3.8 C
New York

New iPhone And iPad Underwhelm Tech Experts

Apple has announced the latest iPhone range with a brand new screen system called ‘3D Touch’ – but it didn’t appear to impress investors.

New iPhone And iPad Underwhelm

The technology allows the screen to recognise how hard it’s pressed, which means you can touch and hold parts of the screen at different pressure levels to give you access to in-app menus and shortcuts.

For example you can “peek” at emails without fully opening them by pressing your finger down on an item in your inbox.

But Apple’s share price dropped by a total of four points throughout the presentation by chief executive Tim Cook, and some Apple fans dismissed the new phone’s flagship feature as a minor change.

A highly rated comment on Reddit’s Apple forum mocked: “Apple just introduced right-click to iPhones. Nice.”

The main iSight camera is significantly improved, going from eight megapixels to 12 megapixels.

Meanwhile, the front-facing camera has also been optimised for selfies.

The screen now acts as ‘flash’, which varies in intensity depending on the light levels around you.

But the smart feature appears to have been lifted from popular apps, such as Snapchat, which do something similar.

The phones, which will be called the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, start at £539 for the 16GB 6S model and £619 for the 16GB 6S Plus.

Earlier, Mr Cook showed off a new iPad line, saying: “Today we have the biggest news in iPad since the iPad.”

He revealed a new device – called the iPad Pro – with an ultra-high resolution screen measuring 12.9-inches.

A stylus which the firm calls the “Apple Pencil” is also being released.

But social media users quickly circulated comments made by Steve Jobs in 2007, when he scoffed: “Who wants a stylus?”

In 2010 he also poked fun at his rivals’ attempts to imitate iPad, saying: “When you need a stylus, you already failed.”

Apple also demonstrated its overhauled Apple TV service, with a redesigned remote featuring a glass surface, and Siri integration.

Multiplayer gaming will also feature on the TV platform, and the developers of classic iOS game Crossy Road demonstrated their game on the system.

Sky’s Martin Stanford, who was at the event, said: “The best buzz in the room was when the iPad Pro was shown off for the first time.

“Testing the device later with the new Pencil, you can see how it will eat further into the already stagnant if not shrinking laptop and desktop markets.

“The iPhone 6S and 6SPlus, while physically similar to last year’s iPhones, have just enough improvements in performance and functionality to ensure that many users will want to upgrade.”

Latest news
Related news