Apple seeks fresh momentum with launch
Newest version boasts of sophisticated camera, water resistance
iPhone7. PHOTO: REUTERS
SAN FRANCISCO:
With new iPhones hitting the markets today (Friday), Apple is seeking to regain momentum and set new trends for the smartphone industry and tech sector.
The newest versions, of the California-based technology giant’s lifestyle-changing iPhone, aim to win over users with sophisticated camera technology, water resistance, more power and other improvements.
But Apple has raised eyebrows by eliminating headphone jacks in what executives heralded as an embrace of a wireless future for its new iPhone 7 and 7 Plus.
The devices with boosted memory capacity will be sold at roughly the same price as the models they replace, starting at $649 for iPhone 7 for US customers, with deliveries in some 25 countries launching Friday.
What remains unclear for Apple is whether it can generate the same kind of excitement that surrounded previous versions of the iPhone, amid stiff competition from Samsung and other rivals, and with many markets already saturated.
While at least one analyst has said buying smartphones will soon become as humdrum as buying a microwave, Apple is aiming to boost interest in its other products and services that make up its ecosystem, including an upgraded smartwatch, Apple Pay and streaming music.
Apple has said it will not provide figures for launch weekend sales as it has in the past. But there are indications of consumer interest.
US telecom carriers Sprint and T-Mobile have announced that iPhone 7 pre-orders were up significantly from what they saw for the prior version.
Analysts expected sales of iPhone 7 models to be constrained by supply, not demand.
While Apple has touted total iPhone sales of one billion, the number sold in the quarter ending June 25 fell 15% from a year earlier, highlighting concerns over growth for the key profit driver.
Joining the lineup in Friday’s launch will be the upgraded and water-resistant Apple Watch Series 2, which the company hopes will reverse a slump in smartwatch sales.
Apple has been under pressure to restore its lustre as an innovator and rev its money-making machine with the kind of “next big thing” for which it was known when the company’s late co-founder Steve Jobs was at the helm.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 16th, 2016.
With new iPhones hitting the markets today (Friday), Apple is seeking to regain momentum and set new trends for the smartphone industry and tech sector.
The newest versions, of the California-based technology giant’s lifestyle-changing iPhone, aim to win over users with sophisticated camera technology, water resistance, more power and other improvements.
But Apple has raised eyebrows by eliminating headphone jacks in what executives heralded as an embrace of a wireless future for its new iPhone 7 and 7 Plus.
The devices with boosted memory capacity will be sold at roughly the same price as the models they replace, starting at $649 for iPhone 7 for US customers, with deliveries in some 25 countries launching Friday.
What remains unclear for Apple is whether it can generate the same kind of excitement that surrounded previous versions of the iPhone, amid stiff competition from Samsung and other rivals, and with many markets already saturated.
While at least one analyst has said buying smartphones will soon become as humdrum as buying a microwave, Apple is aiming to boost interest in its other products and services that make up its ecosystem, including an upgraded smartwatch, Apple Pay and streaming music.
Apple has said it will not provide figures for launch weekend sales as it has in the past. But there are indications of consumer interest.
US telecom carriers Sprint and T-Mobile have announced that iPhone 7 pre-orders were up significantly from what they saw for the prior version.
Analysts expected sales of iPhone 7 models to be constrained by supply, not demand.
While Apple has touted total iPhone sales of one billion, the number sold in the quarter ending June 25 fell 15% from a year earlier, highlighting concerns over growth for the key profit driver.
Joining the lineup in Friday’s launch will be the upgraded and water-resistant Apple Watch Series 2, which the company hopes will reverse a slump in smartwatch sales.
Apple has been under pressure to restore its lustre as an innovator and rev its money-making machine with the kind of “next big thing” for which it was known when the company’s late co-founder Steve Jobs was at the helm.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 16th, 2016.