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Other iPhone 15 is so underwhelming. Could Apple excite with iPhone SE 4?

I

illegaloperation

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 6, 2016
35
18
iPhone 15 is just an incremental improvement over iPhone 14 which is itself an incremental improvement over the iPhone 13, and so on.

Could Apple excite the public with the iPhone SE 4?

The current rumor is that the iPhone SE 4 is basically the iPhone 14.

www.macrumors.com

Kuo: New iPhone SE With 6.1-Inch OLED Display and Apple's 5G Chip Planned

Apple has restarted development of a fourth-generation iPhone SE with a 6.1-inch OLED display and an Apple-designed 5G chip, according to the latest...
www.macrumors.com www.macrumors.com

It's hard to believe that Apple would put a pricy OLED screen in the budget iPhone lineup. At least the price would have to increase significantly to accommodate. An expensive iPhone SE would be anti-climatic.

Rather, a price-effective and exciting iPhone SE 4 could be a modern refresh of the iPhone XR.

Apple could retain cheaper components such as the LCD screen while updating the SOC, the modem (with 5G), etc. etc.

iPhone_XR_blue-back_09122018_carousel.jpg.large_2x.jpg
 
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illegaloperation said:
iPhone 15 is just an incremental improvement over iPhone 14 which is itself an incremental improvement over the iPhone 13, and so on.
Click to expand...
Shirasaki said:
Nothing sigificant will happen. Apple has mastered the ability to wow us with absolutely bare minimum. Why do more when you can get away with less?
Click to expand...
Andeddu said:
They changed the name of the phone from iPhone 14 to iPhone 15. That should be enough to wow you, consumer.
Click to expand...
I don't understand how anyone can look at last week's keynote and think that Apple has somehow decided to just stop innovating altogether. Apple's strategy is pretty clear to me - launch new features exclusively on the pro models first and then eventually bring them to the rest of the iPhone lineup. This differentiation allows for lower-priced non-pro models, while also giving new features time to be supported by developers.

Apple products have always been about continuous refinement. As its products evolve, Apple pours ever more effort into incremental improvements in the details. Compared to the iPhone 14, the iPhone 15 gets dynamic island, A16, better display, better camera, usb-c, ultra-wideband chip, contoured edges and a colour-infused glass back. On their own, none of those improvements are revolutionary, but it’s a solid list of meaningful year-over-year improvements nevertheless.

And they do it every year. Apple has shipped a new phone for 15 years, and they will continue to do so next year, and the reason why Apple has the luxury of being perceived as boring is because every single year brings some form of improvement (both hardware and software) and these benefits accumulate over time, because they all build on not just the iPhone itself, but the rest of the ecosystem as well.

It's kinda like investing, where you save a little every month, but it all adds up over time due to the power of compounding interest. It's the same thing here. Apple has been using the iPhone to lay the groundwork for their AR/VR headset for years (starting from Animoji in 2017 all the way to the 15 pro's ability to record spatial video), the iPhone 15 gets features that debuted first in the 14 pro, and it's not hard to see features from this year's 15 pro max eventually trickle down to next year's iPhone 16.

And this is why Apple will continue to be successful. Because their unique definition of innovation (quality over quantity) is resonating with their user base more than ever. Moreso than folding screens, moreso than AI, moreso than whatever the latest tech buzzword of the week is.
 
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They could have created a bit more excitement by finally adding a high refresh screen (90hz maybe) on the iPhone 15, but alas no. Its 2023 going into 2024, and they still charge £799 for a 60 hz screen. Everything else were solid upgrades though.
 
60hz is the major downside but other areas it has improved in many areas from the 14. If it had 120hz it would be a great buy
 
I actually think the regular 15 got some nice upgrades/refinements over the 14. As someone who has been getting the Pro variants since they were introduced with the 11 Pro, I feel the regular models are reaching a point where I would personally be quite happy switching from the Pro models. As is, I rarely use the telephoto lens and never use any of the pro video features. Sure, I might miss Pro Motion but I think Apple's animations look fine at 60Hz. Would they look better at 90Hz or 120Hz? Of course. Perhaps next year.
 
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sunapple said:
Ah yes, the SE which is notable for recycling as much as possible will probably be far more exciting than the brand new 15 lineup ;)
Click to expand...
For someone using the iPhone SE 2/3, the iPhone SE 4 could be very exciting.

It could be like going from the iPhone 6/7 to the iPhone X.

Certainly, it would be far more exciting than from the iPhone 13/14 to the iPhone 15.
 
$429 iPhone SE is a different market from those demanding excitement.

If Apple wants to gain market share just lower down the price and see US politicians go crazy with charges of mOnOpOlY when iPhone expands from nearly 60% to nearly 80%.
 
illegaloperation said:
iPhone 15 is just an incremental improvement over iPhone 14 which is itself an incremental improvement over the iPhone 13, and so on.

Could Apple excite the public with the iPhone SE 4?

The current rumor is that the iPhone SE 4 is basically the iPhone 14.

www.macrumors.com

Kuo: New iPhone SE With 6.1-Inch OLED Display and Apple's 5G Chip Planned

Apple has restarted development of a fourth-generation iPhone SE with a 6.1-inch OLED display and an Apple-designed 5G chip, according to the latest...
www.macrumors.com www.macrumors.com

It's hard to believe that Apple would put a pricy OLED screen in the budget iPhone lineup. At least the price would have to increase significantly to accommodate. An expensive iPhone SE would be anti-climatic.

Rather, a price-effective and exciting iPhone SE 4 could be a modern refresh of the iPhone XR.

Apple could retain cheaper components such as the LCD screen while updating the SOC, the modem (with 5G), etc. etc.

iPhone_XR_blue-back_09122018_carousel.jpg.large_2x.jpg
Click to expand...
This post sounds like it was written by ChatGPT?
 
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illegaloperation said:
iPhone 15 is just an incremental improvement over iPhone 14 which is itself an incremental improvement over the iPhone 13, and so on.

Could Apple excite the public with the iPhone SE 4?

The current rumor is that the iPhone SE 4 is basically the iPhone 14.

www.macrumors.com

Kuo: New iPhone SE With 6.1-Inch OLED Display and Apple's 5G Chip Planned

Apple has restarted development of a fourth-generation iPhone SE with a 6.1-inch OLED display and an Apple-designed 5G chip, according to the latest...
www.macrumors.com www.macrumors.com

It's hard to believe that Apple would put a pricy OLED screen in the budget iPhone lineup. At least the price would have to increase significantly to accommodate. An expensive iPhone SE would be anti-climatic.

Rather, a price-effective and exciting iPhone SE 4 could be a modern refresh of the iPhone XR.

Apple could retain cheaper components such as the LCD screen while updating the SOC, the modem (with 5G), etc. etc.

iPhone_XR_blue-back_09122018_carousel.jpg.large_2x.jpg
Click to expand...
With an annual release they'll all be incremental, I don't think anyone expects them to have groundbreaking updates with this sort of schedule. This is why I've decided to update every 2 or 3 models, that's when you really notice the difference.
 
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ericgtr12 said:
With an annual release they'll all be incremental, I don't think anyone expects them to have groundbreaking updates with this sort of schedule. This is why I've decided to update every 2 or 3 models, that's when you really notice the difference.
Click to expand...

Unless I have someone to hand over my device to I fail to see why I'd replace annually as well.

My work's not in tech so having a test machine on hand isn't a work requirement.
 
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sack_peak said:
Unless I have someone to hand over my device to I fail to see why I'd replace annually as well.

My work's not in tech so having a test machine on hand isn't a work requirement.
Click to expand...
I'll say this though, ATT offered $1000 for my 13 MP on trade, they've made that pretty appealing.
 
They NEED to put at least an OLED screen in it. The XR screen is horrible. Also, when they do the SE gen 4, it should be based off of the iPhone 13, not the iPhone XR (which was based off the X). Just give it the new rounded edges but keep the smaller notch.
 
ericgtr12 said:
I'll say this though, ATT offered $1000 for my 13 MP on trade, they've made that pretty appealing.
Click to expand...

For a $1099 13 MP 128GB? Sure, sign me up... but again... how likely is that? :-D

While they're at it can they do a similar offer with my Macs as well?
 
Abazigal said:
I don't understand how anyone can look at last week's keynote and think that Apple has somehow decided to just stop innovating altogether. Apple's strategy is pretty clear to me - launch new features exclusively on the pro models first and then eventually bring them to the rest of the iPhone lineup. This differentiation allows for lower-priced non-pro models, while also giving new features time to be supported by developers.

Apple products have always been about continuous refinement. As its products evolve, Apple pours ever more effort into incremental improvements in the details. Compared to the iPhone 14, the iPhone 15 gets dynamic island, A16, better display, better camera, usb-c, ultra-wideband chip, contoured edges and a colour-infused glass back. On their own, none of those improvements are revolutionary, but it’s a solid list of meaningful year-over-year improvements nevertheless.

And they do it every year. Apple has shipped a new phone for 15 years, and they will continue to do so next year, and the reason why Apple has the luxury of being perceived as boring is because every single year brings some form of improvement (both hardware and software) and these benefits accumulate over time, because they all build on not just the iPhone itself, but the rest of the ecosystem as well.

It's kinda like investing, where you save a little every month, but it all adds up over time due to the power of compounding interest. It's the same thing here. Apple has been using the iPhone to lay the groundwork for their AR/VR headset for years (starting from Animoji in 2017 all the way to the 15 pro's ability to record spatial video), the iPhone 15 gets features that debuted first in the 14 pro, and it's not hard to see features from this year's 15 pro max eventually trickle down to next year's iPhone 16.

And this is why Apple will continue to be successful. Because their unique definition of innovation (quality over quantity) is resonating with their user base more than ever. Moreso than folding screens, moreso than AI, moreso than whatever the latest tech buzzword of the week is.
Click to expand...
My response to Apple's strategy as you have laid out, starting in 2021, is to buy older models. My preference with iPhone is to always purchase the largest sized model Apple offers with the largest capacity. Right now that's a Pro Max. But in 2021 a 1TB 12 Pro Max was going to add significant expense to my monthly phone bill, so I went with the 512GB 11 PM (for this and a few other reasons). I got what I wanted and I paid less.

And if this strategy is as you say, then I was probably roughly on par with the regular 12 series models.

This is my new normal now. I'll be upgrading to the 15 Pro Max I think some time around when the iPhone 17 series launches.
 
snipr125 said:
They could have created a bit more excitement by finally adding a high refresh screen (90hz maybe) on the iPhone 15, but alas no. It’s 2023 going into 2024, and they still charge £799 for a 60 hz screen. Everything else were solid upgrades though.
Click to expand...
It is being rumored (although take it with a huge grain of salt) that the upcoming iPhone 16 will indeed carry a 90Hz refresh display, locked into 80Hz by software. I know, the rumor sounds weird, but I think it is possible.
 
eyoungren said:
My response to Apple's strategy as you have laid out, starting in 2021, is to buy older models. My preference with iPhone is to always purchase the largest sized model Apple offers with the largest capacity. Right now that's a Pro Max. But in 2021 a 1TB 12 Pro Max was going to add significant expense to my monthly phone bill, so I went with the 512GB 11 PM (for this and a few other reasons). I got what I wanted and I paid less.

And if this strategy is as you say, then I was probably roughly on par with the regular 12 series models.

This is my new normal now. I'll be upgrading to the 15 Pro Max I think some time around when the iPhone 17 series launches.
Click to expand...
I do this too. I have XR now and my next model will probably be iPhone 14 next year when if they stop giving updates for XR.
 
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illegaloperation said:
For someone using the iPhone SE 2/3, the iPhone SE 4 could be very exciting.

It could be like going from the iPhone 6/7 to the iPhone X.

Certainly, it would be far more exciting than from the iPhone 13/14 to the iPhone 15.
Click to expand...
I beg to differ.
If all of the rumors are true, we should be getting:
•6.1 Inch 60 Hz OLED
•Notch
•iPhone 13/14 era design with squared off edges.
•Single camera
•A15 or A16 chip
•64GB starting storage
•USB-C (2.0)
•at least $429 price, although I wouldn’t put it past them to bump it up to $499
• release date sometime in 2024/2025, 2025 looking more likely at this point.

Given that a 128GB iPhone 13 can be found for $599 from Apple or cheaper elsewhere, I don’t understand why anyone would wait for an SE2, especially when a price increase is a very real possibility.
Plus the 13 will have two lenses (while this is not rumored to come to the SE.
Outside of USB-C, I don’t see the benefit.
Especially when 12s and 13s are pretty much the same price a hypothetical 2025 SE would be. You’re waiting for pretty much nothing.
 
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The SE will always have recycled features and hardware of higher end iPhones, so it depends what you mean by exciting. I agree that the iPhone 8 design needs to be retired and that a iPhone 14-esque design would be refreshing for this price point. But at the end of the day, the specs will still be similar to an iPhone from 2-3 years ago (except the chip maybe), it's just that they are tricking down to cheaper devices.
 
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