If only iOS will do, then 2022’s iPhone SE is the best cheap phone you can buy.
Nonetheless, it’s looking a little long in the tooth these days — not so much in speed, where it still gives most handsets a run for their money, but in design. It still packs that iPhone 8 aesthetic of a sizable ‘forehead’ and ‘chin’ bookending the screen. The latter contains a Home button, abandoned by all other iPhones five years ago in favor of Face ID.
According to the rumours we’ve heard, the iPhone SE 4 will bring the budget handset in line with its more expensive siblings, and now the designer 4RMD has envisaged what that will look like in an Apple-style advert for the handset.
Previous leaks have predicted that Apple will put the next iPhone SE into the shell of the iPhone 14, and that seems to be 4RMD’s starting point with a 6.1-inch OLED screen covering all four corners of the display.
That means the end of Touch ID, and the long overdue introduction of Face ID — though the notch, rather than Dynamic Island which is now baked into the entire iPhone 15 range. While the notch attracted much chagrin, it’s undoubtedly an improvement and makes the iPhone SE look far more modern.
Of course, cuts still have to be made on the handset, and the most obvious one is on the rear, where just a single camera lens is visible. This reportedly won’t be the 12MP sensor as found in previous iPhone SE devices, however, with Apple rumored to be getting an upgrade to 48 megapixels, and that’s reflected in the concept trailer.
Another recent rumor highlighted in the video is the adoption of the Action Button, which may be surprising given it’s currently an iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max exclusive. But given the iPhone SE 4 isn’t expected until 2025 at the earliest, it will likely be a well established part of the full iPhone range by then.
There’s also a USB-C port rather than Lightning — hardly surprising given Apple has moved to USB-C on all its devices and that 2025 release date will be after the EU law on proprietary charging cables comes into force.
These are some serious upgrades, but raise a big question: what will the improvements mean for the iPhone SE’s pricing? The handset currently starts at a very reasonable $429, but it’s hard to believe that Apple will keep that price static in 2025 given rising costs and the very visible improvements.
Still, if the company can keep it below $550, it would prove a very competitive looking smartphone that should have mid-range Android makers worried.
