The new iPhone SE adds 5G but keeps the home button
It's been two years since Apple launched the last iPhone SE and finally, a new model is here. At its "Peek Performance" event today, Apple unveiled the new iPhone SE, which like its predecessors is a more affordable version of the flagship range. As expected, the budget-friendly phone has an updated quad-core A15 Bionic processor and supports 5G cellular standards. Surprisingly, though, it still retains a home button below the screen for Touch ID, and has a single rear camera. In fact, it looks nearly identical to its predecessor.
The new iPhone SE will be available in midnight, starlight and red colors, and has a 4.7 inch Retina HD screen. It's covered in glass, with Apple saying this is the "toughest glass in a smartphone on both the front and back." It's the same glass as that on the back of the iPhone 13. The iPhone SE also comes with IP67 dust and water resistance, and the company is promising better battery life thanks to efficiencies from the A15 Bionic and iOS 15.
Though there is just one 12-megapixel rear camera here (with f/1.8 aperture), Apple said the latest iPhone SE has a "new camera system," adding things that we saw on the iPhone 13 like Photographic Styles, Smart HDR 4 and Deep Fusion for better processing.
Finally, like the iPhone 13 series, the iPhone SE is made with some recycled materials, according to Apple. It uses "100-percent recycled rare earth elements in the Taptic Engine and audio magnets, 100-percent recycled tungsten in the Taptic Engine, and 100-percent recycled tin in the solder of the main logic board." The company also changed its packaging so it no longer uses an outer plastic wrap.
Pre-orders begin this Friday (March 11th) at 5am PT, with availability beginning March 18th. At $429, it's worth noting that year's iPhone SE is $30 pricier than the last model. If you're still keen on getting a new iPhone SE, I'd suggest waiting till we can get in a unit to test before you get one, so we can evaluate things like battery life and real-world camera performance. Stay tuned for our full review.
Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s Peek Performance event right here!