Apple iPhone 5C Launched In California

 

 

Apple boss Tim Cook launches new handsets during a much-anticipated event at the company's California headquarters.

Apple's share price initially fell as the phones were unveiled

Apple has revamped the iPhone by launching two new handsets at its California headquarters - including one that has a fingerprint reader.

The firm's chief Tim Cook said the iPhone 5C will cost $99 (£63) for a 16GB model and $199 (£126) for a 32GB model with a two-year wireless contract in the US.


Price plans for the UK versions of both phones have yet to be announced.
The 5C - available in green, blue, yellow, pink and white and billed as a cut-price model - will be "more fun and colourful" than any of the company's other handsets, Mr Cook said.

The new model has a four-inch (10cm) Retina display and is powered by Apple's A6 chip. It also has an eight-megapixel camera, live photo filters and a rear cover that lights up.
The second phone, the iPhone 5S, is "the most forward-looking phone we have ever created," said Phil Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide marketing at Apple.

Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed the "colourful iPhone" rumours

It will come in silver, gold and "space gray" and will run on a new chip, the A7, which is up to twice as fast as the A6.
The 5S also includes "Touch ID," which reads fingerprints at a "detailed level," Mr Schiller said.
He said it is "fun and easy" to teach the 5S about your fingerprint and once you do, you can just touch the home button to unlock the phone.

The camera in the 5S has received some major upgrades, including several automatic features designed to produce better photos.
It has larger pixels, which help capture more light. The phone also has a two-tone flash feature that is designed not to clash with the colours in the room or a person's skin - something Mr Schiller said has not been done on a phone before.

The camera, called iSight, has "auto image stabilisation," which helps avoid blurry pictures, and a slow-motion camera for video.
Apple also said that its next mobile operating system, iOS 7, will be available as a free download on Sept 18.

Apple's marketing chief Phil Schiller revealed the phone's US price plans

The new system can be downloaded and installed on the iPhone 4 and later models, as well as on the tablets beginning with the iPad 2.
Investors seemed unimpressed with Apple's latest gadgets, with the company's share price falling $3.17 to $503.10 during the event.
As with previous announcements, the technology giant kept the schedule of its Cupertino event a closely-guarded secret.

Apple's current iPhone 5 model launched last September and has generated £56bn ($88bn) in revenue.
However, the company's share price has tumbled by around a quarter since then, with its rivals launching a range of cheaper products, many of them built around Google's Android operating system.
Apple will be hoping the stripped-down handset will appeal to consumers unable to afford the £529 price tag attached to a SIM-free iPhone 5.

Sky's China Correspondent Mark Stone, in Beijing, said the iPhone 5C would be particularly appealing "to the young and upwardly mobile Chinese consumer".
"The balance for Apple is tricky though," he said. "It likes to be seen as a premium brand - a cut above the rest perhaps.

"Introducing a cheaper phone may well diminish that brand but to crack the Chinese market properly, that might be a price worth paying."