You Might Want to Wait Until Next Year to Buy an iPhone

Thinking about getting a new iPhone? You certainly have options: Apple’s latest generation of smartphones, the iPhone 16 series, offers four different models, each with their own plusses and minuses. If you’re not set on having the latest and greatest, you could consider last year’s iPhone 15, or even 2022’s iPhone 14. They’re all great.

However, there’s one iPhone here that stands out from the rest: the iPhone SE. Unlike every other iPhone Apple currently sells, this one has a Home button. In fact, the phone looks nearly identical to the iPhone 8 Apple released back in 2017, which itself borrows the design from 2014’s iPhone 6. That means it has a smaller, lower quality display than many might be used to these days, a single camera that isn’t as capable as newer iPhones, and poor battery life for its size. In short, the current SE is a bit of a black sheep, and is probably not the iPhone I’d recommend you buy in 2024—even if it only costs $429.

That price is the main selling point of the SE brand, especially when this particular model launched back in 2022. Apple takes the design from the last generation (in this case, the iPhone 8 style), packs a modern chip inside, and slashes the MSRP. In effect, you get an iPhone that can keep up with the performance of the flagship Apple phones, but at half the cost, if not more. Sure, the cameras aren’t as good, and the device looks a bit dated, but again, you get a lot of iPhone for the price.

To be frank, if you’re eyeing a mid-range device at a good price, I wouldn’t recommend buying an iPhone at all right now. If you can wait until spring, Apple might just have exactly what you’re looking for in a brand-new SE.

2025 could be the year of the SE

As reported by MacRumors, analysts have confirmed Apple is working on a fourth-generation iPhone SE. The only “confirmed” spec from this report is an Apple-made 5G modem. If true, it would be the first iPhone with a non-Qualcomm 5G modem, but it’s not clear whether that would mean any performance gains or other positive changes for customers. Analysts say the SE is set to launch at the end of Q1 2025, which might track with a rumored March announcement. Apple unveiled the SE 3 in March 2022, so it’d be consistent.

According to the rumors, we’ll see an iPhone SE 4 with some decent specs. MacRumors says the SE could have a 6.1-inch OLED display with Face ID, an upgraded A-series chip (though it’s not certain which chip Apple would use), USB-C, a 48 MP rear camera, 8GB of RAM, and this new 5G modem. That extra RAM would allow the SE 4 to run Apple Intelligence, which is obviously important to Apple, but perhaps not to anyone who has already turned it off.

If those features come to pass, this would be quite the upgrade over the current iPhone SE. The SE 3 is rocking a 4.7-inch 750p LCD, a much smaller and lower resolution display than what’s rumored. It uses the A15 Bionic chip, which is still powerful enough in 2024 (it’s the same chip used in the iPhone 14), has a Lightning port, a 12 MP rear camera, 4GB of RAM, and, of course, a Qualcomm 5G modem.

The SE always borrows from the previous generation of iPhone, and right now, that’s likely the iPhone 14. You probably won’t be able to tell an SE from the 14 at first glance, but based on these rumors, the new SE would have some edge over the iPhone 14: The 14 has 12 MP rear cameras, 6GB of RAM, a Lightning port, and doesn’t support Apple Intelligence, all of which the rumored SE improves upon. And while the 14’s A15 Bionic chip is plenty powerful for iOS 18, the SE 4 will undoubtedly come with a newer A-series chip. The A15 was the newest iPhone chip at the time when the SE 3 came out: If Apple continues the trend, the SE 4 could get the iPhone 16’s A18 chip. Even the 15 Pro’s A17 chip would be quite the upgrade.

Will Apple keep the price low?

Of course, the value of a rumored SE all hinges on the price. Ideally, Apple would keep the same $429 price point for the SE 4—which, itself, was a hike from the $399 starting price for past SE models. These rumors point to a excellent all-around iPhone that omits certain modern or “Pro” features like a Camera button, Action button, zoom lens, titanium build, 120Hz ProMotion display, Always-On display, Dynamic Island, and a brightness maximum of 2,000 nits. Hopefully, scrapping these features most users don’t want or need can motivate Apple to price the SE accordingly. As of this writing, rumors don’t suggest what Apple will do, one way or another.

At the end of the day, most people looking to buy an iPhone want something that can handle iMessage and FaceTime, run their favorite apps, and take great photos and videos. The SE traditionally handles these tasks without issue, so if the fourth-generation iPhone SE does indeed deliver on these rumors, and is priced appropriately, it might be the best iPhone for most of us.