With the iPhone 7 back in black, Apple's new glossy jet black aluminum shade has edged out matte black in preorder sales, at least among 128- and 256-capacity models bought through U.S. carrier Sprint.
Sprint announced on Thursday that the jet black iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus rank No. 1 for larger capacity models, ahead of matte black in second place. Rose gold -- last year's most popular color --Â dropped to third, while gold is in fourth and silver is in fifth.
Notably, the rankings from Sprint do not include the entry-level 32-gigabyte capacity. It's unknown how the rankings would shake out if that model were included, but Apple does not offer the jet black iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus in a 32-gigabyte model.
Rival carrier T-Mobile, meanwhile, revealed earlier this week that matte black has been the most popular option amongst its subscribers. Unlike Sprint, T-Mobile did not limit its sample size to only 128- and 256-gigabyte capacities.
Both T-Mobile and Sprint have seen preorders for the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus increase significantly --Â T-Mobile said presales were up nearly four times from the two-year-old iPhone 6 series launch, while Sprint said sales are up 375 percent from last year's iPhone 6s debut.
To incentivize upgrades, U.S. carriers have been offering on-contract discounts and trade-in offers for customers looking to buy an iPhone 7. Ahead of the device's launch on Friday, Sprint is offering $100 off the 256-gigabyte capacity, and giving customers the ability to upgrade for free with trade-in of a newer handset and two-year contract commitment.