Apple’s confrontation with the United States government has dominated headlines since February 16, but the focus now shifts to a more comfortable topic: new iPhones. And we only have to wait a few days to get the details, since Apple has officially scheduled a media event on March 21.
Apple’s standard retail lineup includes the three most recent iPhone models. At the moment, the portfolio extends from the relatively new iPhone 6S and 6S Plus to 2014’s iPhone 6 and 6 Plus to the iPhone 5S, introduced back in 2013. In the run-up to the most recent launch this fall, there was much speculation as to the fate of Apple’s iPhone 5C; would the company refresh or banish it? Alas, that model — essentially a plastic 2013 remake of the 2012 iPhone 5 — it was officially put out to pasture, leaving the 5S to occupy the entry-level slot.
Apple takes wraps off iPhone 6S and iPhone…
Given the popularity of the 4-inch form factor, it’s quite likely that Apple will introduce a replacement for the aging iPhone 5S in the near term. Of course, with the 6S nomenclature already taken, the company will have to adopt an alternative coinage. The original leading candidate was thought to be “iPhone 6C,” though the iPhone “Mini” was briefly bandied about. More recently, however, the “iPhone SE” — perhaps signifying “special edition” or “enhanced” version of the current 5S — has gained momentum.
In the meantime, and in absence of many hard facts from Cupertino, the Internet will continue to feed the vacuum of information with all manner of speculation and hearsay, credible and otherwise. We present here a curated collection of the latest rumors, leaks and dubious pronouncements made by anonymous supply chain sources about the next generation of the 4-inch iPhone.
Editors’ note: This story was originally posted on December 16, 2015, and last updated on March 16, 2016.
Announcement and release dates
Though hotly contested as the rumors first emerged this fall, there appears to be a growing consensus that a new iPhone will come in March. (On March 14, case-maker Patchworks “accidentally” sent an email referring to “iPhone SE products” coming on March 21 and a video purported to show to an iPhone SE surfaced “in the wild” in China.)
Supposed iPhone SE
The purportedly leaked iPhone SE is shown sitting on a 5S and 6S.
That noted, Apple usually introduces its new iPhones in the fall; announced on September 9, the 6S and 6S Plus first appeared in stores on September 25, 2015. The next major update — expected to be the launch of the iPhone 7 — is likely to come as kids head back to school in 2016.
The iPhone SE could ostensibly come sooner. On March 10, Apple invited selected media to a March 21 event at its headquarters. The invite, which teases, “Let us loop you in,” characteristically lacks detail about the nature of the event. And yet numerous sources report that Apple will use it to introduce a successor to the 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 and a 4-inch iPhone that will replace the iPhone 5S as the company’s entry-level model.
Apple will host an event at 10 a.m. PT on March 21 on its Cupertino, California, campus.
Earlier rumors suggested that Apple would use the event to celebrate the Apple Watch’s first birthday, and reveal its successor. The current consensus, however, is that Apple is more likely to unveil a WatchOS update and new bands — materials, designs, and colors — instead of new hardware.
With regard to the prospect of a new iPhone, however, Apple Insider reports that veteran Apple tea-leaf reader Gene Munster has suggested that the iPhone SE would actually be introduced alongside the iPhone 7 next September. (Would it then be called “iPhone 7C”? That’s anybody’s guess.)
Design
Though the possible introduction of the 4-inch iPhone is imminent, there remains no consensus about its specific shape. Even the case manufacturers, who have so much at stake, have not yet agreed on the precise measurements or whether the power button will be embedded atop the phone or along its side.
Sources report that Cupertino has already developed a number of new prototypes, and Ming-Chi Kuo, a prominent Apple analyst who works the supply chain for hints and clues, has predicted that the company will indeed bring out a new 4-inch model. From a design perspective, it remains unknown whether the iPhone SE will follow in the footsteps of the aluminum iPhone 5S or the candy-colored polycarbonate iPhone 5C.
Apple
In the tradition of Apple’s brightly colored iPods of old, the SE certainly provided a very different aesthetic palette from its immediate metallic predecessors and successors. And given that the current portfolio sticks to a pretty basic range of colors — silver, space gray, gold and rose gold — the playful rainbow of the SE would be a welcome option. In early February 2016, Japanese site Mac Otakara reported that the 4-inch iPhone may come in silver, space gray and a pink hue distinct from the rose gold featured on the iPhone 6S.
The 2013 iPod Nano came in pink, blue, green, and black.
One particularly interesting rumor posits that future iPhones may do without a physical home button, leaning on the pressure-sensitive 3D Touch screen and hands-free functionality of Siri instead. Certainly, a buttonless iPhone would be a natural move for a company with such a strong preference for clean lines and simple design. It would also allow the large top and bottom bezels to shrink, effectively allowing Apple to squeeze a larger screen into the same size body. But such a radical redesign would almost certainly be reserved for the iPhone 7, not the step-down, entry-level that the SE would be. Likewise, the added cost and weight that 3D Touch would require seem far beyond the purview of SE. (Note that recently leaked photos would seem to confirm that the forthcoming 4-inch iPhone will not have 3D Touch.)
Driven by discovered case maker design drawings, multiple sources have determined that the new iPhone will be essentially identical to those of the iPhone 5S — roughly 124 mm long, 59mm wide and 7.5mm thick. This supports the prevailing consensus that the iPhone SE will be aesthetically similar to the 5S, but with some of the newer components and software flourishes from the newer models.
Security
Though security hasn’t often been a major focus of the iPhone rumor mill, the vast majority of recent headlines in both major and fringe publications have involved Apple’s ongoing battle with the FBI over just that. Data stored in iCloud is already encrypted, but according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited unnamed sources, Apple is considering a change that would mean it no longer holds a key that could be used to decode the data. Previously, the Financial Times had reported that Apple was working on ways to encrypt data stored via its iCloud service, which could further frustrate law enforcement agencies in investigations. And according to the New York Times, Apple engineers are now working on new security measures to prevent iPhone-hacking.
If the next iPhone does appear in March, it’s highly unlikely that it would contain technology developed in response to the FBI’s prying. That noted, if the new security features are rooted only in the software (or iCloud), subsequent OS updates could bring additional safeguards in the nearer term.
Display
There is a particularly durable rumor about a sapphire display, which would offer a higher degree of scratch and shatter-resistance than the current models’ Gorilla Glass. In fact, the higher-end Apple Watch models have sapphire displays — as well as OLED technology that provides best-in-class black levels, contrast and colors on a growing assortment of smartphones (including the Samsung Galaxy S6).
Expect the iPhone 6C to keep the same 4-inch screen as the 5S (far left). The iPhone 6 (4.7-inch screen) is center, and the iPhone 6 Plus (5.5-inch screen) is far right.
Forbes (and others) have reported that the iPhone SE may have a “2.5D” display, with curved edges, that improves the tactile sensitivity of finger swipes, similar to that found on the iPhone 6 and 6S. Apple uses LED backlit LCD technology for the current iPhones’ Retina displays, and there has been speculation that Apple will eventually switch to OLED displays, but not until 2018. So, again, this upgrade would most likely debut on whatever model succeeds the iPhone 7 — and almost certainly not on the iPhone SE.
Under the hood
It was originally thought that the iPhone SE would use “old” technology — perhaps the 2014-era A8 chip from the iPhone 6, which would preclude the inclusion Live Photos and always-on Siri, which are dependent on the newer A9 processor.
But it appears that the iPhone SE may be more of a shrunken down iPhone 6S than previously expected. According to a Bloomberg Businessweek profile of Apple senior vice president for hardware technologies Johny Srouji, the SE is getting the same CPU as the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus:
In March, Apple intends to announce an updated iPad and smaller-screen iPhone featuring the latest A9x and A9 chips, according to a person familiar with the plans, who wasn’t authorized to comment publicly.
And it gets better. Multiple sources, including analyst Kuo, however, have suggested that the iPhone SE could come equipped with an A9 processor. Such an upgrade, coupled with 2GB of RAM (the content of yet another rumor), would put the iPhone SE on equal performance footing with the iPhone 6S. Sources embedded within the Asian supply chain have also predicted that the iPhone SE will have a 1,642mAh battery, which is slightly larger than the 1,570mAh model featured in the iPhone 5S.
At a minimum, it would make sense for Apple to bring the SE into line with the rest of the iPhone line with the addition of Apple Pay. That will require the addition of NFC, which wasn’t included in the iPhone 5S.
On the camera side, don’t expect cutting-edge. That means the SE will likely stick with the same 8-megapixel model from the iPhone 6/6 Plus, and will almost certainly forego the optical image stabilization found in the top-end iPhone 6S Plus. According to 9to5mac.com, it will feature the popular Live Photo feature, first found on the iPhone 6S series.
For storage capacity, expectations should likewise be kept in check. Don’t expect a 128GB option, but you may get 64GB in addition to 16GB. (The 5S is currently available in 16GB and 32GB capacities.)
The newest iPhone have excellent 4G LTE coverage that work with a wide range of wireless carriers around the world. If Apple wants to target this phone as widely as possible, it would make sense for the company to use that same sort of one-size-fits-all approach for the SE’s wireless capabilities as well.
Price
This is the big one.
For years, analysts have been calling for a more affordable iPhone — often without realizing that it was in front of them all the time. Apple has dropped its 2-year-old model to the entry-level “free on contract or $450/£379/AU$749” for years now. But with the iPhone SE, will they stick with that pricing model? Raise it because it will be a “new” phone? Or lower it to keep up with the increasingly capable models like the Moto G and Alcatel One Touch Idol 3 that are hitting the market at prices as low as $250, contract-free?
The answer, again, is anybody’s guess. But if this is replacing the 5S at the bottom of the line, the safe bet is that the price stays the same. Apple can then always drop it later, or simply allow carriers in certain markets to adjust pricing and incentives accordingly.
Zac Hall has posted an interesting analysis of historical iPhone pricing at 9to5mac.com, concluding that Apple will deliver the iPhone 6C/SE in March, featuring a combination of iPhone 6 and 6S hardware and an iPhone 5-based design, with a starting price of $649. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has predicted that the next iPhone will be priced in the $400 to $500 range, however.
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