After clocking ten months as the top console on the NPD sales charts, Microsoft had little incentive to lower the price of the Xbox 360 this holiday. Instead, Redmond's strategy has been to partner with retailers to push sale prices, so frugal shoppers have no problem getting a deal while post-holiday pricing remains high so long as strong numbers continue.

To that end, Microsoft just announced that it moved 960,000 consoles in the US "during the week of Black Friday." When asked if that included Cyber Monday, which had some notable Xbox sales of its own, we were told, "These numbers are from Saturday, Nov. 19 through Friday, Nov. 25 and do not include Cyber Monday." Still, without the unfortunately named Cyber Monday, this represents the "biggest week of sales in Xbox history," according to internal Microsoft numbers.

Big whoop, right? What we're really curious about is Kinect. Will it manage to be one of this holiday's "must-have" gifts for a second year in a row? Considering Kinect moved an equally impressive 750,000 units in the US across standalone and bundled offerings, we're inclined to say it's getting there.