He said Apple has to face up to the fact of growing challenges from local vendors, who have already "unleashed a number of great products with high performance and competitive price tags".

Apple had done a fantastic job in China, right up until Thursday's event.

Its iPhone shipments in the country hit 120 million units in the second quarter, representing 11 percent of market share, thanks to the iPhone 6/6 Plus sales, according to IDC.

China will be one of the first markets to start selling the new iPhones.