Yes, I think both companies would very much like for consumers to believe that their devices are highly sought after and difficult to obtain. That usually works to spur demand.

Furthermore, Pachter believes that Microsoft is handling its supply lines a bit better than Sony, which has "shipped 2.5 million [PlayStation Move] units in the U.S. and Europe, and their sales are nowhere near that level, so I'm not sure how they can reconcile the fact that units shipped far exceed units sold."

"Sony are trying the same strategy as Microsoft with Kinect, making sure that there are plenty of bundles, but controlling supply of the standalone controllers." Microsoft has also "shipped a lot of console bundles, to ensure that the eBay price doesn't get above $300 for the standalone unit, but supply of the standalone remains tight."

I visited a few stores before and on Black Friday. I saw a lot of Kinect sensors, Kinect bundles, Move hardware, and Move bundles at various stores, but noticed very few standalone Move wands. I didn't see much of anything selling out, though. What about you?