It’s been less than six months since Apple released its last iPhone.
But the tech giant is already gearing up to release its next one – the iPhone SE 4.
Now, an industry expert reveals there’s not at all long for Apple fans to wait before the device hits the shelves.
Apple tipster Mark Gurman claims the iPhone SE 4 – the latest in the firm’s ‘budget’ smartphone line – will be unveiled ‘in the coming days’.
It will then be released later in February, he claims, costing roughly around £500/$500 – much cheaper than iPhone 16 which starts at £799/$799.
‘The company expects to announce the device as early as next week, ahead of it going on sale later in the month,’ Gurman said in a piece for Bloomberg on Thursday.
‘[iPhone SE 4] will modernize its lower-cost model in a bid to spur growth and entice consumers to switch from other brands.’
iPhone SE 4 is just one of five products expected to be released in the coming months, along with a totally new AI gizmo.
iPhone SE 4 will be the latest in Apple’s ‘budget’ line – and it’s coming sooner than we thought. It has already been supposedly leaked in images (pictured)
According to Gurman, iPhone SE 4 will look more like the iPhone 14 with a close-to-the-edge screen, but include Apple Intelligence, the company’s new AI software
Gurman – who has an 86.5 per cent accuracy rating on Apple Track rumours site – cited ‘people with knowledge of the matter’.
He added that the people ‘asked not to be identified’ publicly because Apple’s plans concerning the iPhone SE 4 are ‘private’.
iPhone SE 4 is set to be the fourth device in the iPhone SE range and the first to be released for three years, since the iPhone SE 3 in 2022
iPhone SE is commonly described as Apple’s ‘budget’ line of handsets, although the most recent model, iPhone SE 3, starts at a hefty $429/£429.
According to Gurman, iPhone SE 4 will look more like the iPhone 14 with a close-to-the-edge screen, but include Apple Intelligence, the company’s new AI software.
And although the iPhone SE 3 has a home button – a physical button below the screen – this will be absent on the iPhone SE 4, according to Gurman.
‘The removal of the home button from the iPhone SE means that Apple will have fully phased out the iconic interface, which debuted on the first iPhone in 2007,’ he said.
What’s more, the front of the new phone will have a notch at the top of the screen, similar to the iPhone 13 and iPhone 14, which will house camera components.
iPhone SE 4 will be the fourth device in the iPhone SE range and the first to be released for three years since the iPhone SE 3 (pictured)
iPhone SE 4 will also feature Face ID, the facial recognition system that scans your face to unlock your phone or make purchases using Apple Pay.
However, unlike its flagship iPhones launched every September, Apple is unlikely to hold a launch event for the new phone and will reveal it on its website instead.
This is something of a surprise because Apple is known for elaborate multi-day events at its Cupertino headquarters every time a phone is launched.
Gurman adds that there aren’t many units of the iPhone SE 3 being sold at US Apple retail stores anymore – a telltale sign that the new phone is coming.
In EU countries, Apple has already discontinued the SE 3 because it doesn’t comply with laws requiring USB-C ports as the standard for charging.
MailOnline has contacted Apple for comment but the tech giant is always tight-lipped leading up to the release of any new product.
Photos and digital renders of the upcoming device have already been leaked, which back up Gurman’s claims.
iPhone SE 4 will allegedly have one rear camera compared with the two on the iPhone 16, Apple’s current flagship device released last year.
iPhone SE 4 will have a 6.1-inch display, a USB-C charging port, and a single primary camera at the back, leaked images suggest
Compared to the iPhone 16 (pink) the leaked iPhone SE 4 (white) will be about the same size but will only have one rear camera compared to the two on the iPhone 16
And like other iPhone models since 2023, it will have a USB-C charging port instead of Apple’s Lightning port.
Apple allegedly hopes the iPhone SE 4 will entice users in overseas markets like China, India and other parts of Asia, where Apple is trying to ‘bolster its business’.
The trillion-dollar firm is also ‘planning a broader shake-up to the iPhone lineup this year’, with ‘major updates’ for the iPhone 17 due in September.
There will be a new ultrathin version in the iPhone 17, Gurman claims, which is part of ‘an industry shift to skinnier smartphones’.
Before this however, likely in the spring, Apple will allegedly release two new iPads, a new Mac and a brand new AI product.
The AI-powered smart home hub with a 7-inch display and speakers will activate Siri and video calls with a simple vocal command.
THE TRILLION DOLLAR RISE OF APPLE
1976: Founders Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne created the company on April 1 1976 as they set about selling computer kits to hobbyists, each of which was built by Wozniak.
The first product was the Apple I.
1977: Apple released the Apple II in June, which was the first PC made for the mass market.
Steve Jobs unveils Apple Computer Corporation’s new Macintosh February 6, 1984 in California.
1981: Jobs became chairman.
1984: The Macintosh was introduced during an ad break for the Super Bowl and later officially unveiled during a launch event. It was discontinued a year later and Jobs left the firm.
1987: Apple released the Macintosh II, the first colour Mac.
1997: Apple announces it will acquire NeXT software in a $400 million deal that involves Jobs returning to Apple as interim CEO. He officially took the role in 2000.
The then Chief Executive Officer of Apple, Steve Jobs, with the iPhone
2001: Apple introduced iTunes, OS X and the first-generation iPod.
The first iPod MP3 music player was released on October 23, 2001, at an event in Cupertino and was able to hold up to 1,000 songs.
2007: Apple unveils the iPhone.
2010: The first iPad was unveiled.
2011: Jobs resigned in 2011 due to illness, handing the CEO title to Tim Cook. Jobs died in October from pancreatic cancer.
2014: Apple unveiled the Apple Watch. It also unveiled its first larger iPhones – the 6 and 6 Plus.
2015: After purchasing Beats from Dr Dre, Apple launched Apple Music to compete with Spotify and other music streaming services.
2016: Apple returned to its roots and announced the 4-inch iPhone SE. Meanwhile, the firm is embroiled in a legal battle with the FBI, involving the agency demanding access to the locked phone used by Syed Farook, who died in a shootout after carrying out a deadly December attack in San Bernardino, California with his wife. The court order was dropped on March 28 after the FBI said a third party was able to unlock the device.
2017: Apple introduces the iPhone X, which removes the home button to make way for a futuristic edge-to-edge screen design and a new FaceID system that uses advanced sensors and lasers to unlock phones with just the owner’s face.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs speaks at an Apple event at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, Calif.
2018: In a first for the company, Apple introduces new features in its latest operating system, iOS 12, that encourage users to manage and spend less time on their devices. The move was spawned by a strongly worded letter from shareholders that urged the firm to address the growing problem of smartphone addiction among kids and teenagers.
2019: In January, Apple reports its first decline in revenues and profits in a decade. CEO Tim Cook partly blamed steep declines in revenue from China.
2020: In March, Apple closes all its bricks and mortar retail stores outside of China in response to coronavirus.
2021: In an online virtual event in April CEO Tim Cook declared Apple’s goal of becoming carbon neutral for Earth Day. Later in the year the iPhone 13 was announced.
2022: In September the iPhone 14 was announced. One of the new features included a new sensor to detect if a user had been in a car crash as well as an improved camera system.
2023: Apple brought back its ‘Home Pod’ after the first generation was discontinued. The ‘Home Pod’ can be seen as an alternative to Amazon’s Alexa or Google Home as it is powered by voice commands.
2024: Apple makes its first steps into artificial intelligence with the release of Apple Intelligence. The features are not all released at once with many delayed until the following year.
