Apple Inc. unveiled its most important new iPhone for years to take on growing competition from Samsung Electronics Co., Google and a host of Chinese smartphone makers.
Tim Cook, Chief Executive Officershowed off the iPhone X with an edge-to-edge screen during an event at the company’s new $5 billion headquarters in Cupertino, California, on Tuesday. Cook pronounced the name “ten,” but it’s written as “X.” The device, coming a decade after the original model, is Apple’s first major redesign since 2014 and represents a significant upgrade to the iPhone 7 line.
The device starts at $999 and comes in 64 GB and 256 GB storage versions. Pre-orders start on Oct. 27 and the phone will be available beginning Nov. 3, the company said. Apple shares fell 0.8 percent to $160.18 after the announcement.
Apple shares have gained about 40 percent this year on expectations the new phone will reignite sales growth after a rare revenue decline last year. The iPhone accounts for almost two-thirds of total sales, and it’s a hub for most of Apple’s other products and services.
The iPhone X’s almost $1,000 price is potentially a psychological threshold for consumers that Apple will try to overcome with augmented reality features and other new technology.
“With expected innovations around AR, wireless charging, viewable screen size, OLED, and more, the next iPhone is clearly poised for its largest upgrade cycle yet,” Ben Schachter, an analyst at Macquarie Securities USA Inc., wrote in a note to investors ahead of the event.
