Apple is cutting prices on two iPad models and introducing red iPhones, but the company held back on updating its higher-end iPad Pro as the tablet market declines.
A much-speculated 10.5-inch (26.67 cm) iPad Pro didn't materialise, nor did new versions of existing sizes in the Pro lineup, which is aimed at businesses and creative professionals.
The new devices, which were unveiled through a press release on Tuesday, are mostly refreshes of existing models.
The iPad updates come as the tablet market continues to decline, after a few years of rapid growth.
According to IDC, tablet shipments fell 20 per cent to 53 million worldwide in the final three months of 2016, compared with the same period in 2015.
The iPad Air 2 is replaced by a new model simply called the iPad, which retains a 9.7-inch (24.64 cm) screen, but gains a little weight and thickness.
The standard-size iPad is now cheaper than the smaller Mini model.
The 7.9-inch (20.07 cm) iPad Mini 4 now comes with 128 gigabytes of storage starting at $US399 ($A518), $US100 cheaper than before.
Apple is also eliminating the 32-gigabyte model, which used to sell for $US399. Nothing else is changing.
With the release of the red iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, Apple says it will donate an unspecified amount to HIV and AIDS programs.
In the last three months of 2016, iPhones generated 10 times the revenue as iPads.
Unit sales of iPads fell 19 per cent from the previous year, yet an optimistic Apple CEO Tim Cook said many people were buying iPads for the first time, indicating the market was yet to reach saturation, the point at which everyone who wants a particular product already has one.
Share
