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Phone 6S and 6S Plus

Tech giant Apple reveals iPhone 6s and 6s Plus with new 3D touch screen.

In September， at a special event at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco， Tim Cook showed off a raft of new products.

iPhone， with a faster processor， better camera and new touch capabilities， which accounts for 56 percent of Apples profits， is the most important product in Apples business.

The new model—the 6s and 6s Plus， include a new screen technology called 3D Touch， which look like their predecessors that debuted last year， will cost $199 to $499 with a two-year wireless contract， depending on their memory capacity.

The iPhone 6S and 6S Plus come in four finishes - silver， gold， space grey and rose gold - and come in two sizes that match last years handsets measurements.

The devices feature a 12-megapixel camera and the 3D Touch that lets users make different commands and reach shortcuts and menus by pressing down harder or softer on the screen.

Pressing down on the camera icon on the iPhone gives a quick entry point for taking a selfie.

Pressing on an e-mail will give a preview of a new message. The latest iPhone models will also be able to shoot video in 4K， a higher resolution standard thats gaining wider use.

There is also a new 5mp front facing camera to boost selfie quality， which uses the screen as a flash.

It also revealed a new ‘live photowhich mixes a still and video image.

Pressing on the picture causes video to show and audio to play.

The pictures are created automatically.

The new chip also has a new ‘a(chǎn)lways on Siri feature， and an improved fingerprint sensor the firm says is twice as fast as previous version.

Apples CEO Tim Cook， said，“While they may look familiar， we have changed everything about these new iPhones. They are the most advanced smartphones in the world.”

They will be available in Australia， Canada， China， France， Germany， Hong Kong， Japan， New Zealand， Puerto Rico， Singapore， U.K. and U.S. on Sept. 25， with pre-orders starting Sept. 12.

Apple also introduced a new leasing program for iPhone， where users will pay for the device monthly and have the chance to upgrade every year. The device generated $31.4 billion in sales last quarter， making up 63 percent of Apples revenue.

The Force Touch Technology

The Force Touch technology are already available on the Apple Watch and in the trackpad of the new MacBook.

The phones touch ID sensor has been upgraded， and the phone will feature iOS 9， the newest version of Apples mobile operating system.

The new trackpad features builtin force sensors that allow you to click anywhere and haptic feedback that provides a responsive and uniform feel.

You can even customize the feel of the trackpad by changing the amount of pressure needed to register each click.

The Force Touch trackpad also enables a new gesture called Force Click， a click followed by a deeper press， for tasks like pulling up the definition of a word， quickly seeing a map or glancing at a preview of a file.

The new technology could generate new applications for the phones， such as a piano-playing app that would make different sounds when touched lightly or more heavily.

iPad Pro

The makeover of the iPad is reminiscent of Apples decision last year to introduce the larger-screen phones， a move that many also had said the company would never make.

Timothy D. Cook， Apples chief executive， called the new iPad Pro “the most capable” tablet the company has ever created. With a larger screen and optional keyboard， it becomes a device that is meant to be useful for both the creation and consumption of content.

The message being that Apple is trying to push the iPad to be more of a PC replacement， a converged device of a tablet notebook that has broader computing powers.

But starting at $800 （not including the optional $170 keyboard and the $100 stylus）， it is much more expensive than earlier iPads.

The new iPad runs Microsoft Office software and has a faster processor so it can handle more complex computing tasks.

At the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium， Chief Executive Tim Cook brought on stage an executive from onetime archrival Microsoft Corp （MSFT.O） to illustrate the business-friendly credentials of a big new iPad， the Pro.

He then rolled out the “iPad Pro”with a 12.9 inch screen and said it had performance similar to a desktop computer. Apple showed off a “smart” key- board as well as the ‘Pencil， which costs$100.

Dave Meier， who works on several portfolios at Motley Fool Funds， said that the addition of a ‘Pencil and keyboard to the iPad Pro， which starts at $799， could lead to a “refresh cycle”that would lift incremental sales.

He was “impressed with the gumption” to bring Microsoft executives to demonstrate Office products on the new iPad， he said. “This says that the Surface might be dead and Microsoft understands that they are very good at productivity but not at hardware，” he said.

Enhanced Apple TV

Tim Cook also presented a new， enhanced Apple TV， which represents the companys most ambitious effort yet to become the focal point of home entertainment systems.

Apple TV already streams videos and music. Now it is set to offer video games， shopping and travel tools through an expanded array of apps.

“Our vision for TV is simple，” he said. “We believe the future of television is apps.”

The new version of Apple TV also includes a remote control that could be used as a video game controller. The product now comes with a higher price tag that starts at $150， up from $70， indicating that the company is betting that consumers will think all of the new features are worth the higher price.

Jeff Williams， Apples senior vice president of operations， also talked about improvements to the Apple Watch， including a number of new apps like Facebook Messenger and AirStrip， a health care app that lets doctors coordinate patient care and monitor health data.

Drawing all of these devices together is Apples voice assistant technology， called Siri， with improved search capabilities that were prominently displayed throughout the event， especially on the new Apple TV.

Twitter users seemed most impressed by the revamped Apple TV. The product， which the company long called a ‘hobby gets its own app store and will work with Siri， Apples digital assistant.

Apple TV demonstrations showed tricks to make viewing easier： digital assistant Siri， which is behind the voice control， can rewind a video for 15 seconds and turn on subtitles， when a viewer asks something like “What did she say”？

“Weve been working really hard， and really long，” on TV， Cook said， emphasizing the word ‘long in a nod to the time it has taken the company to produce an ambitious TV product.

Analysts say the new TV box is part of Apples broader strategy to carve out a bigger role in the home.

For instance， the new Apple TV could serve as a hub for Siri to control lamps， thermostats and other ‘smart appliances， using Apples HomeKit technology.

To be Ubiquitous

“Apples master plan is to be ubiquitous，” said Jordan Edelson of software firm Appetizer Mobile， explaining why Apple is increasingly designing its iPhone and Siri to interact with cars， televisions and ‘smart home systems.

Apple competitors such as Google， Samsung and Microsoft are also building their own technology for Internetlinked automobiles and homes.

It could also set the stage for Apple to later introduce a streaming video service aimed at competing with Netflix and other Internet entertainment services.

Even without an Apple TV， new iPhone software will make it easier to set up automated homes， including having lights turn on and window shades go up when you tell Siri on the phone，“Time to wake up.”

With the new software for iPhones and iPads， Siri can also offer recommendations， such as nearby restaurants， before you even ask.

It might even launch apps for you， based on your past habits， when you attach headphones or connect to a Bluetooth speaker in a car.

Siri will also offer to add calendar and contact entries based on your incoming email - something Google already does with its competing services.

But there will be a few new features beyond a smarter Siri.

For instance， major cities will get transit directions， addressing a major shortcoming with Apple Maps.

In some cities， including New York and London， Apple sent teams to map out subway exits and entrances.

That way， users getting to the subway are guided to the closest entrance， while those getting off are told which exit signs to look for.

The first suggestion of a supersized tablet came just weeks after claims that the large screen size of the iPhone 6 Plus was impacting on iPad usage.

The release of Apples iPhone 6 Plus means there is now only a 2.4-inch difference between the size of the phablets screen， and the display on its iPad mini.

Analysis has revealed that as phones become larger， more people are using them for watching videos or reading -making their tablets almost redundant.

A study by Pocket - an app that lets users save webpages， videos and other content for reading - recently found that people who upgraded to an iPhone 6 Plus use their tablets 36 per cent less than before.

Its Own Payment Plan

Apple introduced its own payment plan. Starting at $32 a month， customers can upgrade their phones every year if they buy them through Apple.

The company sold a record 183 million iPhones in the nine months since releasing the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus， which have bigger screens than earlier products.

That has allowed the company to remain highly profitable， while Samsung and other phone makers are struggling.

Some analysts question whether these features will inspire the same type of consumer demand that propelled last years iPhone success story.

But a research firm says a large number of iPhone owners are still using older， smaller models， which makes them likely candidates to upgrade.

“Apple gets a lot of credit for being innovators， but its about how they execute and improve on what already exists，” said an analyst. “Everyone uses the same ingredients， but a great chef can use them to make a better meal.”