Verizon's iPhone debut was a ringing success - the biggest U.S. wireless carrier sold out its initial inventory of gadgets in less than a day.
Verizon halted preorders from its current customers at 8:10 p.m. Thursday, about 17 hours after they began. Other buyers can order online next Wednesday, and the devices will be available in stores starting on Thursday, according to the company's website.
The touchscreen smart phone broke Verizon's first-day sales records in its first two hours, according to Dan Mead, CEO of Verizon Wireless. The company said last week that the iPhone may help drive sales and profits up as much as 8% this year based on sales forecasts of 11 million devices.
Verizon probably sold nearly 100,000 iPhones before shutting down preorders, said Mike Abramsky, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets. A Verizon spokeswoman said the company wouldn't disclose how many phones were sold.
Previously, iPhone fans could only get the gadget on the network of AT&T, the country's second-largest wireless carrier. AT&T activated 15.2 million iPhones last year.
Analysts expect sales to Verizon subscribers will be strong, but the big question is how many iPhone buyers will jump ship from other carriers.
Verizon is offering trade-in rebates for new customers, which can help offset the cost of breaking a contract with AT&T. For instance, it's offering $212 for a 16-gigabyte iPhone 4 in good condition. AT&T's fee for breaking an iPhone 4 contract early is $325, but that's prorated by $10 a month.
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