UK retailers are expecting more PS5 and Xbox Series X/S stock this month

UK retailers have been told to expect more stock of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles this month, VGC understands.

Retailers including Amazon and Game have already announced plans to offer limited numbers of PS5 consoles for sale this Thursday, November 19, which is the console’s European release date.

According to an internal email from a major retailer forwarded to VGC, other retailers are also expected to offer both the standard and digital edition PS5 consoles for sale online tomorrow, although the window of opportunity to purchase either product is expected to be brief.

UPDATE: Currys will be selling PS5’s online tomorrow:

ORIGINAL STORY CONTINUES: UK retailers then expect to receive further PS5 stock from Sony next week.

Xbox Series X stock is also expected to be made available to purchase online at UK retailers on Saturday, November 21 and then again on Friday, November 27, we were told.

Xbox Series S stock will then be offered for sale online on Monday, November 30.

PS5 and Xbox Series X/S pre-orders went live in September and initial stock was quickly snapped up, leaving many fans unable to secure one of the new consoles for this month’s launches.

Xbox Series X and PS5 scalpers are currently seeking to cash in on heavy demand for the new consoles by selling them at extortionate prices on marketplaces like eBay.

Xbox chief financial officer Tim Stuart has said Microsoft expects Xbox Series X/S supply shortages to continue until April 2021.

Prior to launch, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan said PS5 demand “has been very considerable”, with the company taking as many pre-orders in the first 12 hours in the US as it did in the first 12 weeks for PS4.

Ryan said Sony was “working as hard as we ever can” to meet demand before adding, in something of an understatement: “it may well be that not everybody who wants to buy a PS5 on launch day will be able to find one.”

In terms of which new console ships more units this holiday season, Xbox boss Phil Spencer believes the victor will be determined by production capacity as demand for the machines is far outstripping availability.

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