Amazon.com has sold out of pre-orders for Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 Elite. The e-tailer began taking orders for the new hardware product on Thurs.

The new Elite hardware, which includes HDMI and a 120GB hard drive sold out within hours of release.

The strong pre-order sales for the item allowed the production to reach the No. 5 position in the best-selling products for Amazon's Computer & Video Games division on Thurs.

Amazon was one of several online retailers offering the console for pre-sale. This month, Circuitcity.com and Samsclub.com also offered the new hardware to online customers.

The new release will help the Xbox 360 compete with Sony Corp.'s Playstation 3 hardware, which includes HDMI and a 60 GB standard in its current retail SKU.

The Xbox 360 is currently the No. 2 home console in the U.S., behind Nintendo Co.'s motion-sensitive Wii.

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