Analyst speculates Nintendo 3DS sold 500,000 units in five days

Nintendo’s glasses-less 3DS handheld released in North America and Europe on March 27th to record-breaking sales for the company even as pundits and journalists criticized the device for its shorter-than-hoped-for battery life and unspectacular launch title line-up. One outlet even falsely reported on high return numbers in Europe — a claim summarily dismissed by retailers themselves.

An analyst this week attached a nice, big sales figure to the western launch of the 3DS, pointing to an extremely impressive five-day showing for the nascent platform.

Wedbush Morgan’s Michael Pachter believes the 3DS trumped all other competing video game hardware in March, selling approximately 500,000 units in the few days it was tracked that month. The analyst noted that the handheld may have only slightly eked past the Xbox 360, which he says sold nearly 480,000 units. But that system was readily available the entire month.

A report from a competing firm places the estimation even higher: 750,000 units sold in the U.S. alone in March.

The 3DS, despite apparently selling so many units in such a short span of time, is not impossible to find — something proven with a simple trip to the store.

EEDAR told BusinessInsider the day after the 3DS released that Nintendo was well-equipped for the launch, so expecting a complete sell-out is a mistake. A new report, however, suggests that 3DS sales are floundering not a month after launch. Whether or not this proves correct will likely remain unknown until May.

Concrete 3DS launch numbers are expected from Nintendo of America later this week.