Analysis: Apple launch excites consumers but not investors

As the dust settled on another Apple launch, the industry was already taking stock and passing judgment on the announcements.

The company pulled out all the stops, announcing updates for its major product lines, from the Apple Watch to Apple TV, iPhones to iPads.

Its stock fell after the event closed, proving perhaps that investors were less easy to please than consumers with the next version of the iPhone 6.

But there was very little of surprise in the event. The days when Apple could keep all its products under wraps until the big reveal have long since gone. Most of the day's major announcements, from the iPad pro to the redesigned Apple TV, had already been leaked online as the rumour mill cranked up ahead of the event in San Francisco.

And Huawei may have stolen some of Apple’s launch thunder by announcing last week that its Mate S would come with Force Touch technology in the display.

But although Apple didn’t have its “one more thing” moment, there was plenty to get excited about at the launch - if there’s one thing that Apple knows how to do, it’s get people excited about devices and features they never even knew they needed. Take the iPad, for example, a product that didn’t exist a few years ago, and that created a whole new product category. While Apple initially had the market to itself, competition has crept up in recent years. According to eMarketer, the number of iPad users is continuing to increase, but with a widening market, the actual share of the market that Apple currently commands is shrinking, both in the US and UK.

iPad Pro

While sales of the iPad may have been falling off in recent times, the introduction of the iPad Pro could provide Apple with the lift the iPad needs. Aimed at a more enterprise-level audience, the iPad Pro has a 12.9-inch screen, and crams more pixels into its display than a 15-inch MacBook Pro Retina. It’s the fastest iPad ever made too, and will put it up to more than 80 per cent of laptops sold this year, which is a bold claim from the company.

With the iPad Pro comes something that industry watchers thought would never happen: a stylus. It’s a slightly more stylish attempt at the genre called Apple Pencil, but it can’t disguise what it is. It’s a bit of an about-turn for the company. The late Steve Jobs criticised the stylus and the manufacturers who depended on them a few years ago, citing the plastic stick as a failure as a mobile phone input.

But the new Apple Pencil is aimed at the iPad Pro, and it does a little more than point and select. It uses Force Touch technology to distinguish between gestures on the screen, between presses and longer presses, strokes and stronger lines. It’s smarter than your average stylus, which is the key difference.

Anyway, it wouldn’t be the first time a company seemed to admit it was wrong. Jobs also derided the 7-inch tablet, long before Apple introduced the 7.9-inch iPad Mini, a product that has been a success for the firm.

Apple TV

There may have been a few raised eyebrows when Apple chief executive Tim Cook claimed that TV hadn't changed in years - TV apps, on-demand video and streaming services may beg to differ. The company nonetheless wowed the crowd with the TV box's built-in Siri functionality that not only allows you to search through multiple apps to find the programme you are looking for, but can also narrow it down by director or even cameo star. And if you miss a line? Simply ask Siri what the actor said, and the digital assistant jumps the video back a little.

It needs something to distinguish it from the crowd. While Apple has let its TV product stand still, with no new hardware since 2012, other companies have stepped up their game. Among the rivals for the Apple TV are Roku and Google’s Chromecast, both of which offer streaming services such as Netflix at a lower price than the Apple TV.

Amazon was quick to react to Apple’s announcement, pointing out that it had already implemented voice search and apps in its own TV box.

“We’ve thought that apps and voice are the future of TV since we launched Amazon Fire TV 16 months ago,” Amazon said. “We’re flattered that Apple agrees with us.”

New iPhones

Cook kept the iPhone announcement for last, revealing the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus. It was unlikely that the phone would get a major redesign so soon after the last one, and with the exception of a new colour - rose gold - there was little visible difference between the newer models and the ones already on the market.

But there were some less obvious hardware changes. Aside from the 3D Touch interface, the new iPhone comes with more durable glass and a new A9 chip that is faster than the A8 inside its predecessor.

Although the new iPhone may have come in for some criticism online for what was perceived as a lack of revolutionary features, the handsets are still expected to be a hit for Apple.

“People love to hate Apple announcements because the expectations are so high and they can never clear that bar,” said Kevin Landis, portfolio manager of the Firsthand Technology Opportunities fund.