 - 8 years or so

stock levels on shelves does not tell us how many are selling, it's a fact.

It's not a fact. You clearly have no idea how market analysis even works.
 
Last edited:

MrFunSocks

Banned
Oh they are absolutely making enough to meet demand. But that's because demand is fairly low int he first place.

You're constantly trying ignore basic logic. If an entire tech industry is dealing with supply issues that causes their products to be sold out instantly, Including Microsofts own Xbox Series X, you either convince yourself that Microsoft has some magical sollution that allows them to ignore these supply issues that everyone else is dealing with for their Series S, or you accept the much more logical conclussion that the demand for the Series S is significantly lower.

The iPhone is a completely different beast. Aside from the fact that it actually was sold out for months after it just came out much unlike the Series S, iPhone releases a new model every single year and gets the highest priority when it comes to supplies due to the vast amount of hardware they sell. The way people buy phones is also totally different from consoles. You can't compare an upgraded model that comes out every year to a new console that comes out every 6 - 8 years or so
Lol you say I’m ignoring basic logic while you’re jumping to ridiculous conclusions based on nothing.

In stock != low demand.

The switch isn’t sold out - is there no demand for it?

You can try and dismiss the iPhone example but it just shows your agenda. You’re trying too hard. Quit your concern.
 
Last edited:

ReBurn

Gold Member
Wells Fargo was giving me crap over a $400 online Best Buy purchase with my debit card I use there all the time. Sent me a text with a code to enter, I enter the code, Wells Fargo still declines. Happened 3 times. So I switch to my Wells Fargo credit card. Same thing. Fed up, I use PayPal that draws from the same Wells Fargo account as my debit card. Apparently that's ok. 20 minutes to buy something. SMH.
 

Gamerguy84

Member
Sorry OP that sucks. It's 10x worse because you lost it on a technicality when you had it in the bag.

Hopefully they save some for January when people are busy paying their credit cards off.

Everyone is after them again right now though for Xmas and I've seen a lot of posts online about it. Even amateur scalpers are back at it thinking they'll sell one for 1500 Dec 23rd. People at work have started asking me again "how do I get a (insert console)"

I've heard about people's CC company doing this many of times also. I could see how that would get flagged though because you go from no activity to $540 in one purchase. Maybe pre authorize or buy a pre paid card, or hook it to PayPal.
 

ReBurn

Gold Member
XSS is available on bestbuy.com right now.


It has been for a while



The fact that XSS is more widely available isn't up for debate. It simply is. That doesn't mean it "doesn't sell" at all.
I added it to my cart and it says it's only available in certain markets, that none are available near me, and that it's unavailable for shipping. They let me add it to my cart but they won't let me buy it.
 

Rykan

Member
Lol you say I’m ignoring basic logic while you’re jumping to ridiculous conclusions based on nothing.

In stock != low demand.

The switch isn’t sold out - is there no demand for it?

You can try and dismiss the iPhone example but it just shows your agenda. You’re trying to hard. Quit your concern.
Again with the stupid comparissons. The Switch is a nearly 5 year old console that has already supplied the vast majortity of its potential audience, most of it during a time period in which there was no hardware shortages.

I will dismiss the iPhone example because I realise that it's an entirely different product with entirely different supply challenges than a video game console. Possibly because I don't make dumb predictions by saying that it is "Obvious" that the Series S will be the best selling Xbox.

In stock != Low demand IF supply has no constraints.

Low supply due to constraints -> in stock = low demand.
 
Last edited:
Again with the stupid comparissons. The Switch is a nearly 5 year old console that has already supplied the vast majortity of its potential audience, most of it during a time period in which there was no hardware shortages.

I will dismiss the iPhone example because I realise that it's an entirely different product with entirely different supply challenges than a video game console. Possibly because I don't make dumb predictions by saying that it is "Obvious" that the Series S will be the best selling Xbox.

In stock != Low demand IF supply has no constraints.

Low supply due to constraints -> in stock = low demand.

Series S has competition from its peers.

Switch is selling to different demographic and is supposedly going to sell highest units in console history.

Series S is expected to do 30 million.

Its successful for what is expected of it.
 

MrFunSocks

Banned
Again with the stupid comparissons. The Switch is a nearly 5 year old console that has already supplied the vast majortity of its potential audience, most of it during a time period in which there was no hardware shortages.

I will dismiss the iPhone example because I realise that it's an entirely different product with entirely different supply challenges than a video game console. Possibly because I don't make dumb predictions by saying that it is "Obvious" that the Series S will be the best selling Xbox.

In stock != Low demand IF supply has no constraints.

Low supply due to constraints -> in stock = low demand.
Can you go ahead and brief us on how many series S consoles they’re producing, how many they’re selling, and what the average shelf life of them is in retail?

Thanks, didn’t know we had any Microsoft insiders with this knowledge on here.

Also I’ll ask for a third time since you must keep missing the question - is the switch selling poorly because it’s always in stock?
 

Rykan

Member
Can you go ahead and brief us on how many series S consoles they’re producing, how many they’re selling, and what the average shelf life of them is in retail?
Can you go ahead and brief us how Microsoft is able to be the only company in the entire industry that is able to keep a console fully stocked on shelves in multiple major regions without lesser demand being a factor? I'm sure every single other game related hardware manufacture would love to know. Oh and also describe how this somehow cannot be applied to their other console, Thanks.
Also I’ll ask for a third time since you must keep missing the question - is the switch selling poorly because it’s always in stock?
No it isn't. Has the Series S been available for 5 years causing it to have already supplied the vast majority of its potential audience like the Switch? If your answer is No, then you should now be aware why the comparisson to switch is so incredibly flawed.
 

MrFunSocks

Banned
Can you go ahead and brief us how Microsoft is able to be the only company in the entire industry that is able to keep a console fully stocked on shelves in multiple major regions without lesser demand being a factor? I'm sure every single other game related hardware manufacture would love to know. Oh and also describe how this somehow cannot be applied to their other console, Thanks.

No it isn't. Has the Series S been available for 5 years causing it to have already supplied the vast majority of its potential audience like the Switch? If your answer is No, then you should now be aware why the comparisson to switch is so incredibly flawed.
The Series S has a significantly smaller SOC, which means more of them can be made from the same number of wafers. It has less RAM, more easily available.

I'm sure every single other game related hardware manufacture would love to know
Apart from the one selling the most consoles, Nintendo, you mean?

The Switch literally just had its biggest selling year, one of the biggest selling years by any console of all time lol. It's on track for another massive year................................but it's not sold out.

You've clearly got no idea how the markets work. I'm not wasting any more of my time replying to you when everyone here can see what you're doing and why you're so concerned. It's evident from looking at your other posts in other threads that you just hate the Series S's existence and want to tell everyone how much of a failure it is at every possible opportunity.
 
Last edited:

RafterXL

Member
Can you go ahead and brief us how Microsoft is able to be the only company in the entire industry that is able to keep a console fully stocked on shelves in multiple major regions without lesser demand being a factor? I'm sure every single other game related hardware manufacture would love to know. Oh and also describe how this somehow cannot be applied to their other console, Thanks.

No it isn't. Has the Series S been available for 5 years causing it to have already supplied the vast majority of its potential audience like the Switch? If your answer is No, then you should now be aware why the comparisson to switch is so incredibly flawed.
It's funny that you think these things are just sitting on shelves, rotting, and aren't actually just being restocked. Even the sites in this thread that people claim have stock don't actually. Target, Walmart, BestBuy, Amazon, Gamestop are all sold out. Yeah, you can buy them occasionally, and then they sell out again. So wtf are you on about, exactly?
 

Rykan

Member
The Series S has a significantly smaller SOC, which means more of them can be made from the same number of wafers. It has less RAM, more easily available.
It is not significantly smaller to the point where the supply discrepancy should be this large, especially when you consider the fact that it shares a large amount of its components with the Series X.
Apart from the one selling the most consoles, Nintendo, you mean?

The Switch literally just had its biggest selling year, one of the biggest selling years by any console of all time lol. It's on track for another massive year................................but it's not sold out.
The Switch had at least five years of production to get its supply where it is today. Have you seriously not wondered why the regular switch is in stock but the Switch OLED is sold out? Spoiler: It's going to remain sold out for a very long time.
You've clearly got no idea how the markets work. I'm not wasting any more of my time replying to you when everyone here can see what you're doing and why you're so concerned. It's evident from looking at your other posts in other threads that you just hate the Series S's existence and want to tell everyone how much of a failure it is at every possible opportunity.
I am simply pointing out the facts. I've never once called it a failure or anything of the sorts. What I have said is that people who claim it is or it is going to be the best selling Xbox (Much like yourself) are completley out of touch with reality and have no idea how the market really works. You have to come with all sorts of weird logic why the supposed best selling xbox console is the only system sitting on shelves when every other new gaming related product is sold out.

Here's the reality: The Xbox Series S is the least desirable console and it will sell significantly less than the Series X as soon as the Series X's supply is able to meet demand.
 
Top Bottom