Apple put improved security and bright new colours ahead of aggressive price cuts at the launch of its latest iPhone models, as it sought to broaden its appeal without compromising its premium brand.

For the first time since the iPhone’s launch in 2007, Apple introduced two new handsets at the same time: the 5S, which carries a fingerprint reader and comes in new silver and gold colours, and the cheaper 5C, sporting brightly coloured plastic casing.

The retail price of the iPhone 5C handset will be $549 in the US, cheaper than the top-of-the-range 5S but still more expensive than many of the Chinese rivals that have taken a larger portion of the market in countries such as China and India. By pricing the 5C towards the upper end of Wall Street’s expectations, Apple has signalled it is unwilling to sacrifice margins and its aspirational brand as it attempts to win back market share from Samsung and other smartphone makers running Google’s Android operating system.