Apple launches iPhone 12 line with 5G speeds and new screens

Apple Inc unveiled its latest range of iPhones, a product line that Wall Street expects will kick off a new cycle of sales growth for the world’s largest technology company.

At a virtual event on Tuesday, the company showed off the iPhone 12 in black, red, blue, green and white. The new model comes with a 6.1-inch screen and is thinner and lighter, Apple said.

The front of the phone looks similar to last year’s iPhone 11, but the aluminum edges are now flat instead of curved. All of Apple’s new iPhones this year support 5G, a new wireless standard that can transmit data as much as 10 times faster than the current 4G LTE technology.

The handsets also have a faster A14 processor and updated cameras and use sharper OLED screens, an update from last year’s cheaper LCD screens, Apple said.

The Cupertino, California-based technology giant has generated relatively little sales growth from its marquee product in recent years as consumers hold onto their phones for longer.

Quarterly revenue from this segment peaked in the first quarter of Apple’s 2018 fiscal year.

This year’s crop of new iPhones marks the first major redesign in three years, which could prompt more upgrades and a new spurt of growth. Investors and analysts are also bullish on sales in China, where 5G networks are more built-out than in the US.

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