iPhone SE 4 Likely to Feature 8GB of RAM for Apple Intelligence

[HornOfAbraxas]

Meanwhile, the “pro’s” stick with 8, and the Pixel will have 16.

Pure greed.

The funny part is, you can watch real world app tests where youtubers run a series of apps back to back and the flagship iphones will still beat flagship androids, because their processors are so much faster.

So why do you, as an end user, care about the back-end mechanics of how the iphone is faster? It's faster already - you need it to have more ram just because you want it?

 

[HornOfAbraxas]

They have to cut costs for the SE in some way, and existing SE owners have been fine without wireless charging (as are many non-SE iPhone users I know). Budget phone buyers are also less likely to spend extra money on a wireless charger.

Semi-related, I would’t be surprised if the rumored iPhone Slim/Air comes without MagSafe, since MagSafe costs extra thickness, including the glass back necessitated by wireless charging.

Only the original SE doesn't have wireless charging. The rest do.

 

[klasma]

The purported screen size increase is only 1/4" larger than it would be if you put an edge-to-edge screen on the current iphone SE. Since TouchID is no longer needed they lengthen the screen and it has a longer aspect ratio similar to the rest of the iphone lineup.

If these leaks are accurate the phone itself will barely be taller than the current SE.

It’s a significant size increase in my book. I already found the iPhone 6 larger than I’d like, and the mini barely tolerable.

 

[klasma]

Only the original SE doesn't have wireless charging. The rest do.

Ah, good point, I had forgotten that.

 

[sleeptodream]

They have to screw up this product somehow, otherwise it will cannibalize other iPhone models.
Otherwise it will probably be the very first iPhone I buy.

Yeah, this one is really interesting. If it’s 8gb RAM it will likely be A18, and other than losing one camera and the dynamic island, how are they going to justify it being so much cheaper than the base 16? Will there even be a point in keeping the 14/15 around?

Personally I think they should make the SE with a smaller screen size to differentiate it, and appease those looking for a smaller phone. Bigger than the mini, but smaller than the standard iPhone. Maybe 5.8” like the X/11 Pro. That felt like a pretty sweet size, not overly cramped. Would allow for a bigger battery too which was the complaint with the Mini. And when the base iPhone inevitably goes up to 6.3” having that third size option will be even more important

 

[ric22]

No way it lacks magsafe, especially as they donated most of magsafe to qi2, it would be super embarrassing if a new phone from Apple didnt have those features while every sub-300 Android phone does - using Apple developed tech

I could see them having it charge at the standard qi2 wattage instead of a higher wattage like the higher end phones though

I wonder how they'll deal with heat when they go above 15w? Even on Qi2 my 15PM heats up like crazy this summer, and has to cease charging.

 

[ric22]

Yeah, this one is really interesting. If it’s 8gb RAM it will likely be A18, and other than losing one camera and the dynamic island, how are they going to justify it being so much cheaper than the base 16? Will there even be a point in keeping the 14/15 around?

Personally I think they should make the SE with a smaller screen size to differentiate it, and appease those looking for a smaller iPhone. Bigger than the mini, but smaller than the standard iPhone. Maybe 5.8” like the X/11 Pro? That felt like a pretty sweet size, not overly cramped. Would allow for a bigger battery too which was a big complaint with the Mini, and when the base iPhone inevitably goes up to 6.3” having that third size option will be even more important

I know they need to gimp the SE in various ways, but the battery was/is an atrocity.

 

[ric22]

Well, that was to be expected and also shows how much RAM really costs for Apple. I'd expect that to increase with the regular iPhone 17 models again - those AI-Models are not getting smaller in the foreseeable future. Likewise, new Macs should at least get 12GB RAM in autumn. Atm, I'd wait as long as possible before buying new Apple hardware. They've aleay operated at the lowest RAM limit and charged an arm and a leg for RAM/SSD upgrades - even more for exactly the same chips but in more premium product lines. They'll probably run into the same limits earlier over the next years.

Gosh, if they push forwards with local AI in coming years we'll all need 64GB+ on every device 😅

 

[maxoakland]

Does this mean Apple is finally going to move their low end Macs to 16GB?

 

[gco212]

This is a bit tongue in cheek, but I thought they were touting how they were able to get Apple Intelligence working on low RAM machines? This is the same amount of RAM that their Pro line of Macs includes, so it seems like that comment may have been a bit inaccurate?

It's almost as though they've been selling underpowered models that have questionable longevity as Pro models. But, Apple would never!

 

[WilliApple]

When the SE is better than my 14 Pro…

 

[JosephAW]

All for $399, right?

 

[USB-Adapter]

Not having MagSafe is irrelevant since you can retrofit it on any old phone with a cheap case from Amazon - i do it on my Samsung phone and iPhone XR.

You don’t ever need a case, just a sticker with a magnet ring. I put it on my Sonos Roam.

 

[DavidSchaub]

When the SE is better than my 14 Pro…

How much do people value a 2 or 3 lens camera system VS the SE 4 which is almost certainly going to be a single lens camera system?

The rumours would suggest the differentiators are:
- lower contrast OLED screen
- notch vs dynamic island
- single camera

But I wonder if:
- they could ship it with the iPad Air's TouchID system?
- it will have a plastic back?
- they can get 8GB of RAM and Apple Intelligence on the A16?

The Parts-bin phone is a perfectly good idea, and the SE 4 might be my next phone.

 

[Chuckeee]

This will be the 1st iPhone with Apple-designed 5G modem. I know I don’t want to be a guinea pig for that new experiment.

 

[jfeathe]

The funny part is, you can watch real world app tests where youtubers run a series of apps back to back and the flagship iphones will still beat flagship androids, because their processors are so much faster.

So why do you, as an end user, care about the back-end mechanics of how the iphone is faster? It's faster already - you need it to have more ram just because you want it?

The issue with Apple’s limited RAM isn’t poor speed, it’s the lack of future-proofing. The 2022 premium iPhone cannot run Apple Intelligence because of the lack of RAM. Yes, the iPhone 14 Pro could do everything that was in existence at the time extremely well, but now at just 2 years old, it’s unable to run major new features. All the top of-the-line chips and iOS optimization built into the iPhone 14 Pro hardware and software is now going to waste because of the deficient RAM.

So yes, we want more RAM because we WILL need it 2 years down the road. Apple has been caught flatfooted on the RAM front and with the iPhone 16 series stuck at 8GB RAM, I have no confidence that these upcoming phones will stand the test of time. We don’t know what technologies will be unveiled in the next couple years that an 8GB RAM device will be unable to handle.

 

[john123]

To illustrate how cracked out Mark German is on this one...

What we're talking about is this (starting prices and base models for simplicity):

Mark, if this makes sense to you, I have a beach front property in Kansas to sell you.

 

[nottorp]

Does this mean the desktops will now start at 16 Gb ram ?!?

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

The 2024 iPhones 16 event, and WWDC, are dedicated to hyping and pushing us to want to pay $799-$999+ to upgrade to all-new iPhones "designed from the ground up for Apple Intelligence", or something equally hyperbolic.

You simply cannot tell buyers that Apple Intelligence is an Apple-exclusive, must-have feature, worth a $799 minimum, but at the same time try to sell a $699+ iPhone 15 that doesn't have AI.

And then come Q2 2025 you'll be launching a <$799 iPhone SE 4 that, like the $799-$999+ iPhones 16, also gets to run Apple Intelligence.

Apple didn't r & d an all-new iPhone 15 and 15 Plus just to retire them the following year or to have an over-powered SE 4 with AI outperform and outsell them at a <$799 price in early 2025.

SE 4 is not getting Apple Intelligence or 8GB RAM. Gurman is wrong if that's what he's pointing to.

 

[ThatsMeRight]

To illustrate how cracked out Mark German is on this one...

What we're talking about is this (starting prices and base models for simplicity):

View attachment 2405663

Mark, if this makes sense to you, I have a beach front property in Kansas to sell you.

If Mark is right, I can actually see Apple doing it. First, though, you accidentally mixed up the pricing. Obviously the iPhone 16 won't be the same price as the iPhone 15.

Than you've got to wonder: "Where would this new iPhone SE 4 fit?". Based on the rumours, it's going to look a lot like the iPhone 14 which sells for $699 and would likely see a price drop to $599 next month. My bet: the new iPhone SE is in fact a replacement for the iPhone 14 at max. $599, or given the cost savings - at best - $499. Also don't rule out the iPhone 16 Pro: it's clear Apple treats the iPhone line-up as "SE for 'budget', 'regular 15' for the majority of people, '15 Pro' as actually the flagship".

Rumours also indicate that while the design is iPhone 14 based, the chassis is similar to the iPhone 16. An obvious reason for this is to achieve economy for scale.

For me this is a clear sign: Apple wants to get rid of all the old designs, because right now they have got multiple types of production lines (iPhone 8-line, iPhone 12-line, iPhone 13/14-line and iPhone 15-line). It served them fine for a couple of years, because the designs are pretty old which means costs are going down... but right now it might be too many.

Instead, I think they might be going for something like this:

According to the rumours, they will all be based on the same type of chassis which provides great scale of economy. At the same time, it allows them to drop older models. Don't forget that they also want to move every model to USB-C which the iPhone 14 or older don't have.

I've listed the price of the model at $599 (what would be the iPhone 14's new price next month), but it could possibly go as low as $499 as well. We'll have to wait and see if it actually gets AI. I can see Apple keeping it away, but on the other hand, the next SE likely won't come until at least 2027... so not adding AI might be too risky. A great indicator will be Apple's 11th gen iPad in September or October. If the 11th gen iPad gets the A18 chip with AI, than I bet the iPhone SE 4 will too. If they don't, the iPhone SE 4 likely won't either. In that last scenario, the iPhone 15 might remain as a filler model between the iPhone 16 and iPhone SE 4.

Also, with 3 models, the iPhone line-up will perfectly align with the strategy they are using for the iPad:

- A 'budget' model, the model for people who want something cheap: the iPhone SE 4
- An 'air' model, the model for the majority of people: the iPhone 16
- A 'pro' model, the model for those that want the greatest: iPhone 16 Pro

In terms of pricing, it's also a great model for upselling. If you're considering the $499/$599 iPhone, you might as well 'for just a few hundred dollars' consider the 'latest' at $799... And when you're considering that one, it's just a few hundred more for the absolute 'greatest' at $999. It's a strategy they've maintained for years now, across basically their entire product line-up.

 

[DavidSchaub]

Does this mean the desktops will now start at 16 Gb ram ?!?

My bet would be is that M4 Macs come with 12 GB base RAM.

 

[Chuckeee]

To illustrate how cracked out Mark German is on this one...

What we're talking about is this (starting prices and base models for simplicity):

View attachment 2405663

Mark, if this makes sense to you, I have a beach front property in Kansas to sell you.

I was under the assumption the base iPhone was still a 6.1” display, it was the iPhone 16 pro that grew to 6.3”

And the iPhone SE4 had a single camera

 

[ric22]

My bet would be is that M4 Macs come with 12 GB base RAM.

Probably even the gimped base MacBook Pro! Despite the fact that thing costs $2,000+ in Europe.

 

[Chuckeee]

If Mark is right, I can actually see Apple doing it. First, though, you accidentally mixed up the pricing. Obviously the iPhone 16 won't be the same price as the iPhone 15.

Than you've got to wonder: "Where would this new iPhone SE 4 fit?". Based on the rumours, it's going to look a lot like the iPhone 14 which sells for $699 and would likely see a price drop to $599 next month. My bet: the new iPhone SE is in fact a replacement for the iPhone 14 at max. $599, or given the cost savings - at best - $499. Also don't rule out the iPhone 16 Pro: it's clear Apple treats the iPhone line-up as "SE for 'budget', 'regular 15' for the majority of people, '15 Pro' as actually the flagship".

Rumours also indicate that while the design is iPhone 14 based, the chassis is similar to the iPhone 16. An obvious reason for this is to achieve economy for scale.

For me this is a clear sign: Apple wants to get rid of all the old designs, because right now they have got multiple types of production lines (iPhone 8-line, iPhone 12-line, iPhone 13/14-line and iPhone 15-line). It served them fine for a couple of years, because the designs are pretty old which means costs are going down... but right now it might be too many.

Instead, I think they might be going for something like this:

View attachment 2405685

According to the rumours, they will all be based on the same type of chassis which provides great scale of economy. At the same time, it allows them to drop older models. Don't forget that they also want to move every model to USB-C which the iPhone 14 or older don't have.

I've listed the price of the model at $599 (what would be the iPhone 14's new price next month), but it could possibly go as low as $499 as well. We'll have to wait and see if it actually gets AI. I can see Apple keeping it away, but on the other hand, the next SE likely won't come until at least 2027... so not adding AI might be too risky. A great indicator will be Apple's 11th gen iPad in September or October. If the 11th gen iPad gets the A18 chip with AI, than I bet the iPhone SE 4 will too. If they don't, the iPhone SE 4 likely won't either. In that last scenario, the iPhone 15 might remain as a filler model between the iPhone 16 and iPhone SE 4.

Also, with 3 models, the iPhone line-up will perfectly align with the strategy they are using for the iPad:

- A 'budget' model, the model for people who want something cheap: the iPhone SE 4
- An 'air' model, the model for the majority of people: the iPhone 16
- A 'pro' model, the model for those that want the greatest: iPhone 16 Pro

In terms of pricing, it's also a great model for upselling. If you're considering the $499/$599 iPhone, you might as well 'for just a few hundred dollars' consider the 'latest' at $799... And when you're considering that one, it's just a few hundred more for the absolute 'greatest' at $999. It's a strategy they've maintained for years now, across basically their entire product line-up.

The other thing that comes into this is the whole issue with the N3E chip production line as compared to the N3B chip production line. That the A18 Chip in the iPhone 16’s and iPhone SE4 are from the N3E line are much more economical to produce than A17 chips from the N3B. And Apple Wants to retreat from N3B products in general

 

[Circa1984]

They have to screw up this product somehow, otherwise it will cannibalize other iPhone models.
Otherwise it will probably be the very first iPhone I buy.

First? What are you waiting for. I have a pro and an SE model (work issued). Definitely Go Pro - pay over time if you can’t afford it. They last for years.