Apple Launches iPhone SE and iPad Pro 9.7-Inch

Apple has unveiled smaller versions of the iPhone and iPad Pro – the iPhone SE and iPad Pro 9.7-inch – at an event hosted in San Francisco and streamed online.

The company said the iPhone SE has the same processing and graphics performance of the larger Apple 6S and can capture 4K video.

The new iPad Pro will have a 9.7 inch screen – the same size as the original iPad.

The iPhone SE will be available in 110 countries by the end of May.

With a starting price of $399/$499, the new iPhone is the “most affordable” handset Apple has ever released, the company said.

Apple also said the new iPad Pro would be available in three different storage sizes with an extra large 256GB version.

Pricing will begin at $599 for the smallest version and will ship in the US at the end of the month.

Apple said it sold 30 million four-inch handsets in 2015; however, its handset sales have slowed in recent months in line with the overall smartphone market.

Some analysts are predicting up to a 15% decline in shipments in the first quarter of 2016 alone.

Apple also showed off a recycling robot called Liam which can strip down old iPhones into their components for reuse.

The Apple Watch is to come down in price to $299 from its launch price of $349, CEO Tim Cook also announced.