Apple has unveiled three new models of iPhones to a negative reaction from the stock market, and hours after accidentally leaking them online itself.

The updated model of the flagship iPhone X has been named the iPhone XS and will retail for the same price of $999 - but a budget and a luxury version of the smartphone were announced too.

The UK price is expected to be in line with the dollar price as Apple has typically retailed its phones for the exact same amount in sterling as it has in dollars.

Replacing the iPhone 8, the iPhone XR will be available for $749, while the basic rate iPhone XS Max will set consumers back $1099.

Apple became the first trillion-dollar company in history, propelled in its fortunes since the launch of the iPhone in 2007 - but after 11 years of growth, global demand for new smartphones is plateauing.

Market analysts believe that Apple is going to chase continued growth by getting its customers to pay for ever-more expensive phones.

"There's no real game changer on the table," Hal Eddins, the chief economist at Apple shareholder Capital Investment Counsel, told Reuters. "It's a matter of getting people to keep moving up."

Certainly the prices of its recent phone releases suggest a rapid rise in the cost of Apple devices:

:: iPhone 7 - $499
:: iPhone 8 - $599
:: iPhone XR - $749
:: iPhone XS - $999
:: iPhone XS Max - $1099

Sky News

BDST: 1044 HRS, SEPT 13, 2018
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