Apple's First New Low-Cost iPhone Since the iPhone SE Expected to Launch Early Next Year

[Scottsdale]

I am using the Xs Max and Note 10+. I cannot stand the notch on the iPhone. It’s hideous. The fingerprint sensor on the Note 10+ is very fast. Fast enough for sure. I want to get rid of the notch. I only hate FaceID as much as I do due to the notch. In fact, I think the Pixel 4 looks like an amazing device. Symmetry is beauty whether it’s in the people we find beautiful or the devices we hold in our hands. It’s been two years since the iPhone X and the terrible notch were introduced. I am shocked Apple’s leadership is so out of touch with reality. These things don’t make people leave an ecosystem so great - but they also don’t bring in new people to the platform. That as well as Apple’s software being messed up and hacked to the point of no password needed on Macs, multiple people hearing in on FaceID and “research” companies selling access to iOS and iMessages to governments all over the world. Privacy is just a word Apple likes to use. In reality, your iPhone or Apple device is no more secure than most Android devices.

I am ready for new leadership and hope that 2020 iPhones remove the disgusting notch that I cannot unsee nearly two years later. Apple has become the giant dinosaur that gets kicked in the tail and takes three years to feel it in the head.

So bring on an iPhone like the 6s, my favorite ever. Don’t mess it up with a notch. FaceID is fine if can solve the screen problem. Give me something that is fast enough and quit screwing up the software. And for the sake of all things good and holy, bring in some product people and innovators since Cook fires the innovators that make their way to the top. Forstall.

 

[PlayUltimate]

Will people actually buy this phone in early 2020? Rumors are that the next generation would be based on 5G. Would there still be demand for a lower-cost non-5G iPhone in Spring 2020?

 

[aleni]

Low cost iPhone with HUGE BEZEL in 2020. Are you kidding me?

 

[speedyraf]

While on vacation recently, I saw a number of iPhone SEs and even 4s in peoples' hands. I talked with a couple owners about a new iPhone and none wanted any of the current lineup - too big, and their current phones still work great. (Some of these people had "large fingers", too.) I also own an iPhone SE that fits my requirements. Perhaps Apple is taking another look at the market here? We'll see next week.

 

[Da_Hood]

I’m interested. My 6 won’t run iOS 13, and the camera is obviously old AF. Not buying into 5g next year, was looking at XR2 to tide me over the next 4 to 5 years, but this cheaper option may tempt me.

 

[aleni]

Don’t bank on that. The 4.7” form factor of the iPhone 8 is likely to be the smallest size. And if this new device has the A13 and probably 3GB of RAM, it will be a screamer performance wise with probably quite good battery life with the LCD display.

they always piss us off and put 1800mAh battery instead.

 

[TechZeke]

We're both crazy then. I'm never going to buy a freaking phone for more money than I paid for my 6S (€ 850). As nice as the iPhone X is, the prices are just ridiculous and unjustified. The problem is that people are still buying them, giving Apple no reason not to price the next iPhones even higher.

I gave up on constant upgrading when I realized I was paying $800 per year to do the same stuff a little faster. An XS Max would be nice for sure, but what would I gain over my 8 plus really? All I mainly use on my phone are some apps, music, safari, messaging, and phone calls.

Interestingly, even after having more money now, I'd still choose an XR over an XS and XS Max if I was upgrading today. Just getting older I guess.

 

[PickUrPoison]

A thousand pardons for not reading the entirety of Macrumors before posting this. I bow to your superior memory of every previous post and your remarkable ability to mentally tally these “literal” thousands of references.

I apologize, I didn’t mean to jump down your throat

 

[EugW]

They should do the SE physical size but with no chin and forehead, so that the screen was bigger in the same housing. that would be great.

Too narrow for iOS 13, and it wouldn’t sell well.

 

[neliason]

I read somewhere recently that an analyst sees this as a segment that isn’t economically feasible enough to warrant a new design. He claimed it’s only 10 percent or so of apples market. The prior SE was an iPhone 5. This will be an iPhone 8. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.marketwatch.com/amp/story/guid/555DBEB2-CB48-11E9-B114-42193EBFDE7D

For what it’s worth surveys like that are meaningless imo. I know way too many that just won’t fool with x series (or xr) because of price or losing Touch ID.

It may only be 10 percent of the market. But it may be 10 percent that will go elsewhere for a phone or just not upgrade. I have no plans to get a phone larger than my SE. I simply don’t want or need a big phone. I also won’t pay the high price of the current series of phones.

My dad has an SE and he definitely won’t get a bigger phone. He just wants a phone. He does nothing else with it other than make calls. Because he is in the Apple ecosystem and it was reasonably priced he got an SE. But I don’t think he wants an Apple device more than he doesn’t want a huge phone. He isn’t a customer you can force to buy a larger, high priced device.

 

[fullauto]

iPhone X style with no Face ID, but under screen fingerprint reader.

 

[stewacide]

I hope this isn't true. The iPhone 6-8 are too big to use one-handed with confidence. An all-screen 4.7" device would be great, but another iteration of the iPhone 6 chassis I have no interest in.

(I'm on my second SE please don't make me have to buy a 3rd!)

 

[PickUrPoison]

I gave up on constant upgrading when I realized I was paying $800 per year to do the same stuff a little faster. An XS Max would be nice for sure, but what would I gain over my 8 plus really? All I mainly use on my phone are some apps, music, safari, messaging, and phone calls.

Interestingly, even after having more money now, I'd still choose an XR over an XS and XS Max if I was upgrading today. Just getting older I guess.

Pretty much why I’ve kept my 6s. But I don’t like to run unsupported OSes so if it doesn’t get iOS 14, I’ll upgrade. The 5.4” OLED, being a little smaller physically than the 6s, is what I’ve tentatively got my eye on. But this new 4.7-ish phone could be interesting as well.

 

[EugW]

iPhone X style with no Face ID, but under screen fingerprint reader.

This under screen fingerprint tech still seems immature. Unless Apple could vastly improve it in short order, it’s probably not happening anytime soon.

 

[Elitegate]

Why would anybody buy that? If its price, nobody cares about A12,A13.....all these phones do is to wait faster until my finger hits the screen.
The SE (5) form factor was great, shave a bit off the bezles and you can squeese a 4,7” screen in there.
A revamped 8 brings nothing to the hundreds of millions of 6s, 7, and 8 users, why should they upgrade? Look at the 6s, 289 Euros brand new, got a real home button (not a sensor) got a head phone jack, got a good camera, got support for iOS13 and is a real iPhone. Cheap parts, screen, battery, home button, tons of cheap accesories ect. Why would you give this up for 1 GB more memory or an on paper faster prozessor?

I bought the iPhone 6s before the SE. Would have prefered the SE. But now, after nearly 4 years and still fantastic batterie and thanks to its various cases pretty new look, I will wait for a phone that is better, not faster in some benchmarks or “better” by eliminating things like a home button, headphone jack and adding weight and at the same time raising the prices to used car level. There is nothing as a daily runner the 6s can not do

That 2020 refreshed iPhone 8 would target iPhone SE users. Not current iPhone 6s / 7 / 8 users. Maybe 6s users aswell, depends on them.

SE or 6s aren't really good iPhones anymore. Maybe for 300 €, yes. Sure it still does the job for basic tasks and you have the headphone jack. But the CPU is getting old and the camera isn't that good anymore for todays standards especially in low light. iOS 13 is supported, but what about iOS 14 or 15? I also think that the new home button is clearly an improvement over the old click-able one. The Taptic Engine gives nice feedback.

iPhone 7 and 8 are also real iPhones. And the A11 is way faster than the A9 used in the 6s and SE. Not just on paper. I usually don't care about some benchmark value, but Apple really stepped up their game with the A11. This doesn't happen every year, the difference between A9 (6s) or A10 (7) was negligible and no one really cared, including myself. A11 vs A12? Same thing, not much faster. Not really important.

I'm not saying that it would be a huge upgrade for SE users, but a good replacement at a decent price point. A more modern phone.

And i had the 6s for 3 years until i replaced it with the 8 Plus. It's a difference like night and day. Performance, Display, Camera, Speakers, Home Button too. I don't miss my 6s a bit. Glad i switched.

But i guess that not too many iPhone SE owners will switch to the 2020 replacement, because they already refuse to get an iPhone 6s / 7 / 8 in the first place. It's still too big for them. The 4" display is outdated and too small, i'll highly doubt it come back. The smallest iPhone you can get today or next year will be similar to the current 4.7" iPhone 6 / 6s / 7 / 8.

Apple doesn't really have phones that target the budget market. Except for the 4 year old SE or 6s. Don't get me wrong, i loved my 6s when i had it. But it's just too old now to keep it around much longer.

 

[tridley68]

No thanks i hang on to my XS Max.

 

[jonblatho]

EDN's sources also claimed the device coming in early 2020 will include an LCD display.

Well, I’m sure a few people will be rushing to the ATM machine and entering their PIN number to go buy one!

 

[crsh1976]

Keeping in mind this is just a rumour, I'm still hopeful. I can totally see Apple re-using the iPhone 8 form factor for a new SE, and I'd be all over it to replace my 3 years-old, all beaten up and scratched to death SE.

 

[ascender]

It’s too bad Apple can’t bring an X style derivative in the smaller iPhone 8 form factor and still come in at a lower cost. Offer it as a smaller XR derivative featuring single lens, LCD to keep costs down. This would bring consistency to iPhone design. Call it the iPhone XE or something.

That’s the phone I’d buy in a heartbeat. But I just can’t see it happening unfortunately. I guess to help keep the cost down they’re going to look to make as much use of existing components as they can. Making an SE-sized X would be a significant piece of work for them I think.

Shame... I’ve used my son’s SE on a couple of occasions when I’ve been without an X and its great once you get used to the smaller size again.

 

[MKevin3]

As long as it has a better screen resolution than the SE models programmers will be happy. Coding for that super small resolution is a huge pain. With that advent of near bezel free phones and a finger print reader on the back or under the screen it would be possible to get a decent resolution in a smallish form factor. Don't know if you can go all the way down to SE size.

Doubt Apple would go with finger print reader on the back but it is an option if the under screen reader is not ready for prime time. The current notch eats up a lot of space which will be very noticeable on smaller devices.

 

[az431]

iPhone 8 is too big and I'd prefer that last Jobs' era design.

Steve Jobs didn’t “design” iPhones. Moreover, the iPhone 5 was the first iPhone completely developed under Tim Cook.

 

[ingik]

It would be great to keep the form factor, but with a higher res screen, water proofing, wireless charging and narrower camera housing.

I don't think that a higer res screen is something that the target market for this phone cares about, as evidenced by the strong sales of the XR.
There are other things that are more important to potential buyers,like batterylife and price.

 

[hailey bee]

I need a small and light phone, the size SE was. If that comes with lower price, that's fine with me, Apple.

 

[CrazyForCashews]

Honestly sounds underwhelming and disappointing.

Hope that premium 5.4" iPhone is still in the works.

 

[hailey bee]

Phone reviews are greatly skewed towards big male hands playing games. That's what iPads for. I need a small-size phone to keep contacts, chat, nfc pay, weather, music, maps, photos. Operated with one hand most of the time. Nothing calls for tablet in my pants.