Apple shares fall sharply after iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C launch

Apple shares fell sharply on Tuesday after the tech giant unveiled two new iPhone models at an event in California: the high-end iPhone 5S and the lower-cost iPhone 5C.

It is the first time the Cupertino-based company has released two iPhones at the same time and investors appeared unimpressed with the latest gadgets, the BBC reported.

Shares were down more than 2 percent to about $494 in late afternoon trading. 

The changes to the iPhone 5S are mostly incremental, but there were a couple of notable additions: a fingerprint scanner built into the home button to unlock the phone, a faster chip called the A7 and a beefed-up camera with automatic features to improve the quality of photos.

And the new models will be wrapped in silver, gold or slate gray.

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Prices for the iPhone 5S will range from $199 for the 16-gigabyte version to $399 for the 64-gigabyte model, with a new, two-year contract. 

The iPhone 5C model marks the first time Apple has entered lower-cost land, which is perhaps an acknowledgement that its competitors are catching up. 

The device features a plastic casing, comes in five different colors and has the same amount of memory as the 4S.

It is assumed that most of the iPhone 5C handsets will be sold overseas. The basic device will cost $99 with a new contract, but without a SIM card it will carry a price tag of $549, which can hardly be described as cheap.

The new iPhones go on sale in the US, UK, Canada, China and other selected countries on Sept. 20.

It will be the first time that China is among the first countries to get the new iPhone, the BBC points out, which seems to confirm speculation that the 5C is aimed primarily at the massive Chinese market.  

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