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New Low-Cost 'iPhone SE' Could Launch as Soon as Tomorrow
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Huh? The 6S had tons of other changes, such as 3D Touch.
Exactly.
Right now Apple is still selling the iPhone 8 for $449... which originally came out over two years ago. Obviously it has a place in Apple's lineup as their entry-level iPhone.
But soon it will be replaced by this refreshed version... with a newer processor and cameras... for the same price.
And people think it's a bad idea?
No way! If the iPhone 8 is worthy enough to be sold by Apple... this refreshed phone definitely is too. More-so, actually. It'll be a hell of an iPhone for the price. And it'll last for a couple years longer than the iPhone 8.
All Apple is doing here is taking the 2-year old entry-level iPhone and giving it an upgrade.
I don't know why people are getting so bent out of shape by this.
It's mostly redundant that Apple decided to not include it on the latest model.
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It's pointless to release another 4.7” since the customers still using 6s, 7 device is a lot less than 8. The original SE Form Factor can be revived and people are likely to buy due to the screen size that is more portable with one hand.
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So, just to summarize this thread. Reusing the 8 design is bad because it’s “boring” and “redundant”. Reusing the SE design isn’t bad despite also being boring. But they also have to put an OLED screen in there. And also, the iPhone is too expensive anyway.
…impressive amount of armchair punditry.
I still don’t see the big deal with using the 8, putting an A13 in, selling it a bit cheaper. Done. Great phone. I used the 8 for years. It’s be exactly what they did with the SE, and that was quite popular.
I don’t think we’ll see another 4-inch phone. I miss those, because single-finger use was pretty cool, but that market segment has shrunk further and further.
…impressive amount of armchair punditry.
I still don’t see the big deal with using the 8, putting an A13 in, selling it a bit cheaper. Done. Great phone. I used the 8 for years. It’s be exactly what they did with the SE, and that was quite popular.
I don’t think we’ll see another 4-inch phone. I miss those, because single-finger use was pretty cool, but that market segment has shrunk further and further.
Hmmm... so a 2.5 year old phone is getting the current CPU and upgraded memory, and is priced lower than any other iPhone at $399.
Yes, it seems like I’ve seen this movie before. But even before the pandemic, the new SE was supposed to sell 40 million in the first year. Now, it could easily be 60-80 million imo. (With the increased demand stolen from iPhone 12 lineup, though far fewer phones will be sold overall than Apple’s forecast pre-Covid.)
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I’m a bit baffled by “the iPhone SE 2 will be a failure unless it has my pet feature”.
Other than the 5C, which iPhone was unsuccessful?
Here was my point...
Right now the iPhone lineup looks like this:
iPhone 8
iPhone XR
iPhone 11
iPhone 11 Pro
And soon it will look like this:
iPhone 9
iPhone XR
iPhone 11
iPhone 11 Pro
Apple is simply upgrading the entry-level iPhone because it's the oldest iPhone in the lineup. I don't see a problem with that.
All the people with 6, 6s, or 7 who were thinking about getting an iPhone 8 will be MUCH better served by the iPhone 9. Newer processor, better cameras, longer service life, etc.
Or... Apple could do nothing and keep selling the 30 month old iPhone 8 until this Fall.
Think of it this way... does the iPhone 8 deserve a spot in Apple's iPhone lineup today?
If yes... then wouldn't a better version of that phone be... uhh... better?
Here was my point...
Right now the iPhone lineup looks like this:
iPhone 8
iPhone XR
iPhone 11
iPhone 11 Pro
And soon it will look like this:
iPhone 9
iPhone XR
iPhone 11
iPhone 11 Pro
Apple is simply upgrading the entry-level iPhone because it's the oldest iPhone in the lineup. I don't see a problem with that.
All the people with 6, 6s, or 7 who were thinking about getting an iPhone 8 will be MUCH better served by the iPhone 9. Newer processor, better cameras, longer service life, etc.
Or... Apple could do nothing and keep selling the 30 month old iPhone 8 until this Fall.
Think of it this way... does the iPhone 8 deserve a spot in Apple's iPhone lineup today?
If yes... then wouldn't a better version of that phone be... uhh... better?
The majority of people wanted to upgrade from 6, 6s, 7 already bought the iPhone 8. Therefore, the next iteration of 4.7” is underwhelming in terms of features that barely any changes aside from the minor CPU improvement.
There are more improvements from the original SE than the iPhone 9 and it's real shame why Apple employees even bother making such a product without any innovation.
Speaking as someone who still has both iPhone 7 and SE (A9) in the household, I'll be glad to have the SE2 available. I'd prefer to upgrade to that than to the iPhone 8. My dad has an iPhone 11 and he'd gladly switch to the SE2 for the smaller size.
iPhone 5s -> SE
A7 -> A9 (2 gen proc skip)
more RAM
better camera
better battery
iPhone 8 -> SE2 (rumored specs)
A11 -> A13 (2 gen proc skip)
more RAM
better camera
better battery
dual SIM?
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Nope, it's less than that from the original SE and the iPhone 9 form factor is a product that no significant volume of the customer is demanding.
They’re peripherals, which might help people working from home on a lockdown.
A new phone budget or not usually comes with some fanfare however low key....I could see IPhone 9 getting delayed at least till May, it might seem in bad tase for a new phone model while people are dying during a pandemic.
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Highly doubt it, they had no problem releasing a new iPad Pro and MBA.
I expect there's decent enough demand for a sub-$500 iPhone though, regardless of what form factor it takes. Probably higher than the demand for an iPod touch (which Apple just refreshed last year).
That's questionable, there are critics who wrongly accused of weak SE sales.
I still see plenty of 6, 6s, 7 out in the world.
iPhone 9 will be an EXCELLENT upgrade from iPhones 6, 6s, and 7.
iPhone 9 will be an optional upgrade from iPhone 8.
But let's imagine that iPhone 9 wasn't coming out. Then all those 6/7 owners could only go to the iPhone 8.
And iPhone 8 owners are already there.
So isn't it nice to at least have the option for any of those people to get the iPhone 9? Faster processor, better cameras, longer support life?
Apple had two choices:
- Keep selling 30-month old hardware as the entry-level iPhone in 2020
- Refresh the entry-level iPhone with newer, faster, better hardware in 2020
You say it is "underwhelming" to go from iPhone 8 to iPhone 9.
Well like I asked earlier... what if there was no iPhone 9 coming out? You'd be stuck with your iPhone 8!
Isn't some upgrade better than NO upgrade?
But let's be clear... the REAL upgrade path from iPhone 8 is to the XR, 11, or 11 Pro. I guess we forgot about that.
I still see plenty of 6, 6s, 7 out in the world.
iPhone 9 will be an EXCELLENT upgrade from iPhones 6, 6s, and 7.
iPhone 9 will be an optional upgrade from iPhone 8.
But let's imagine that iPhone 9 wasn't coming out. Then all those 6/7 owners could only go to the iPhone 8.
And iPhone 8 owners are already there.
So isn't it nice to at least have the option for any of those people to get the iPhone 9? Faster processor, better cameras, longer support life?
Apple had two choices:
Apple went with #2...
- Keep selling 30-month old hardware as the entry-level iPhone in 2020
- Refresh the entry-level iPhone with newer, faster, better hardware in 2020
You say it is "underwhelming" to go from iPhone 8 to iPhone 9.
Well like I asked earlier... what if there was no iPhone 9 coming out? You'd be stuck with your iPhone 8!
Isn't some upgrade better than NO upgrade?
But let's be clear... the REAL upgrade path from iPhone 8 is to the XR, 11, or 11 Pro. I guess we forgot about that.
The pre-iPhone 8 device user is not that big in 2020 and the majority of people no longer possess due to iPhone upgrade program. Apple can prevent the iPhone 9 from underwhelming by doing more than just a speed bump in SoC.
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Nope, the original SE is about form factor with 80% of flagship device feature. Apple did not view it as a budget model and people who want a bigger device pick 6s over SE rather than the price difference.
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The iPhone 8 is still noticeably smaller than the iPhone 11. For those who want smaller devices without spending a small fortune, the upcoming SE2 is as small as you can go.
My mom doesn't want a bigger phone (on 4" SE right now) but she's resigned to 4.7" at this point. The XR/11 is a definite no-go due to size and 11 Pro is a no-go due to price. I'd much rather spend $399 on iPhone SE2 than $449 on iPhone 8.
Also, I still see more iPhone 6/6s/7 in the wild than newer models (easily recognizable due to aluminum back). I think most are actually 6/6s because they still have the headphone jack.
So your solution is... leaving the iPhone 8 on the market until the Fall?
People will buy the iPhone 9... just like people buy the iPhone 8 today. But they'll be getting better hardware in the iPhone 9. It's a refresh but at the same price. This is a good thing.
And you keep downplaying the "just an SoC" upgrade.
You realize anyone buying an iPhone 8 today has already used up two years of iOS updates, right? But if they buy an iPhone 9 today... they will get much longer life out of it.
And better cameras. And more RAM. And who knows what else.
Apple is actually improving the lower end of their lineup... not ignoring it.
Lemme try to break this down:
Today Apple has an entry-level iPhone at $449. It's 30 months old using a two-generations old processor and cameras.
But the rumor is a refreshed model using the current processor and improved cameras for the same entry-level price.
I don't see anything wrong with that.
Though it sounds like you think Apple should abandon the iPhone 8 and/or the $449 price-point because everyone already has an iPhone 8.
I disagree.
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So your solution is... leaving the iPhone 8 on the market until the Fall?
People will buy the iPhone 9... just like people buy the iPhone 8 today. But they'll be getting better hardware in the iPhone 9. It's a refresh but at the same price. This is a good thing.
And you keep downplaying the "just an SoC" upgrade.
You realize anyone buying an iPhone 8 today has already used up two years of iOS updates, right? But if they buy an iPhone 9 today... they will get much longer life out of it.
And better cameras. And more RAM. And who knows what else.
Apple is actually improving the lower end of their lineup... not ignoring it.
Lemme try to break this down:
Today Apple has an entry-level iPhone at $449. It's 30 months old using a two-generations old processor and cameras.
But the rumor is a refreshed model using the current processor and improved cameras for the same entry-level price.
I don't see anything wrong with that.
Though it sounds like you think Apple should abandon the iPhone 8 and/or the $449 price-point because everyone already has an iPhone 8.
I disagree.
It's very likely that the iPhone 9 won't be a huge hit like the original SE and Apple did not even try to improve it with OLED over iPhone 8. They are a significant amount of 6s, 7 owners with iPhone upgrade program so iPhone 9 is not under consideration for that market.
True.
Sadly we won't know how many of any iPhones get sold since Apple stopped reporting unit sales numbers (and they never broke them down anyway)
And here's something I didn't think of until now: we've been talking about 6, 6s, and 7 users all this time...
What about people who don't have an iPhone at all?!?! Android users! Those people exist!
It's possible a Samsung/LG/Moto user might wander into the iPhone pond. The entry-level price of $449 is not bad to get the rumored iPhone 9 with current specs and many years of iOS updates!
And once they're in the ecosystem... they could pick up Apple Watch too!
Do you mean the Streetsounds Electro albums? I’ve used the Electro 1 cover as my avatar....its my favourite from all the Electro albums and the way tracks were blended together was pure genius. 😎
I think its also about familiarity. iPhone 6/6S/7/8 users who would feel more comfortable with the same form factor again than moving to the Face ID gen phones.. I have several clients and family members who this will be a perfect phone for.
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Ugh... I was hoping for the 5.4 to be a pro
iPhone 9 is not going to be releasing today. It looks like Jon Prosser was wrong again!
