Apple kicked off its Tuesday event by unveiling the new iPhone 6, with two versions offering two different screen sizes, USA Today reports.

At the start of the big event, a montage with the statements "a whole new take" and "changing things" was shown.

Apple CEO Tim Cook then took the stage and mentioned he will be "talking about the product that has changed all of our lives," after which he reveals the two new versions of the iPhone 6. Tim Cook calls them "the biggest advancement in iPhone."

Notwithstanding the difference between the screen sizes, both iPhone 6 models will have a faster A8 processor, making it at least 25 percent faster than the iPhone 5S.

The product launch, according to REUTERS, confirms industry speculation regarding Apple's interest in moving into a market niche long dominated by tech rival Samsung Electronics. Apple is also expected to unveil a wearable device later in the event.

The two new iPhone 6 versions feature a screen size of 4.7 inches for the regular model and a 5.5-inch screen for the iPhone 6 Plus. These new models also carry rounded edges and a significantly thinner frame than what Apple's previous versions used to be.

Apple's new design "gives the clearest sign yet of the company's product direction under Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook," writes Adam Satariano of Business Week.

"In the three years since Cook succeeded Steve Jobs as Apple's top decision maker, the company has made incremental changes to existing products, raising questions of whether it could build another hit product. With today's introduction of larger handsets, the company is responding by leaping in to new areas of the fiercely competitive consumer-technology industry," says Satariano in the article.

Last year, Apple was suffering from market share losses to Samsung and low-cost electronics companies like Xiaomi Corp. This year, however, Apple comes into its new product launch having turned the tables on its competitors, with the company stock reaching almost record-high levels.