New reports suggest that Apple's upcoming affordable iPhone – which has tentatively been dubbed the iPhone SE 4 – could launch later this week. It is set to join the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro in Apple's current iPhone lineup and will replace the nearly three-year-old 3rd Generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022.
This new rumour comes from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who has delivered many reliable Apple leaks before; so we are inclined to believe this rumour, though we should remind you to take any rumour or leak with a pinch of salt. If Gurman's prediction is true, we could expect to see the new affordable iPhone before the end of the week – though we're not anticipating a full live-streamed Apple event akin to the annual September launch.
Instead, Gurman suggests that we could see a more tame unveiling on Apple's website, which will be more in line with the quiet launch of the iPad Mini 7th Generation. According to the Bloomberg report, we could expect to see the new iPhone go on sale later this month, with stock of the current model supposedly drying up at some Apple retailers. We have attempted to verify this, though a quick look at Apple's website shows that the SE 3rd Generation is still available at many of its locations here in the UK.
We eagerly await the release of the iPhone SE 4 for a multitude of reasons – especially as rumours point to this iteration of the smartphone being a major departure from the previous two generations. It's reportedly set to drop the iPhone 8 chassis and adopt an iPhone 14-style look with slimmer bezels and a notch. As part of this upgrade, Apple is rumoured to be incorporating a 6.1-inch OLED display, which should make this affordable iPhone a much better device for on-the-go movie watching.
Furthermore, Apple has been on its A-game regarding audio performance lately; in fact, we called the iPhone 16 "easily one of the best-sounding smartphones we’ve heard". If this supposed new SE 4 follows in the footsteps of its flagship siblings, then we could be in for a treat. We are also eager to pit this rumoured new iPhone against our current favourite budget handset, the Sony Xperia 10 VI. It took home the coveted Product of the Year title at our most recent Awards thanks to its superb AV performance and excellent value – so could this new iPhone SE pose a genuine threat?
Other rumours (courtesy of Tom's Guide) suggest that the new SE will swap Touch ID for Face ID, support Apple Intelligence (Apple's AI feature suite) thanks to the A17 Pro chip, and ditch the Lightning port in favour of USB-C. There are also reports that it will stick to having just one camera, though that is expected to jump from 12MP to 48MP.
Of course, we are most intrigued by the picture and sound capabilities of this prospective iPhone, so stay tuned to see if this affordable Apple handset materialises later this week.
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