Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
This raises a question I've been pondering for a while. Who is the "regular" iPhone for? The iPhone SE looks like it will gain an all-screen front with FaceID and presumably the latest chip and presumably lack the multiple cameras and dynamic island. At the same time, those who want the best cameras and performance will be drawn to the Pro line up. I'm struggling to see who in 2025 will walk into an Apple shop and opt to pay $300 more than the SE for an ultrawide camera and dynamic island ...
In Australia where I live it's even more dramatic. Roughly double the price of the SE for an ultrawide camera and dynamic island. I look through the complete list of specs and I struggle to find one feature that justifies another roughly $800 Australian - you can buy a second SE, the capable new Pixel 8a, or an iPad with that extra money.

With the latest chip, the SE 4 will be very good value.
 
This is a good news for the people who shy away from iPhone due to their usual high starting price. I sense that times are changing. People don’t get excited by features which feel more inclined towards increasing novelty of device rather than usability. I do not mean that all new features are gimmicks but it’s becoming less and less exciting with most invention going towards camera.

I am still content with XS Max 256 GB. I changed battery last year and never looked back. And with the iOS 18 support, my XS Max still has few years of life left before some apps like WhatsApp, Facebook etc stop working eventually.

I often think about no. of times our family get together to watch old photos & videos of trips which we had taken over the years by screen mirroring. And that reminiscing of old memories seem to be the reason behind my camera & storage need. I myself never seem to justify shelling out big bucks every year or alternate year just to have latest and greatest iPhone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MartyvH
We’ve seen it happening with the Mini when the SE had an almost similar form factor. Now the entire form factor has gone. I expect this to happen again, especially as the nee SE will be even closer to the way more expensive regular iPhone with the same form factor.
The SE will likely cannibalise the regular iPhone, resulting in a very fragmented market. Then Apple will probably conclude this market is too small to continue. In 5-10 years we the. won’t have the Mini, nor the regular iPhone, nor the SE. Only the large and expensive Pro models will remain in that case.

I’m sticking to the 13 Mini as long as possible. As soon as I really need to replace it, I’ll look for a similar sized iPhone. If there’s no alternative at Apple, I’ll look elsewhere. It would be my first step leaving the Apple eco system.
Totally agree. Not sure how Apple doesn't see the growing demand for a compact phone with amazing battery life, decent camera, universal (USB-C) charging port, and solid overall performance.

There are plenty of other phone options for people who want giant screens (for media that will be consumed and instantly forgotten) and fancy cameras (for photos and videos they'll take and rarely look at again).

In the meantime, I'm keeping my 13 Mini as well.
 
6.1”?! Laughable.

Far too big. iPhone SE 4 = ❌ 🔥

The iPhone SE 2016 remains a gem! Small form factor, light, easily held in the hand, a real home button (none of that haptic nonsense), no ridiculous notch, pocketable (!) and a treat to use.

Oh, well. That ship has sailed. Too bad.
Id reshape an iphone 8 plus LCD and fit it into Iphone SE body for better resolution. Not sure if its possible.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jimmy_uk
A USB-C iPhone would be nice, but from what I'm reading, the SE4 would lose Touch ID, LCD screen and gain size/weight compared to my SE3. If my SE OG ran a more current iOS, I wouldn't have upgraded as I really liked its size and feel.
 
For using less power, yes. For everything else - it's a phone. A small rectangle of glass. You can make devices thinner with OLED granted, but never asked for that. There is nothing wrong with LCD, there never was + it doesn't give me eye strain and headaches. I could care less about "deep blacks" or saturated colours on a phone.
…Overall picture quality is one of the core functions of ANY device with a screen with LCD not coming close to OLED until MicroLed which is much more expensive and harder to manufacture.

Contract and response times are pretty darn important that an OLED intrinsically will always be faster than LCD panels used on phones massively produced today.

Accordingly it’s a coveted luxury on high-end phones.
 
There is MASSIVE demand for a more affordable iPhone, not so much in the US, but outside of it where our economies are weaker and we earn less. My wife and I want to move to iPhone from Android but the cheapest iphone where we live is iPhone 12 64GB (who wants 64GB???) for €550. That's very expensive for small storage. The next one up is iPhone 13 126GB for €619. Considering the average wage here is €1000 - 1200 per month, that's HALF a month's salary!!

Typically the best selling phones here range from €200 - €350 because that's what people can afford, at a push. So if the SE were priced at €420/450 for 128GB it would probably sell well, because people could save up the extra €100 to reach that amount.

The same is true of the majority of countries in the world. That's why Android has something like 85% global marketshare. At the moment people from these countries are experiencing the net and smartphones with Android, and are likely to stay on Android for as long as it's affordable. If Apple hopes to start winning some global market share, and more importantly the next generation of users, it needs to start offering something more attainable.

I also think these markets are RIPE for Apple to offer zero interest finance on Apple products like they do in their top markets, because even more people would get an iPhone if they could pay it off for €20 a month over 2 years. I know I would! But here in Cyprus we only have authorised resellers, no Apple stores. And if there were financing available people would also be ale to finance Apple Watch SE, Apple TV, iPad Air. Once they are in the ecosystem, they'll sign up for Apple TV+ etc.

It's a HUGE market and massive amounts of money to be made if only Apple would realise tha and step in locally to offer these things. As people's incomes improve etc, they could move up to MacBook and the latest iPhone. And those whose fortunes don't improve could at least finance the iPhone SE future models, Watch SE future models etc. In other words, life long customers.

I honestly don't know why its taken them so long to move into this market. They are leaving TRILLIONS on the table and the Android OEM's are TOO STUPID to realise what potential that market has. Especially Samsung. Their entry level and mid range phones are a joke, and expensive.

They should have offered S23/S24 level phones for €350 along with zero interest financing, as well as their tablets and watch. If they would have made name in the market that all their stuff is Apple-level yet available via financing, they would hve built up a MASSIVE customer base and locked them in their ecosystem. Instead they just copy Apple and are content to lose money. Idiots.
And the rest are worse. Xiaomi and the rest sell essentially the same budget phones year after year with the same specs at the same low price, instead of thinking long term. They are all asleep. Let's hope Apple wakes up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jimmy_uk
For me it will come down to whether I replace the battery in my 2020 SE or put the $69 toward a 2024 SE. If Apple "vintages" my phone, I'll upgrade. If they keep issuing updates for it, new battery.
 
Will be super bummed to lose LED, as OLED causes me migraines. Also I like a smaller phone, and will miss Touch ID.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.