Apple unveils new iPhones, iPad, Apple TV

Apple has unleashed a host of new products on the public, including the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, the iPad Pro with a 12.9″ display and a revamped Apple TV.

The new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S Plus smartphones are set to launch in Australia and 11 other markets on 25 September. They include innovations including 3D Touch, a force-based navigation tool, as well as 4K video recording.

Apple's 3D Touch introduces two new gestures to the multitouch display, which Apple calls Peek and Pop. A light press on content such as photos, emails and webpages opens a preview, whereas a heavier touch opens the content itself. The innovation also introduces shortcuts to common tasks, such as the ability to take a selfie with a single press from the home screen.

New camera innovations meanwhile allow for 4K video recording as well as the capture of Live Photos, or digital images that capture the moments immediately before and after the shot was taken.

The iPhone 6S and 6S Plus are powered by the new A9 processor, which Apple says offers 70% faster CPU and 90% faster GPU performance than that of its predecessor. It supports 23 LTE bands worldwide to enable wider 4G roaming.

As well as new iPhones, Apple also revealed the new iPad Pro, a tablet with a 12.9″ Retina display. The device is scheduled to launch in November.

Besides a few design improvements, such as a new four-speaker audio design, this is essentially an iPad with a larger screen, so Apple’s announcement dwells on two new optional accessories for the device.

The first, the Apple Pencil, is designed to make drawing and sketching on the tablet feel natural. The second is a new Smart Keyboard, a full-sized keyboard that connects via the iPad Pro’s Smart Connector port.

But taking advantage of the new tablet and its accessories will not be cheap. In the US, the iPad Pro is selling for US$799 ($1140) for the 32 GB model and US$1079 for a 128 GB Wi-Fi and cellular model. The Apple Pencil costs an additional US$99 and the Smart Keyboard an additional US$169. The typical Australian mark-up may put it outside of the price range of many potential purchasers.

Both the new iPhones and iPad use the iOS 9 operating system, which brings improvements including picture-in-picture, split-view and slide-over multitasking; extended Siri functionalities; redesigns of built-in apps such as Notes and Maps; and a built-in News app.

Apple will provide iOS 9 as a free update to all users of the iPhone 4 or later, iPod Touch 5th Generation or later, iPad 2 or later and iPad Mini or later. The OS will be made available on 16 September.

Apple’s newest smart device, the Apple Watch, didn’t miss out either. Apple announced its new watchOS 2, as well as an expanded line of cases and bands.

The new operating system will be made available as a free upgrade on 16 September. It is designed to improve the performance of apps by allowing them to run natively on Apple Watch hardware. It adds the ability for third-party apps to show notifications on the display, as well as new communications features such as the ability to easily dictate a reply to an email.

The new Apple Watch styles include stand-alone sports bans and a collection of stainless steel and leather bands designed by luxury retailer Hermes.

Finally, Apple announced the next generation of its Apple TV set top box. The redesigned Apple TV includes a Siri remote with a built-in accelerometer and gyroscope, which can be used to voice-search for content based on title, actor or category.

The device will also support a customised Apple TV App Store, allowing developers to create apps and games specifically for the platform. It will launch in the US in October, but Apple did not specify whether it will bring the device to Australia.