Microsoft ups Kinect estimate to 5 million

In September, Microsoft predicted the Kinect would sell 3 million units this holiday season. Had Microsoft met that goal at $150 per stand-alone unit, the peripheral would have drawn $450 million in revenues compared to the $500 million the company is spending on a massive Kinect marketing campaign.

Those numbers have been updated to be more favorable to Microsoft, as the company confirmed for Reuters that its Kinect sales projections for the year have been raised to 5 million units. Although some of the cameras will find their way into homes as part of more expensive Xbox 360 console bundles, that many stand-alone Kinects would bring in $750 million in revenues.

At 12:01 a.m. tomorrow, Kinect will go on sale via three packages. The unit, which is compatible with any Xbox 360, will cost $150 bundled with the minigame compilation Kinect Adventures. Those two products are also part of a $300 4GB Xbox 360 package, which features the matte-finish, hard-drive-less version of the console, or a $400 250GB Xbox 360 bundle, which features the glossy-finish, hard-drive-equipped edition of the console.

A dozen Kinect-compatible games are expected to go on sale alongside the peripheral. Microsoft has three first-party titles in addition to Kinect Adventures: Kinect Sports, Kinectimals, and Kinect Joy Ride. High-profile launch titles from third-party publishers include Sega's Sonic Free Riders and Harmonix's Dance Central.

For more on Kinect, check out GameSpot's Now Playing marathon, embedded below.