PS4 and Xbox One sales are both looking great coming out of Black Friday, but one online study from Adobe has offered an early holiday adoption edge to Microsoft’s console.
The statistics of said report are based on an aggregate of anonymous data from 22.6 billion visits to retail websites. This stat also includes 80 percent of virtual transactions from the top 100 retailers. Getting to the raw facts, it’s openly stated that Xbox One was among the top-five electronics sold on Black Friday. Other honored products are Apple iPads, MacBook Air, Samsung 4K TVs and LG TVs of all resolutions.
The study doesn’t provide exact sales data, but it’s important to note that Sony’s PlayStation 4 isn’t listed as a particularly hot seller. Ergo, the wording implies that the market-leading console didn’t sell as well as Xbox online during the Friday holiday.
As with any retail analysis, however, this one certainly has its limitations. While PS4 appears to lag behind Xbox One in internet transactions, it’s unclear how well Sony’s system sold at physical stores. Online shopping was very popular in 2016, but Black Friday is also an occasion based largely on traditional methods too. It’s possible that PS4 could have performed better in those channels.
It’s also worth pointing out some findings from other outlets and parts of the world. Competing data from Eurogamer was quick to suggest that more PS4 units were sold on Black Friday week in the U.K. than any other seven-day period since the product launched in 2013. Adobe’s study makes some mention to the PS4’s success as well, noting that the Call Of Duty: Infinite Warfare console bundle was among the most scarce items for the first official day of the holiday shopping season.
In other words, while Microsoft may have come out on top in some sales circles, both console makers have a lot to be happy about heading into December. The Xbox One S has dominated NPD hardware sales charts in North America for nearly a quarter of 2016, and Sony’s PS4 Pro seems to be encouraging purchases internationally. Fanboys of both ecosystems can rest easy in their support.
With Cyber Monday almost behind us, it will be interesting to see if this web sales trend continues to favor Xbox. Unfortunately, we don’t have any data to share at this time.
What do you make of these Black Friday sales studies? Which console are you planning to buy for your loved ones? Tell us in the comments section!
