The next iPhone SE is heavily rumored to be landing this year, and while previous reports have suggested it would sport a newer design than the iPhone SE 2020, a new leak suggests it may keep an older iPhone's look.
Previous leaks had said Apple would be adopting a design similar to an iPhone 11, but the same source has now clarified with new information that says it'll stick to the iPhone 8-like look.
*Update to this tweet!* The iPhone SE with a similar design to the XR/11 with a slightly smaller screen size, has been pushed back to an expected release of 2024. For 2022, Apple will instead release an iPhone SE with 5G, a spec bump, and the same design as the 2020 model.January 6, 2022
This might disappoint many who expected a modern-looking compact iPhone. If that's you, there is a good part to this leak that suggests the iPhone SE 3 will have most of the bells and whistles of a modern phone.
The phone is expected to be the first of the iPhone SE series to come with 5G connectivity. To do so, Apple is reportedly planning to use the A15 Bionic chipset that powers the iPhone 13 lineup.
If this is true, it also means that Apple would be one of the only companies globally that have a lineup of all 5G-ready phones.
Other reports have suggested that the phone is already in the advanced stage of manufacturing and a launch in March is also on the cards. That would make sense as it's a similar time of year to when we saw the iPhone SE debut in 2020.
Take all of this information with a pinch of salt for now as we haven't heard a huge amount of detail around the iPhone SE 3, but it does sound like it'll be with us in the next couple of months so we should have more official details soon.
Analysis: This will look tired in 2022
Apple is always slow to upgrade its iPhone SE lineup. This latest leak is suggesting Apple will be using a similar design to a phone from 2018.
The report suggests the phone's design will still retain the physical Touch ID sensor instead of the Face ID that is used in most newer Apple phones, and the screen size is also expected to remain the same at 4.7-inches.
For some, keeping those key details with upgraded internals will be a reason to upgrade but it means you'll lose out on modern features such as Face ID and a slimmer design that's offered by the iPhone 11's body.
The tipster does say that the more modern-looking iPhone SE reminiscent of an iPhone XR or iPhone 11 will probably launch in 2024. Again, that's a long time to wait for a design we first saw debut in phones in 2019.
Via GSMArena
