The iPhone SE is arguably one of the best compact phones you can buy in 2022. First released in 2016, the phone was planned as a cheaper entry point into the Apple family. With time the iPhone SE design stayed more or less consistent, and later Apple marketed it as a compact phone. Now, according to a rumor from well known Apple industry insider, Jon Prosser, the upcoming iPhone SE could take on the iPhone XR design for future iterations.
The firm surveys salespeople at US carrier stores to get a picture of the market, which is very carrier-dominated. In its latest survey, 56% of reps said that iPhone SE demand is weaker this year than it was for the previous iPhone SE; only 8% said demand is stronger.
Apple doesn’t seem that enthusiastic about the phone either, the report says. “Wave7 Research is unaware of any TV, radio, outdoor or print advertising for the device,” it said, and one Verizon rep told the firm “not many people know it came out.”
– PCmag on iPhone SE sales
This will be one of the biggest design changes for the iPhone SE lineup, which has seen four iterations so far. This does make a lot of sense given the iPhone SE was planned as the cheaper iPhone entry point initially, which was then taken over by the iPhone XR.
As 9to5Mac correctly points out, Apple is not content with the sales figures of the 2022 iPhone SE. This tells them two things, that compact phones are still a niche and that people would prefer a somewhat modern looking design, given the choice.
The iPhone XR was released all the way back in 2018, but even compared to the new SE, it has a way more appealing design, and at the least, looks like a phone from this generation. The new iPhone SE on the other hand has better specs, with the SE 3 coming with the latest A15 bionic SoC. Evidently, a phone with the iPhone XR design and updated specs would make for a terrific entry point to the iPhone family.
Although, the updated SE might confuse some given people associate the name with a compact phone. The iPhone XR is not huge, like recent smartphones, but coming in at 6.1-inches, it isn’t a compact phone either. It will be interesting to see how Apple decides to market the phone on launch.
