Apple has yet to report iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus preorder numbers

In what could be construed as a fairly prominent departure from years past, Apple apparently doesn’t plan to disclose first-weekend sales of its upcoming iPhone 7 handset.

Apple has disclosed the figures for its new iPhones the past eight years. Last year, for example, Apple said it sold 13 million iPhone 6s and 6s Plus phones in their first three days of availability, up 30% from initial sales of the iPhone 6 models the prior year.

Some analysts and investors have viewed the numbers as a gauge of enthusiasm for the new phones. Apple said the figures are less relevant than in the past.

Apple is “now at a point where we know before taking the first customer preorder that we will sell out of iPhone 7,” the company said Thursday in a statement. “These initial sales will be governed by supply, not demand, and we have decided that it is no longer a representative metric for our investors and customers.”

There could be a variety of reasons for this. First, Apple’s momentum from past years may be down appreciably. Also, Apple doesn’t separate sales numbers by model and overall iPhone sales have declined in the past two quarters from a year ago.

Also, the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus handsets will be available for preorders beginning Friday, which is more than double the 12 countries in which the iPhone 6s was initially available last year.

The iPhone 7 delivers several improvements in function but lacks the kind of breakout feature that defined some earlier models. That suggests success will hinge on customers’ willingness to upgrade from older models.

T-Mobile US Inc. and Sprint Corp. both rolled out offers for the iPhone 7 as the No. 3 and No. 4 wireless carriers fight for customers. The offers are more aggressive than the push by the companies last year and are aimed at encouraging owners of recent iPhones to upgrade.

Sprint and T-Mobile are offering similar deals for a free iPhone 7 with 32 gigabytes of storage to anyone who turns in an Phone 6 or 6s, Sprint will also accept one of Samsung’s latest S7 models. Both carriers require customers to stick around for two years to make it truly free. The deals are open to new and existing customers.

As always, stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

Via The Wall Street Journal