Kinect, combined with a strong Xbox 360 software portfolio, played an integral role in driving profits for Microsoft’s Entertainment & Devices Division in fiscal 2011. The firm reported an 30 percent uptick in revenue for Q4 alone and 45 percent on a full year basis.

The boasting doesn’t end there. The Xbox 360 business grew $2.7 billion or 48 percent compared to last year.  Microsoft attributed the surge to “increased volumes of Xbox 360 consoles, sales of Kinect sensors, and higher Xbox Live revenue.” Not exactly surprising, given that the 360 has consistently outpaced the competition in recent NPD charts.

Last month, Xbox 360 was only about 50K units shy of outselling PS3 by a 2:1 ratio.

“Throughout fiscal 2011, we delivered to market a strong lineup of products and services which translated into double-digit revenue growth, and operating margin expansion,” said Peter Klein, chief financial officer at Microsoft. “Our platform and cloud investments position us for long-term growth.”

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