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In new move, Apple won't reveal opening weekend iPhone 7 sales

We won't get an official idea of how the iPhone 7 is performing until Apple's next quarterly report.
Written by Jake Smith, Contributor
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Image: Jason Cipriani/ZDNet

Apple confirmed to CNBC on Thursday it won't reveal opening weekend sales of its new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus after it begins pre-orders on Sept. 9, a deviation from its past iPhone launches.

"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," wrote an Apple spokesperson. "Therefore we won't be releasing a first-weekend number any longer."

In past years, investors, analysts, and customers have watched the opening weekend sales number closely to get an idea how the new iPhone was perceived. This year would have been an interesting number to see, as the iPhone 7 is seen as a more incremental update to the iPhone 6s.

Do so many people want the new iPhone models in the first weekend that the number Apple can fulfill doesn't matter? Or is Apple worried about something else?

Apple reiterated its September quarter guidance on Thursday, with revenue estimated between $45.5 billion and $47.5 billion.

Apple announced the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus at a media event on Wednesday. Shipping on Sept. 16, Apple has added an upgraded camera, water resistance, new TouchID button, and overall performance upgrades to the iPhone line.

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