The Ballmers get an Xbox

LAS VEGAS--Getting ahold of an Xbox 360 has been tough for nearly everybody. Even Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told his kids they'd have to go to a store to buy one, just like everybody else.

Well, they did that. Technically. The manager of the Best Buy store in Bellevue, Wash., alerted Microsoft employees the night before about a shipment coming in the next day.

Ballmer said in an interview that his kids got one. Yes, it slightly smacks of privilege, he admitted, but not much--Microsoft employees buy a lot of stuff there, he said, adding that among other aspects of the new gaming machine, the kids were impressed by how much the players in the basketball game sweat.