New cheap iPhone could launch in weeks after hyped-up model was missing from last year’s event
APPLE is rumoured to be launching a new budget-friendly iPhone in a matter of weeks, which will be the company’s cheapest model.
It comes months after the hyped-up handset was missing from the iPhone 16 launch in September last year.
A number of leaks and rumours, starting as early as February 2023, foretold of a return of the iPhone SE.
It would be Apple’s fourth iteration of the device, having not released an SE model since 2022.
In late December, a leaker with a track record of accurate releases, said the iPhone SE 4 could be announced as early as January, MacRumors reported.
The iPhone SE 4, which has reportedly been nicknamed “V59” internally, will be released alongside iOS 18.3, the leaker claimed.
Over the past three years, iOS 15.3, iOS 16.3, and iOS 17.3 have all been released in late January.
If the leaker is correct, it means the iPhone SE 4 could be unveiled in a couple of weeks.
It’s worth noting that a January release would be earlier than usual.
The three previous SE models have all been announced in either March or April.
One reason Apple may release the handset sooner is because the company stopped selling the iPhone SE 3 inside the European Union (EU) in late December.
A January launch would mean consumers inside the bloc have the option to buy one of Apple’s cheapest handsets.
Inside the iPhone SE 4
The iPhone SE 4, which may also be called iPhone 16E, is forecast to resemble the iPhone 14 but with a single 48mp back camera.
Unlike the iPhone 14, however, it will have a newer A-series chip and 8GB of RAM to run new Apple Intelligence features.
The new model is also expected to ring the final death knell for the beloved Touch ID fingerprint scanner, and adopt Face ID.
The iPhone SE 3, which was released alongside the iPhone 14, ranged from $429/£449 to $579/£609.
This is far more affordable than the iPhone 14 Pro, which retailed at $999/£1,099.
The iPhone SE 2 ranged from $399/£419 and $549/£569, so a slight increase in price from its predecessor seems probable.
How does Apple's FaceID tech work?
Apple's facial recognition system for the iPhone X isn't massively complicated. Here are the steps your phone takes:
- The phone will use various sensors to work out how much light it needs to illuminate your face.
- It then floods your face with infrared light, which is outside the visible spectrum of light.
- A dot projector will produce more than 30,000 dots of this invisible light, creating a 3D map of your face.
- An infrared camera will then capture images of this dot pattern.
- Once your phone has all that info, it can use your face’s defining features – like your cheekbone shape, or the distance between your eyes – to verify your identity.
- It computes a score between 0 and 1, and the closer it is to 1, the more likely it is that your face is the same as the one stored on your iPhone.
- Apple says there’s a one-in-a-million chance of someone else getting into your iPhone with Face ID, although the system has been tricked with twins.
- Still, it’s arguably better than the alternative: Apple’s Touch ID fingerprint scanner has a one-in-50,000 chance if being fooled.