Xbox Console Shortage to Last Into 2022

Microsoft head of Xbox Phil Spencer said in an interview that he now expects Xbox console shortages to last into 2022. And he’s trying to frame the issue as being broader than just a component shortage.

“I think it’s probably too isolated to talk about it as just a chip problem,” he told The Wrap. “When I think about, what it means to get the parts necessary to build a console today, and then get it to the markets where the demand is, there are multiple pinch points in that process. And I think regretfully it’s going to be with us for months and months, definitely through the end of this calendar year and into the next calendar year.”

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(In the Internet’s version of phone tag, I discovered this interview via The Verge, which found out about it from Video Game Chronicles.)

So that’s interesting. It’s really a supply chain problem, I guess, one that was first triggered by, and then further exacerbated by, the global chip shortage. And videogame consoles are just one of the markets victimized of this ongoing issue.

“The thing that’s most disappointing is just the fan disappointment,” Spencer added. “People really want this new generation of consoles. They’re good consoles, both from us and the other platform holders. And they want the new functionality. We’re working hard to bring them to market but it’s going to be a challenge that we’ll work through for quite a while.”

And yes, Sony also expects console shortages to continue into 2022.

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Conversation 7 comments

  • ben55124

    Premium Member
    30 September, 2021 - 9:44 am

    <p>Laptop with dedicated gpu. They are readily available, offer multiple stores, portable, and do more than games. Just add a controller. MS should consider an xbox series surface that can take on the switch. </p>

  • whistlerpro

    30 September, 2021 - 10:15 am

    <p>They tend to cost a tad more than consoles.</p>

  • markbyrn

    Premium Member
    30 September, 2021 - 11:45 am

    <p>I don’t see any shortage; just one eBay scalper of many hundreds is selling over 1000 units for over $900 apiece.</p>

    • Greg Green

      30 September, 2021 - 11:56 am

      <p>Maybe those are Xboks.</p>

  • polloloco51

    30 September, 2021 - 1:17 pm

    <p>I truly wonder why OEMs don’t have redundancy plans in place, for things like this?</p><p><br></p><p>Such as, chip makers in other countries ready to go, in the event of something like this.</p><p><br></p><p>Relying on overseas manufacturing is really, really bad in the long run!</p>

    • bleeman

      Premium Member
      02 October, 2021 - 6:06 pm

      <p>In the current climate even redundancy plans aren’t going to help a lot. A lot of the impact is from the lack of personnel to actually do the work. With shutdowns due to Covid, illnesses, changes in the manufacturing process to separate workers more it all adds up. For example, I ordered recliner from LazyBoy in July 2020 and didn’t receive it until late January of this year. They warned me in advance so I was prepared for it. In their case the problem was they couldn’t get a lot of the materials from their suppliers. There were shortages of the foam, mechanisms, etc. In their case their factories can now only produce 3/4’s of what it used to as they redesigned them creating larger separation between the assembly line workers to reduce the possibility of infection and to actually allow them to open back up earlier during the pandemic.</p><p><br></p><p>I’ve just gotten used to the fact that everything is going to take longer these days and I don’t expect it to get any better any time soon.</p>

  • matthewitt

    Premium Member
    30 September, 2021 - 2:05 pm

    <p>Phone tag is when you call someone and they miss your call. Then they call you and you miss their call and it keeps going back and forth. </p><p><br></p><p>I think you’re talking about the telephone game, which is when one person says something to the person next to them, and that person repeats it to the person next to them and then that person says it to the person next to them and the last person and the first person’s messages don’t resemble each other. </p>

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