The $800 price tag didn't stop droves of UK gamers shelling out for the PS3 over the weekend. ChartTrack has confirmed that Sony's new console sold 165,000 units during its UK launch weekend, making it a record-breaker.

It's official, the PS3 is the fastest-selling home console ever over its debut weekend. This beats previous record holder, the Nintendo Wii, which shifted 105,000 units at launch and leaves Xbox 360 in a very sorry third place with only 70,000 sold when it launched in December 2005.

Microsoft and Nintendo struggled to meet demand at launch, suffering from chronic stock shortages. This is something Sony has avoided, promising to allocate 220,000 units for the European debut. The figures clearly show that Sony has not sold all of its opening weekend stock, but for now the strategy seems to be working. However the PS3 is still playing second fiddle to the PSP, which sold 185,000 units at launch in September 2005.

Software sales for PS3 are also looking good, with a number of titles sneaking into the top ten. Resistance: Fall of Man took the top spot in ChartTrack's top 40, with Motorstorm Evolution in at two and Virtua Tennis 3 at four.

By: Chella Ramanan