Sony’s PlayStation 3 may be just hitting its stride. Two reports indicate the PS3 is moving upmarket fast, and one of them projects the video-game console could be number two by the end of that year — and in first place by 2011.

According to industry research firm NPD, the PS3 moved to second place in U.S. sales in January, with 269,000 units sold, compared to 230,000 for the Microsoft Xbox 360. Nintendo’s Wii remained in first place, with 274,000 players sold. Microsoft told reporters earlier that week that its reduced sales were due, at least in part, to its underestimation of post-holiday demand and stores have been running short of product.

Largest Installed Base by 2011?

And market researcher iSuppli said Thursday that the worldwide installed base of Nintendo Wii consoles will top the Xbox 360 that year, rising to 30.2 million units. It projected the Xbox 360’s base by the end of 2008

at 25.7 million units and the PS3’s at 20.3 million. The Wii has been rising like a rocket, from 3.2 million players at the end of 2006 to 18 million last year, but these projections plus mean the PS3 will have doubled its installed base by the end of that year.

The iSuppli report plus projects that the PS3 is growing fastest, with a 97 percent increase in its installed base year by year, compared to 68 percent for Nintendo and 41 percent for Microsoft. Next year, Sony’s installed base is projected to increase about 9.7 million units, versus an increase of 6.8 million for Wiis and 5.4 million for Xbox 360s.

whether that continues, iSuppli said, Sony could have the largest installed base of that generation of players by 2011, with nearly 39 million units, and Nintendo will have slipped to barely second place with about 38 million. Microsoft…

Orginal post by Top Tech News