First impressions of the iPhone 6 and Apple Watch
It would be hard for anything to live up to the hype that surrounded Apple's big product announcement Tuesday in Cupertino, California -- but the iPhone 6 and Apple Watch may have come close.
"Apple definitely delivered on a lot of promises they've been making for the past year or so," says CNET Editor-at-Large Tim Stevens. He shared some first impressions with CBS News soon after the event wrapped up.
Stevens was pleased to see two new larger-screen phones -- the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus -- which capitalize on a popular consumer trend. "They're definitely targeting the more professional user and the 'phablet' user," Stevens said. "We've seen a lot of Android devices getting bigger and bigger. Apple's following suit, finally, which is great."
If promises of longer battery life hold true, it's likely to be a big draw.
"People have been waiting to upgrade their phones; I think we'll see a lot of people making upgrades. The question will be whether they go for the 6 or the 6 Plus. The 6 Plus is going to be $100 more but it has a bigger display and more battery life, too, so I definitely think we'll see people going for that choice."
With a two-year contract, the iPhone 6 will cost $199 for a model with 16 gigabytes of memory, $299 for the 64GB phone and $399 for 128GB. The iPhone 6 Plus is priced at $299 (16GB), $399 (64GB) and $499 (128GB).
Although some folks started lining up at the flagship Apple store in New York City early this week, the iPhone 6 won't actually be available until Sept. 19. Pre-orders begin this Friday, Sept. 12. The question remains whether Apple will have enough inventory on hand to meet the demand when the phones are released. When the iPhone 5S came out last fall, there was a temporary backlog of orders for the popular gold-colored model.
Another highlight of Tuesday's event was the unveiling of Apple's first wearable device, the long-rumored Apple Watch. Unlike the iPhone 6, whose basic specs were widely reported in advance, little was known about what the wearable would look like or what capabilities it would have.
Now that he's finally seen one, what does Stevens think?
"Looks like a great device," he said. "In terms of functionality, it's not all that much different that what we've seen before from other smartwatch manufacturers, but the interface is very clean, very polished."
Stevens also liked the Apple Watch's tactile controls. The digital crown, a 'home' button on the side of the watch, can be used to scroll through menus, which he found much easier to use than a tiny touch-screen.
The Apple Watch will work with any iPhone 6 or iPhone 5 model. It comes with GPS, notifications, health tracking and many other useful features. "They've got partnerships with Nike, with FitBit and with other companies as well that will make it a very popular choice, I think," Stevens said.
The Apple Watch doesn't go on sale until early next year, for a starting price of $349. An 18 karat gold version will cost a lot more.
Both the Apple Watch and iPhone 6 and 6 Plus will have built-in mobile payment technology called Apple Pay, which Apple says will be welcomed at more than 220,000 retailers nationwide.
CNET has complete coverage of the iPhone 6 and the Apple Watch.