Technology

Apple’s March 21 Event: New iPhone, iPad Pro, Apple Watch Dropped to $299

Details of Apple’s product news.

Mar 21, 2016, 2:00 PM UTC

The Verge

Apple unveiled a new iPhone, an updated version of the iPad Pro and some new bands for the Apple Watch at its special event this morning.

Below is our liveblog from the event courtesy of Ina Fried, Dawn Chmielewski and Re/code’s new Editor in Chief Dan Frommer.

Here are some highlights:

First things first. Regarding Apple’s ongoing fight with the FBI over the use of encryption back doors, CEO Tim Cook said the company has a responsibility to protect customer privacy and it “will not shrink from this responsibility.”
The Apple Watch’s starting price has dropped to $299. Added to the fact that Apple still hasn’t releases sales figures, the price drop suggests the Watch is not selling as well as the company had projected.
Apple launched CareKit, an app to help patients manage diseases such as Parkinson’s. Research hospitals like UCSF, Johns Hopkins, Stanford and Atlanta’s Emory University will use the app to track progress of patients post surgery and monitor effectiveness of drugs.
The anticipated four-inch iPhone, called the SE, is here:
Includes Siri and the latest camera software, such as Live Photos.
Comes in silver, space gray, gold and rose gold.
It’s altogether faster and has more features than the 5s.
Starting price is $399 (16 gigabytes of storage), which should help Apple increase its marketshare in developing markets and basically compete with Android. The $499 version comes with 64GB.
The company sold more than 30 million four-inch iPhones last year, accounting for about 13 percent of total iPhones sold in 2015.
Will be in 110 countries by May.
Phil Schiller talks up the latest iPad Pro as “the ultimate PC replacement.” Apple has sold over 200 million iPads in the 9.7-inch size. Display features a wider color gamut and has what it calls “True Tone” display which responds to light and color in its environment.
Cook ends the event by pointing out this will likely be the last product announcement in the current Apple campus before moving into their new headquarters by this time next year.
(No Jony Ive, btw.)