Apple Says Original iPhone SE is Now 'Obsolete'

[MacRumors]

Apple today added the first-generation iPhone SE to its obsolete products list, meaning the device is no longer eligible for repairs, battery replacements, or any other service at Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers worldwide.

Apple considers a product to be obsolete once seven years have passed since the company stopped distributing it for sale. The original iPhone SE was discontinued in September 2018, so the device recently crossed that seven-year mark.

The original iPhone SE was released in March 2016. The device's design is largely based on the iPhone 5s, with key specs including a 4-inch display, a Touch ID home button, and an aluminum and glass frame with chamfered edges. However, the original iPhone SE is powered by a newer A9 chip from the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

"Everyone who wants a smaller phone is going to love iPhone SE," said Apple's former marketing chief Phil Schiller, in a press release announcing the device.

Apple went on to release second-generation and third-generation iPhone SE models in April 2020 and March 2022, respectively, with both of those devices having a similar design as the iPhone 8. In February 2025, the iPhone SE was entirely discontinued for the foreseeable future, after it was effectively replaced by the iPhone 16e.

Article Link: Apple Says Original iPhone SE is Now 'Obsolete'

 

[Zarniwoop]

The last awesome phone. Since then, phone sizes and prices have inflated by a lot.

 

[CharlesShaw]

Had one for my second line and loved it. Even had the Apple leather case for it. Oh, how times have changed.

Ironic that my Apple TV 4th gen is still getting updates.

 

[one1973]

It was a big mistake to discontinue the SE and mini ranges. I know many people, myself included, who love small phones.

 

[sw1tcher]

The last awesome phone. Since then, phone sizes and prices have inflated by a lot.

😂

Apple Introduces iPhone SE — The Most Powerful Phone with a Four-inch Display

www.apple.com

Pricing & Availability

iPhone SE will be available in space gray, silver, gold and rose gold metallic finishes in 16GB and 64GB models starting at $399 (US) from Apple’s retail stores, Apple.com, Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers.


It's successor, the iPhone 16e starts at $599.00 for 128GB. That extra $200 gets you 8GB memory vs 2GB, a much faster SoC, a bigger display, etc.


$399 in 2016 is approximately $540 today when adjusted for inflation, so in reality, you're paying $60 more for the iPhone 16e in 2016 dollars.

 

[turbineseaplane]

a bigger display, etc.

Not a "feature" we all want.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

That pink SE is one of the best-looking phones ever made. Fight me on this.

 

[xxFoxtail]

I miss my SE. I liked it so much, I bought it twice.

 

[sw1tcher]

Not a "feature" we all want.

Which is a completely different topic of discussion.

I was only addressing this notion that since the iPhone SE, iPhone "prices have inflated by a lot." That's not true.

 

[goodcow]

This phone was so good, I bought it the day it released, and upgraded to an iPhone mini 13, which I'm holding onto because it can actually be used one-handed.

 

[Apple Fan 2008]

Still remember the day they announced this and I wanted it so bad when I was younger.

 

[chmania]

And, the next one would be iPhone Air.

 

[cateye]

It was a big mistake to discontinue the SE and mini ranges. I know many people, myself included, who love small phones.

So many that every attempt Apple has made to sell smaller phones has been a resounding, barnstorming, profit-exploding success. Scrooge McDuck levels of lucre flooding into Apple's coffers due to the unyielding torrents of demand for diminutive phones.

So let's keep litigating the idea of small phones over and over again in every thread possible with all sorts of delusional pronouncements of this, that, and the other reason why they weren't a success. Meanwhile, the reality is they weren't a success because people didn't actually want them in sufficient numbers to make it worthwhile for anyone to make them.

You want one? I'm sorry there isn't a product that matches your wants, from Apple or anyone else. Truly. Everyone should be able to get exactly the product they want. But markets don't work that way. And if there was a market for small phones, some company, if not Apple then a wayward Android manufacturer looking to make a name for itself, would embrace that "market" with both hands. Hell, there are still companies making Blackberry-style keyboard phones to serve that minuscule, equally over-vocal audience. Imagine how small the market for small phones must be that no one will step up to serve it similarly. Not even with a Kickstarter, where the financial burden is offloaded onto people committing to buy. Not even then.

 

[whatnot]

reading this on my obsolete phone, I wan't aware it was eligible 'for repairs, battery replacements, or any other service' up to this point. it's the perfect shape and size, and will be livid once the iOS too goes under.

 

[turbineseaplane]

So let's keep litigating the idea of small phones over and over again in every thread possible with all sorts of delusional pronouncements of this, that, and the other reason why they weren't a success. Meanwhile, the reality is they weren't a success because people didn't actually want them in sufficient numbers to make it worthwhile for anyone to make them.

Safe to assume you'll use this approach over in the iPhone Air, Mac Pro, AirPods Max, HomePod and Vision Pro threads also, yes?

 

[sw1tcher]

..... the reality is they weren't a success because people didn't actually want them in sufficient numbers to make it worthwhile for anyone to make them.

..... if there was a market for small phones, some company, if not Apple then a wayward Android manufacturer looking to make a name for itself, would embrace that "market" with both hands. Hell, there are still companies making Blackberry-style keyboard phones to serve that minuscule, equally over-vocal audience. Imagine how small the market for small phones must be that no one will step up to serve it similarly. Not even with a Kickstarter, where the financial burden is offloaded onto people committing to buy. Not even then.

You're telling me that the total addressable market for an iPhone mini is smaller than for the Jitterbug flip phone which is why the iPhone mini is gone, but the Jitterbug is still available today?

 

[cateye]

Safe to assume you'll apply this logic over in the iPhone Air, Mac Pro and Vision Pro threads I assume also, yes?

That's actually an interesting question. The iPhone Air may end up being a similar situation, where otherwise full-sized but "thin" phones also don't grasp enough market interest to make their manufacture and sale worthwhile. Probably too early to tell for the iPhone Air since this is just Apple's first attempt. It didn't go well for Samsung, but they suffer the same challenge as Apple, where products that don't move Great Big Enormous™ numbers end up not being worth the effort to produce. But there are other, smaller companies still debuting "thin" phones (Motorola just came out with one, I think) that may stand a better chance. We'll see.

The Mac Pro is different. The idea of an expandable, tower computer is not new nor a failure—there are limitless options, as long as you're willing to run Windows or Linux. Apple's struggle with selling an expandable tower computer is both a uniquely "Apple" problem (they insist in marketing it as a nearly unobtainable halo device, then ignoring it for years making it a terrible value) and technical limitations of the Apple Silicon SoC model. Sucks for Mac users who want a tower Mac, but there hasn't been a high bang-for-buck tower Mac since the PPC era, really.

The AVP... That whole situation is so sad it's hard to know. But again, there are other VR/AR products on the market. I suppose none are quite the same as the AVP, but for someone who really wants to explore that space, if Apple abandons the AVP, there are options.

Mini phones, however... no demand, no market, no one willing to step up and serve what market exists. Uniquely tragic for fans of that type of product. But what can you do, really? Pining over what practically has no reason to exist won't change a thing.

EDIT: You added to your list! AirPods Max and HomePod aren't really the same. Apple still sells them (they even brought the HomePod back! No one saw that coming), sorrowfully neglected though they are. Many other companies sell similar products as well. There's no danger of someone who likes smart speakers or over-the-ear cans not having a purchase option. I don't really get why Apple in particular sells either of them, though, as I doubt either moves in very big numbers.

 

[Pafoofnik]

This is/was my favorite iPhone. I wanted SMALL, I wanted INEXPENSIVE. I don't need a phone with a billion features that I'll never use, like monitoring my bowel movements or launching a rocket to Uranus. I had two SE's. I destroyed one trying to change the battery myself (thanks iFixit). The battery on the second SE eventually expanded (bloated) and cracked open the case. I miss you, iPhone SE.

 

[cateye]

You're telling me that the total addressable market for an iPhone mini is smaller than for the Jitterbug flip phone which is why the iPhone mini is gone, but the Jitterbug is still available today?

I have no idea of absolute numbers. But you tell me, then, why no manufacturer, Apple or Android alike, has any interest in developing and marketing a small phone. I get why Apple, titan that it is, needs products to sell in huge numbers to make it worth their while. But there are dozens of Android OEMs that have no problem marketing edge-case products (like that JitterBug, or keyboard phones, or whatever) to capture small, loyal markets.

Too small a market, not actually loyal are the only reasons that make sense, then, for why small phones don't exist. Occam's Razor.

 

[Starfia]

Since the battery finished its useful life and I moved to an iPhone 12 mini (what else?), my first-gen SE is right here performing server readout duty using a Web app. It's the one iPhone I don't see myself parting with even if it dies completely.

 

[Pafoofnik]

[REPY TO sw1tcher, above, that I screwed up.] It ain't necessarily so. The market for bigger gas-powered cars has always been there but The Masters of the Universe have been shoving EVs down our throats for a decade or more. It's really tough to buy a mini-phone if they're not being made or if they're prohibitively priced.

 

[sw1tcher]

..... if there was a market for small phones, some company, if not Apple then a wayward Android manufacturer looking to make a name for itself, would embrace that "market" with both hands. Hell, there are still companies making Blackberry-style keyboard phones to serve that minuscule, equally over-vocal audience. Imagine how small the market for small phones must be that no one will step up to serve it similarly. Not even with a Kickstarter, where the financial burden is offloaded onto people committing to buy. Not even then.

Found your Kickstarter small (5-inch screen) smartphone. The Jelly Max.

Jelly Max - The Smallest 5G Smartphone

Discover the Unihertz Jelly Max, the world's smallest 5G smartphone that fits perfectly in your palm. With a 5-inch display, transparent curved design, and powerful 4nm Dimensity 7300 chipset, experience seamless performance and global 5G connectivity. Enjoy high-speed memory, a 4000mAh battery...

www.unihertz.com

Jelly Max - The Smallest 5G Smartphone​

Not to mention the (older) Jelly 2 and Jelly 2E

 

[whatnot]

rants, and then some.

I'm sure it would sell like hot cakes if it was released tomorrow - small iPhones don't exist because they're not made, not because there's no demand. just because apple cornered its market with 99 lines of half-an-iPad-sized phones doesn't mean that it's all everyone ever wanted.

 

[BotchQue]

So you can't even get a battery replaced once a phone hits the obsolete list? I have the SE v2 so I guess it's on the chopping block next, but my battery lasts 3 days and since I just use it as a phone, won't care so much when the iOS is no longer updated either.

 

[cateye]

It's really tough to buy a mini-phone if they're not being made or if they're prohibitively priced.

Ah, but you're moving goalposts. Now they have to be both small and cheap. Are you starting to see the problem here?

Again, I wish there was a product for you. But unless we're going to veer into BIG PHONE conspiracy theories, the reason it doesn't is because it's not economically viable: A company like Apple has the might to produce a value-priced small phone (as it did with the Minis) but then it needs to sell in sufficient numbers to make the economies of scale work. A specialty provider could accept and capture a smaller market, but then it will need to price the product high to cover its investment and bespoke manufacturing. Fatality.