iPhone 7 release date and rumors: Apple to drop iPhone 7 Pro

Apple's iPhone 7 is the company's most anticipated tech reveal in September this year. Ahead of the official launch, new reports emerge that the company may have decided to drop the rumored iPhone 7 Pro model off the flagship lineup. The humungous variant of Apple's next-generation smartphone will not see the light of day following changes in the tech firm's supply changes.

As reported by Japanese Apple tracking blog Mac Otakara, the rumored addition to the iPhone 7 series has now been officially terminated.

MacRumors offered a more detailed explanation saying that the decision to retire the phablet off the planned launch was attributed to Apple's recent success with its dual-lens camera technology. The tech blog added that the rumored dual-lens Pro variant  was largely intended to serve as a backup plan if production did not meet iPhone 7 Plus' specs requirements.

Now that the Cupertino-based giant has already cleared the hurdles in its supply chain, a limited edition release of a higher-end iPhone 7 Pro is clearly a redundant lineup addition. As a result, the purported September release will only consist of the standard handset model and its Plus variant.

Meanwhile, some reports suggest that the smartphone maker isn't too enthusiastic with this year's iPhone 7 launch. As mentioned in a report by Value Walk, the seventh-generation iPhone does not represent a drastic departure from previous design, features and specs. An analysis report by Longbow analysts Shawn Harrison and Gausia Chowdhury indicates that there is no surge in this year's demand for iPhone 7 since production remains largely unchanged with last year's iPhone 6 release.

On the other hand, Apple's budget iPhone SE has remarkably beaten previous market expectations. The Longbow analysts added that Apple's low-cost iPhone reportedly has seven million units sold per recent quarter records compared to the widely predicted sales of around five million handsets.