Apple unveiled a smaller, cheaper iPhone on Monday aimed at new buyers, especially in emerging markets and China, as the company looks to reverse a decline in worldwide sales of its most important product.
The iPhone SE, which has a 4in (10cm) screen, represents Apple’s second bid for the crowded mid-tier market after an unsuccessful foray three years ago.
Apple chief executive Tim Cook took the opportunity of the new iPhone launch to come out fighting against demands for government access to data on Apple devices, warning the authorities that the company would not back down.
The company had a responsibility to protect customers’ data and privacy, he said. “We will not shrink from that responsibility,” he said. “We need to decide as a nation how much power the government should have over our data.”
Mr Cook said the company was “deeply grateful” for the support it has received in pushing back against demands to create software that would decrypt data on a locked iPhone.
“We’ve been humbled by the support we’ve had from across the country. We didn’t expect to be in this position – at odds with our own government,”
Apple debuted this iPhone and a cheaper, smaller iPad Pro at an event in Cupertino, the last time a product announcement would be made in the town hall where the iPod debuted, with Apple planning a move to a new campus.
PC replacement
The company has been battling declining sales of its flagship phone in recent months, as it made changes such as increasing the screen size of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus to 4.7ins and 5.5ins respectively. However, Apple acknowledged, some customers still want phones with a 4in display.
The new iPhone will include the 64-bit A9 chip that is included with the iPhone 6s and 6s plus, the M9 motion co-processor, a 12-megapixel iSight camera with True Tone flash, and Touch ID with Apple Pay. The iPhone SE will be available in 16GB and 32GB versions, starting from €499.
The iPad Pro, meanwhile, will now get a 9.7in version added to its lineup. The device will come with a 64-bit A9X chip and the four-speaker audio system debuted in the 12.9in iPad Pro announced last year. It will also support the Apple Pencil.
The smaller version of the iPad Pro will start at €699 for the 32GB Wi-Fi model; it will also be available in 128GB and 256GB versions.
The device is being pitched as a PC replacement, with Apple’s Phil Schiller noting that there are more than 600 million PCs in the world that are over five years old.
Both the new iPhone SE and iPad Pro will go on sale in Ireland early next month.
After an update on the popularity of its ResearchKit product, Apple also unveiled its new healthcare initiative CareKit to help people manage their medical care, which will be available next month, and an update to iOS 9 that will bring additional security measures for Notes on iOS devices, among other new features.
A robot called Liam
Apple also used the event to outline its green credentials, unveiling Liam, a robot that tears down old Apple handsets to recycle the components, and giving an update on its progress towards the goal of 100 per cent renewable energy powering its facilities around the world.
At present, 93 per cent of its facilities worldwide run on renewable energy. – (Additional reporting Reuters)
