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Cook says Apple Watch has set a new sales record in first week of Holiday shopping

Apple CEO Tim Cook has provided a more positive spin on Apple Watch sales following an IDC research report stating sales were down 71 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2016.

Cook told Reuters:

“Sales growth is off the charts. In fact, during the first week of holiday shopping, our sell-through of Apple Watch was greater than any week in the product’s history. And as we expected, we’re on track for the best quarter ever for Apple Watch,”

Cook didn’t elaborate on specific sales figures – IDC had predicted just 1.1 million units sold in its window of analysis – however, despite a somewhat negative outlook in the report, it tallies with what we’d expect.

By the time the report was released, the Apple Watch was a year old, and many were awaiting a refresh to Apple’s smartwatch, which came just a couple of weeks later.

Read more: Apple Watch Series 2 released

The boost from the Apple Watch Series 2, alongside a refresh to the first generation Apple Watch is likely to give the product line a significant boost – especially during the holidays. As Cook goes on to say, the Apple Watch “is doing great and looks to be one of the most popular holiday gifts this year.”

Apple’s second generation smartwatch retained the same form-factor when it was released in September, but added GPS functionality, a faster processor, plus water resistance specifically for swimming. The first generation Apple Watch was re-branded as Apple Watch Series 1 and contained the faster processor.