3DS to sell 11.6 million in 2011 – report

At its current pace, Nintendo's 3DS will sell 11.6 million units globally by the end of the year, according to a new report.

Research firm IHS Screen Digest's sales projections also predicted that the new handheld should reach the 70 million mark by 2015. At a comparable point in its lifetime, the DS had sold 91 million.

Spokesperson Piers Harding Rolls explained that the increased popularity of iOS and Android devices will hold the device back from matching lifetime sales of the DS.

"Nintendo's accent on network services in the key US market represents an attempt to convince users to carry their 3DS systems with them at all times and to engage with the platform everyday and in every place," he explained.

"This engagement strategy, alongside 3D graphics, camera and video, is key to Nintendo competing with upcoming devices from Sony and also from non-specialist smartphones, entertainment devices and tablets, which offer a legitimate alternative to handheld consoles."

According to a statement from Nintendo earlier this month, its new portable sold 303,000 units in Europe in its first two days on sale.

US figures have not been released yet but, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz, analysts have predicted between 500,000 and 750,000 were sold in its first five days on shelves there.

The DS, on the other hand, has sold 136 million units worldwide as of December last year, since arriving on the scene back in 2005.