30-32 mln, not more. By the end of 2009 360 will have about 35-40

My predictions:

End 2008

Wii: 40-42
PS3: 22-23
360: 25-26

End 2009

Wii: 65-70
PS3: 37-39
360: 35-36

To all those who predicted PS3 to be in front of X360 by end of 2009. I give you all +1.
Going by some of the predictions in the thread and the reading through the responses my predictions seem reasonable.

40 million is entirely possible. That is all

 Let me show you some glitches in your thinking. God of War III has never gone over 3 million sold in sales. Thats not exactly a console seller. Gran Turismo is the highest purchased first Party game for the Sony systems, so i'll give at least that much credit. If they're smart they would've made a bundle with GT5 prologue. Final Fantasy XIII is a multiplat game, so until we find out where Square Enix is going with this whole deal for the next Final Fantasy, all of the Sony fanboys will have to breathe easy, instead of making a big stink. Some of the highest grossing ex Sony games ever were the FF franchise and GTA. They were both 3rd party titles, which are up for grabs. Those are the TRUE console pushers. Sony knows very well that their 1st and 2nd party games no matter how hard they try aren't console pushers. Anyone who uses Motorstorm as an excuse is an idiot, because that game is a glorified attachment rate.

I do agree that the 360 will sell somewhere between 24-26 million in sales by the end of 08. I also agree that the war with Sony and Microsoft will be extremely close, seeing that these two systems are having a market share slump. Microsoft is getting the idea, Sony lost the idea and Nintendo...well I couldn't be more proud of them and disappointed at the same time. I know they want more casual fans, but they need to treat their hardcore gamers better.

 So what.  At Christmas what is going to sell like mad (if any Blu Ray players do) will be the units about $200. All those people that have purchased a middle tier HDTV (Vizio, Insignia, etc.) arent going to give a damn that the PS3 Blu Ray playback is slightly better.  They are going to choose what is $200 cheaper.  And no because some Blu Ray players are at $200 price point doesnt drop the PS3 considerably.  DVD drives will still be much cheaper than Blu Ray drives.

Its tough to say ...

I would say that 35 Million is a safe 'Middle of the Road' estimate for the PS3 if Sony does what is necessary to maintain their sales pace. Sony does face a certain risk of being at 32 Million (or less) if they keep the PS3 at above $399 until after they have saturated the market, third party publishers reduce their focus on the HD consoles at a rate greater than most of us would expect, and Nintendo (possibly with the Wii MotionPlus) is able to push Wii demand further at the expense of HD consoles. At the same time there is a chance that Sony could sell 38 Million (or more) if they agressively price the PS3, Blu-Ray really starts to have mainstream apeal, and they're able to expand upon their third party support.

40 mln. PS3 is pessimistic.
45 mln. PS3 is reasonable.
50 mln. PS3 is optimistic.

Come on, it will be 3rd PS3 year, we will get A LOT of GREAT Games, since 2-3 years for developement is enough for many games.)

well i think the ps3 will sell like 16 mil this year so it wont have to sell 18mil next year .

Fixed for you ...

The PS3 has already seen the release of several of the biggest games it will see this generation and they have hardly moved hardware; they will finish 2008 with (under) 25 Million pieces of hardware sold world wide after being on the market for 2 years, and I think only a fool would expect them to be able to surpass two years worth of console sales in one year.