Apple iPhone SE/5SE: What’s the story so far?

The Apple iPhone 5C was announced in September of 2013 as a cheaper, colourful and plastic iPhone option. It arrived alongside the iPhone 5S, but while the 5S has been succeeded with newer handsets, the iPhone 5C hasn’t been.

Apple stopped selling the iPhone 5C when it introduced the iPhone 6S in September this year, making the iPhone 5S the new cheap alternative. You can still get your hands on the iPhone 5C through other channels, but it’s now an old handset that is very much in need of an update.

That update has been rumoured for months now firstly in the form of the iPhone 6C, then the iPhone 5SE and more recently shifting names to iPhone SE, and that’s what this feature is all about. As usual it will be updated as new rumours appear but for now, here is everything we have heard so far about the iPhone SE, 5SE or 6C.

Apple iPhone SE: Release date

The iPhone 5C was announced in September 2013, which by all accounts is a pretty long time ago. Apple tends to stick to September for smartphone launches but we suspect that trend will be broken for the iPhone SE.

According to 9to5Mac, Apple’s next press event will occur on Tuesday 15 March. The publication claims the event will see the introduction of the iPhone SE as well as a second-generation Apple Watch and iPad Air 3. More recently however, AppleInsider claimed 21 March is the date to put in your diary. There have also been rumours of 22 March but either way, it looks like the third week of March is more likely than the middle.

Apple usually releases new iPhone models about two weeks after they’ve been unveiled and given an online pre-order period, though the iPad Pro took a whopping two months before it released. 9to5Mac said manufacturing of the new iPhone was ramped up in January. If that’s true, Apple likely has a healthy enough stock to begin selling the handset straightaway.

MyDrivers.com claims the iPhone SE will start at 4,000 yuan ($617/£416), meaning it will cost more than the iPhone 5S. It also supports the idea of a March event.

One More Thing

Apple iPhone SE: Design

The Apple iPhone SE is likely to remain at the smaller 4-inch size like the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. Newer smartphones have all increased in size over the last couple of years, including the latest iPhones and while many of us love the big displays, they aren’t to everyone’s fancy. Analyst Kuo estimates a new 4-inch model will account for 20 million units next year.

We can’t see Apple increasing the size of the iPhone SE to the same as the iPhone 6S so we would bank on a 4-inch screen but a slimmer build is likely. It is expected to come with curved edges like the iPhone 6. That said, serial leaker, OnLeaks, posted a couple images of some alleged iPhone SE cases which suggest a similar shape to the iPhone 5S. OnLeaks claims his sources say it will be 7.6mm, which is the same as the iPhone 5S.

Apple posted a picture of what looked like the iPhone 5C with Touch ID a few months back, which sparked rumours of an iPhone 6C (as it was then called) with the same plastic build as its predecessor. Future Supplier also posted what it claimed was the rear housing of the iPhone SE, also suggesting a plastic build with a very similar appearance to the iPhone 5C. The only notable differences were the camera flash hole and the speaker holes at the bottom.

Other rumours have suggested Apple will ditch the plastic build for a metal build however, which we prefer the sound of and we also think is more likely. Kuo predicts there will be two to three colours available and more recently, we’ve seen more rumours that the iPhone 5SE would offer the same metal design and colours as the iPhone 6S, but in the smaller size – including a photo that suggests as much and a report from 9to5Mac. If this is the case, we can expect the iPhone SE to come in silver, space grey, gold and rose gold.

The metal build is supported by a video apparently leaked from Apple’s Foxconn manufacturing plant.

MyDrivers.com claimed the iPhone SE will pack a slightly curved “2.5D” glass, similar to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S, but that the device itself should look largely like the iPhone 5S. It was believed that it would be called the iPhone 5SE because it’s an evolution of the 5S, although with yet another name change, that’s made that theory questionable.

Apple iPhone SE: Display

Apple’s smartphones have never had the sharpest displays according to the spec sheets, even if in reality, their resolutions do the job. In a nutshell however, don’t expect a Quad HD resolution or even Full HD resolution on the iPhone SE. The iPhone 5S has a 1136 x 640 pixel resolution across its 4-inch display so we would expect similar for the iPhone SE.

Both the new iPhone 6S and the iPhone 6S Plus arrived with pressure sensitive displays sporting a technology that Apple calls 3D Touch. Rumour has it the iPhone SE won’t be getting this new technology though.

Nowhereelse.fr recently republished a couple of shots of images of what is claimed to be the iPhone SE’s display next to the iPhone 6S’s display. The site marked where the 3D Touch sensors are on the iPhone 6S and where they are missing on the new 4-inch display, suggesting the idea of no 3D Touch is accurate, which makes perfect sense. If it is going to be the budget iPhone, Apple won’t be putting in the latest tech.

MyDrivers.com has claimed the iPhone SE will feature the same screen size found on the iPhone 5S and that’s been backed-up by 9to5Mac reports.

Apple iPhone SE: Camera

Just like the iPhone SE isn’t likely to come with 3D Touch, it also isn’t likely to come with the latest camera so you can expect the same as the iPhone 6 rather than the 12-megapixel number of the iPhone 6S.

This means the iPhone SE is probably going to come with an 8-megapixel rear snapper and a 1.2-megapixel front camera. The True Tone flash will be on board if this is the case, along with the rest of the features such as auto HDR, auto image stablisation and face detection.

MyDrivers.com also claimed the iPhone 6C will feature an 8-megapixel camera.

Apple iPhone SE: Hardware

The Apple iPhone SE, if it arrives, will more than likely sport the same hardware as the iPhone 6. This means the A8 chip and M8 motion coprocessor, which in turn will mean NFC and therefore support for Apple Pay. Kuo suggests the A9 chip, as does 9to5Mac and Bloomberg. 

MyDrivers.com also claimed the iPhone SE will feature several internal upgrades, including more RAM. It could debut with 2GB of RAM, just like the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, as well as an A9 processor to make it as speedy as the iPhone 6S. It’s even speculated to sport a 1642mAh battery, which is 72mAh more than what the iPhone 5S offers.

Apple doesn’t do microSD expansion so don’t expect it to appear on the iPhone SE either, but we would expect the storage models to be 16GB and 32GB rather than the 16GB and 64GB of the iPhone 6.

Apple iPhone SE: Software

The Apple iPhone SE will come with iOS 9. Features like Live Photos as seen on the iPhone 6S probably won’t appear however as this is something that comes with the latest camera but you will be able to view Live Photos if someone sends you one.

Other than that and the shortcuts offered by the 3D Touch display, you can expect the same user experience as you would find on the iPhone 6S, iPhone 6 and iPhone 5S.

Apple iPhone SE: Conclusion

Whether or not the iPhone SE will actually appear at all is questionable but there is a valid argument for Apple to update the smaller handset and the rumours have been flying around for a while now. As it’s also being talked about as the iPhone 6C and the iPhone 5SE, we’re not immediately clear on what the name will be if it does appear.

We would like to see a colourful metal build with the same specs as the iPhone 6 but who knows whether Apple will move away from the plastic casing that the iPhone 5C is recognised for. The leaked video suggests it will, but we’re taking everything with a pinch of salt right now.

Should the device appear, you can expect it to be the cheapest iPhone available, run on iOS 9 and feature Touch ID with support for Apple Pay. Anything else is currently just speculation.