Target Returns iPhone SE Stock Ahead of Apple's Rumored March Event

[Mac 128]

It sure sounds to me like the SE may just get a new display yet retain its classic design.

How does this help? A better display will decrease battery life, require a redesign, cut into Apples already ridiculously lower margins, and won't really offer much more to the SE customers. The only improvement I would want to see would be a higher pixel count to display more on the screen, but then the default text will be smaller which may upset others, and require Apple to support yet another custom screen dimension.

You are right. I forgot how current the SE was. It won't go to the 7 level this Spring. But I do hope they keep refreshing this form factor.

I expect Apple will refresh the SE at some point, since it appears to reflect a new strategy of offering a great iOS experience at the entry price point. I could see it getting the latest processors before it drops off the product chart, to justify the base price as the lowest priced phone in the lineup. But I also expect them to introduce an SE sized phone by next year that allows them to depreciate it and eventually replace the SE with more current technology. Given that Apple is building a plant in India to build the SE, I think that guarantees it will be around for a while longer, but I don't think Apple will just let an old phone remain static as they drop the price until it's discontinued anymore. Things like a greater RAM offering, and new colors, will allow them to keep their margins higher, even as they make minor performance upgrades. At the same time, I also expect to see Apple offer a $299 phone, and maybe even a $199 phone, something the SE could easily become while still being a relevant iOS experience.

 

[tech3475]

The purpose of the iPhone SE is to reuse old technology and production lines to make it cheap. It will never be updated.

Apple may be missing a market here then as there are people who want high end but not a large size.

One of the main reasons I got my mum an iPhone SE was because of it was one of the few phones on the market which was at a size she liked while having decent spec/support.

Had the iPhone SE not existed in it's current form, she wouldn't have an iPhone in any form.

 

[Paddle1]

The SE is a heck of a little device for the price. I think people who want a smaller phone are glad that Apple is even bothering, so an upgrade every two years would be better than nothing. It would be nice to have a yearly upgrade, but it's a low margin device—they make up the margins selling it over a two year period as components drop in price. If it does get updated, I expect it to change to 32GB/128GB, perhaps for $399/499.

They could keep the primary internals mostly the same—such as the A9, display, etc, but perhaps upgrade a few things: Barometric pressure sensor for tracking stairs climbed, upgraded FaceTime camera with display flash, or maybe even OIS and/or the same camera module as the iPhone 7, the same faster TouchID sensor found in the 6s onwards, or upgrade the earpiece speaker to be stereo. So that's the low-hanging fruit that probably doesn't require much in the way of external changes. Not saying they would do all, but they could do a few. Going out on a limb, they might integrate 3D Touch, while at the same time eliminating the headphone jack to make room for it. That's a bit bigger change, but at this point we've got the third generation of 3D Touch coming out around September, so it's not novel any more. Apple could add it without hurting sales of other devices. Lastly, they could add water resistance. So yeah, there are a lot of things they could choose from the iPhone 6s and 7 to upgrade it without it really looking much different or being any faster. At a minimum I expect a storage bump and maybe a new color option.

True, if they do double storage they'll probably either drop the base to $349 or raise the larger capacity to $499 to create a $100 difference.

 

[reallynotnick]

How does this help? A better display will decrease battery life, require a redesign, cut into Apples already ridiculously lower margins, and won't really offer much more to the SE customers. The only improvement I would want to see would be a higher pixel count to display more on the screen, but then the default text will be smaller which may upset others, and require Apple to support yet another custom screen dimension.

Well what I hope they meant by upgraded screen was moving to a 1200:1 contrast screen like the iPhone 6/6S instead of the 800:1 contrast screen it has now. As that would be a nice upgrade.

A better screen, front facing camera, and touch ID 2 along with doubled storage wouldn't make for a bad spec bump (as much as I'd also like an A10 chip thrown in)

 

[iKnowMr.Jobs]

I love my SE. I sincerely doubt that a spec bump is on the way. Otherwise, we would've heard more noise about it. They're just gonna change the SKUs and prices.

 

[LDN]

The iPhone 5/5S/SE chassis size is absolute perfection. I hope Apple never abandons that size.

 

[tkukoc]

Huh? iOS 10 added new 3D Touch features, it's not really forgotten.

Not really, can you 3D Touch the status bar and pull a wifi menu or bluetooth? Nope.. something that should be included with 3D Touch. Like I said.. this is an IOS issue all around. So many so called "great, must have features" that are dropped off and never supported to their fullest.

 

[mi7chy]

Retailers don't go through the logistics hassle of returning stock versus marking it down for fire sale with compensation from OEM unless sales is really poor. I wouldn't be surprised if the existing SE will be discontinued because there's no demand for unusable midget 4" screen phones that's very likely to be replaced with a 4.7" with minimal bezels.

 

[airshu]

Apple may be missing a market here then as there are people who want high end but not a large size.

One of the main reasons I got my mum an iPhone SE was because of it was one of the few phones on the market which was at a size she liked while having decent spec/support.

Had the iPhone SE not existed in it's current form, she wouldn't have an iPhone in any form.

This is exactly why I got one. Was using the brilliant Sony Z3 Compact with absolutely no intention of replacing it until a bad drop made the top of the screen unresponsive. I didn't want to get a big phone, and no one makes good small phones anymore. Even Sony seems to have given up on the compact line, making the latest a midranger and not available in Australia, despite near universal praise for the z3c and slightly less for the z5c

I tried bigger phones, and really didn't wanna switch to iphone, but the SE was the only phone that felt comfortable in one hand. Any flagship or similar androids under 5" probably would have got my money if they existed.

I think the z3c dimensions are a bit better though. It's wider and slightly taller, with tiny bezels. So you get a similar sized device with a screen that takes up all the space available, and doesn't feel narrow like the SE screen. Being android is good too, I'm not seeing all the fuss over iOS and I'm not sure if continued use will have it grow on me or have me aching to get rid of it. For normal use there's not as much difference as I expected, I guess phones are all pretty much the same, but there's just some things missing in iOS, and very little added

Would be a shame if Apple gave up on the smaller flagship idea though, I'm hoping other companies get inspired to copy them and give me a few more options in a year or so

 

[AronDraws]

I loooooove my SE. I ordered the 64 GB gold the moment they went on presale and I have never ever been happier with an iphone. I have a 7plus that I was issued at work but it just does not compare to how perfect the SE is for me. I hope they keep this option in the future!

 

[Danoc]

I'd like a refresh, even small but significant to me:

- 3D Touch
- home button like the iPhone 7
- no headphone jack

 

[Bawstun]

The purpose of the iPhone SE is to reuse old technology and production lines to make it cheap. It will never be updated.

Wrong.

 

[imola.zhp]

This would be great. We have a 5S user in the family that refuses to go to a larger phone, but the phone is over 2 years old and has issues from time to time that come and go. Another SE user in the family loves her SE.

 

[BoltmanLives]

Pretty sad deal, over in apl eco if you want smaller you must settle for an S____Edition? made up of old leftover hardware and they try to placate you all with a new color ... then what funny is apl fans "justify" it as a good thing, I guess so $400 off normal high pricing is great right?... keep in mind the price is still $400 for old tech thats is a lot of dough. Apl knows that they will attract the budget conscious users and hope they double the value next cycle.

Other vendors put decent flagships at the size. Like my 5.2" phone at $100 less with 20MP, 3GB,OLED, wireless charge, USB-C and top tier ARM.

Target shipped stock back because it sat (not selling)

 

[Juicy Box]

This would be great. We have a 5S user in the family that refuses to go to a larger phone, but the phone is over 2 years old and has issues from time to time that come and go. Another SE user in the family loves her SE.

This reminds me of my wife.

My wife's first iPhone was an iPhone 5. She would drop it all the time and she eventually broke it. I gave her my 5s, as she liked the size of the phone, and I got an iPhone 6s Plus, (which I regret). She constantly dropped it and it eventually cracked the screen.

She didn't want to spend the money for a new phone, plus she hated the larger iPhones, so she end up using cracked one. I put tape on the cracked screen to protect her fingers.

She used this for many months, but would get annoyed that all her low-income clients that she did psycho-therapy for as a social worker, all had brand new phones, while she had a cracked screen on hers. She carried on for a while with her cracked phone, but when the SE came out, I surprised her with the 64GB one.

Plus, an Otterbox defender case.

 

[UltimaKilo]

A boost to 64/128 with a new color and maybe a $50 price cut would be awesome to spark sales.

 

[LordVic]

SE doesn't need 3D Touch when 3D Touch has been completely forgotten by Apple in software updates. You can't do much with it at all. What started out as a great idea is just another lost cause when Apple is so busy with hardware updates they continue to forget the software that needs to be supported. So until they get serious about fully overhauling IOS, there's zero reason for these additions such as 3D touch.. among plenty of others they've done nothing with.

I think what's holding 3D Touch back right now with Apple is inconsistency across their product lineup. 3D Touch only exists on the iPhone 6s, and 7. which means the rest of the iOS lineup doesn't have it.

when you're designing app's and integration into those apps, you want it to be uniform and consistent accross devices. Adding a feature like 3D touch that is only going to be usable by 2 of the products, and nothing else seems like wasted effort.
[doublepost=1488390195][/doublepost]

I'm very pleased with the SE.
As has been echoed here, with a few internal tweaks and maintaining the price point, I'll stay with the SE.

Don't get me wrong, I think the iPhone 7 is awesome, but for the price and how I personally use a phone, the SE is perfect for me.

The 5(s) was one of my favourite designed phones of all time. The only real change i'd make for the SE is a slightly larger screen. 4.2" screen would be wonderful for me. 4" feels just a little cramped. However, I don't want the overall phone dimension to change very much. I think Apple could easily fit a slightly larger display into the SE chassis. I don't want a 4.7+ phone. Even using a S6 @ 5.1" and very little bezel, I feel it's still too big a device for me, but 4" is a little too small

 

[Mac 128]

Two favorable things (both unlikely, sadly) that will get me to buy an SE: update it with newer internals or reduce the price to reflect that it's a year old. I'm waiting with my iPhone 6 until Apple gets one of those two done. Will be happy to drop the 4.7" phone.

Despite what this article implies, I don't think Apple intends to discontinue the 16GB model. I think they will drop that one to $299. That way they can maintain the current $399 & $499 price point by offering twice the memory upgrade for the same price point. So now Apple will be able to compete on the lower end more effectively. As for the internals being a year old, well so are the 6s internals (which will not likely see a price drop until at least September). Just because they are a year old, doesn't mean that the phone isn't still a bargain at $399. And keep in mind, the SE is on a different cycle than the 6s, serving a different customer base, which is why we're likely seeing an upgrade now rather than 6 months from now when the next iPhones come out.

What about that hole full of air?
No more 3.5 jack please!

(just kidding, but let's see if they ditch the jack from the smaller model to make it waterproof)

Here you go:

 

[cycomiko]

Hopefully this means Apple will stop gouging customers for memory upgrades? The increase in price is obscene compared to what memory can be bought for.

I would like to see the new 128gb model go for the same price that the 64gb one now goes for.

What memory costs is irrelevant, its what the consumer will pay that is important.

And unfortunately the consumer has shown routinely that they will pay a fortune for memory upgrades.

 

[TallManNY]

I'm currently on a 5S with a slightly cracked screen and a failing battery. Virgin Mobile has the 16GB SE on special for $179 for an unknown amount of time. Im trying to figure out what's going on with the SE at the moment to pull the trigger on a cheap update, 16GB is enough for me. VM only has a 7 day return window though.

You've got to hold out until that March announcement just in case there is something for the SE.

 

[ThisBougieLife]

When is Apple's March event taking place?

In March.

 

[cycomiko]

I hope they continue the SE. It was the best spec, lowest cost iphone available. Great camera, good capacity, great speed, loooooooong battery life, and all for much lower input cost than the ip6+

 

[lederermc]

16 GB is ridiculously too small for any iPhone. I have a friend who had a 16GB iPh6 for exactly 4 days before having to upgrade.

 

[Mac 128]

Well what I hope they meant by upgraded screen was moving to a 1200:1 contrast screen like the iPhone 6/6S instead of the 800:1 contrast screen it has now. As that would be a nice upgrade.

A better screen, front facing camera, and touch ID 2 along with doubled storage wouldn't make for a bad spec bump (as much as I'd also like an A10 chip thrown in)

Not sure what's involved with upgrading to a higher contrast screen. But that seems like it's in the realm of possibility, assuming the discount they get for using an old screen is offset by the cost to continue manufacturing the old technology vs. volume discount on better screens across the Apple product lineup. Touch ID 2 seems likewise to be an easy thing to upgrade as well, assuming it's a drop in replacement requiring no redesign. Certainly there would be advantages to volume discounts there as well. The FaceTime camera may be the biggest issue because that would require a redesign to the chassis, and depending on how much more space it requires, more costs associated with the update. Again, it's no worse then the FaceTime camera on the 6, which is the space the SE currently occupies in the product lineup. You're more likely to se an A10 upgrade before that happens. I also don't imagine the A10 will happen until next year though, as the rumors seem to persist that the 7s may be released along with the "8/x", possibly with only a slight improvement over the A10; in which case, the SE will still be holding the bottom position, with a perfectly serviceable A9 chip, with the 7 and it's A10 in the mid-position.

 

[Johnny907]

My wife loves her SE, but I wouldn't mind seeing a spec bump on CPU/RAM/storage/camera and Touch ID. It seems like it's doing ok on iOS 10 but it's scary how fast new iOS releases cause previously responsive devices to lag.