There is always a great sense of anticipation amongst tech fans when a new Apple product launch is rumoured, but things are more certain than usual this week after CEO Tim Cook took to X on February 13 to post an announcement that has got Apple fans buzzing.
“Get ready to meet the newest member of the family”, Cook posted, with a date of February 19 and a short looping video of a shiny Apple logo. That proves Apple is set to unveil a new piece of hardware this week, but what it actually is will have to wait for Wednesday.
After weeks of leaks and rumours, it’s very likely that this is the fourth-generation iPhone SE, the latest in Apple’s line of cheaper iPhone models.
There have been several online rumours, particularly from long-time Apple reporter Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, claiming the iPhone SE 4 would be released in early 2025, but initially it seemed as though it would not be as early as February. The original iPhone SE was launched in March 2016, the second in April 2020 and the third in March 2022.
It’s widely believed the only reason for the slight delay in 2020 was due to the covid-19 pandemic, so for Apple to potentially release the new SE in February of this year would represent the shortest gap between flagship iPhone release, in this case the iPhone 16 in September, and cheaper SE at just five months.
The iPhone SE 4 is said to ditch the ageing iPhone 8 design seen on the 2020 and 2022 SE, both of which sport large bezels, 16:9 LCD displays and the classic Apple home button with Touch ID. The new model is expected to resemble the iPhone 14 with a notch and Face ID and an OLED screen for the first time on an SE, with a single camera on the back like all SE versions before it.
This stripped back approach to an iPhone allows Apple to sell it for less. The 2022 SE is still on sale for £429, a lot cheaper than the £799 iPhone 16. What’s exciting about the new SE is that it could have the same A18 processor as the 16, which should allow the lower-cost iPhone to run Apple Intelligence, Apple’s new AI features.
More relevant to most potential buyers though would be similar performance in an iPhone SE that will hopefully be much more affordable. We think it’s unlikely Apple will be able to keep the price as low as £429, but if the iPhone SE 4 sells for £499 it’ll be a way to get a very powerful phone with many of the same features as the iPhone 16 for £300 less.
A new SE is expected to lack the newer Dynamic Island design with floating app widgets and have a single 48MP camera, and Apple may have stripped back some other things to justify the price cut. For example, the iPhone SE 3 did not have a night mode in the camera, which was a little annoying as the hardware likely could have coped with it, but Apple tends to hold some features back to encourage buyers to spend more on a pricier iPhone if they want those tools.
All this said, this week’s launch could be something else. Apple used to release a new colour of its current flagship iPhone a few months after launch to keep interest up and to boost sales figures, but the firm hasn’t done this since the yellow iPhone 14 in March 2023. The launch could also be another unknown product entirely and not an iPhone at all.
If you want to find out what Apple is launching, all will be revealed on Wednesday February 19, probably around 6pm UK time, as that’s often when Apple holds online launches, though that might not happen this time around. The company announced the last iPhone SE via a press release on its website.
