All signs point to Apple launching an iPhone SE 4 in March 2025. The biggest question mark about the new phone has been the price, with most rumors reporting a price increase over the iPhone SE 2022. And while that sounds like a bad thing, the latest rumors offer a great justification for the price bump.
A noted leaker named yeux1122 (via @Jukanlosreve) said that even with the expected price increase, the phone will remain under $500 in the U.S., which is good news, especially with the reported performance increase and feature upgrades the budget-friendly phone is expected to offer.
It's worth noting that this leak is based on Japanese carrier information, so the price is based on conversions. It's possible that Apple won't offer the phone at the exact same price as the U.S., which means there's a chance the final cost is slightly different than the leaked one.
According to reports, Apple intends to switch to its 5G modem with the iPhone SE 4, allowing the company to keep the price sub-$500. It's not just cost-cutting; Apple's use of its own hardware would enable the company to optimize its devices for maximum performance and battery life, as it did with Apple Silicon.
According to sources from Japanese carriers, the price of the Apple iPhone SE 4 has been leaked.It is said to be under $500, with Apple’s own chip onboard.https://t.co/0OLTj21GXlDecember 29, 2024
Another prevalent rumor suggests that Apple will use an in-house Wi-Fi and a 5G chip, which could further reduce costs.
Regarding why these chips could debut in the iPhone SE instead of the iPhone 17, it could simply be a matter of Apple using the more affordable phones as a test. It could also be that it's the first phone slated to come to market when the chips are ready.
Other significant upgrades rumored to come to the iPhone SE 4 include a larger display, support for Apple's Face ID security technology and Apple Intelligence. The latter isn't even available on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max devices, so buyers of the sub-$500 phone would get a great value, assuming all of these rumors come to fruition when Apple reveals the phone.
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