Apple is expected to refresh the iPhone SE at some point in 2023, and rumors have already pointed to that looking like an iPhone XR of yesteryear. Now, another report backs that up and provides renders to go with it.
While this new report does suggest that the next iPhone SE will look like an iPhone XR, it's, unfortunately, light on technical details. That means we don't know much beyond how this thing will likely look.
iPhone XR returns
In terms of those designs, though, nobody will be able to avoid the comparison with the iPhone XR that was so popular as a budget option a few years ago.
This latest report comes via Jon Prosser and Front Page Tech, citing unnamed sources. As mentioned, those sources don't appear to have shared too much information about what the insides of this thing will offer, but we do know that it will use the iPhone XR form factor. How closely will it follow that? We don't know for sure just yet. Prosser does seem confident in his sources this time, though — more sure than the last time he made similar iPhone SE claims earlier in the year.
There are question marks, of course. The first is that the iPhone XR shipped with a 6.1-inch display, and the iPhone SE currently has just a 4.7-inch one. Apple could obviously increase the screen size, and removing the Home button would help there, but it's yet to be confirmed.
The removal of the Home button doesn't necessarily mean that we'll see Face ID added, though. Apple could choose to put the Home button's Touch ID sensor into the Side button, much as it chose to do with the iPad Air and the new iPad 10th generation. Even if it goes that route, a notch would likely be used to house the front-facing camera and proximity sensor.
Whatever happens, the iPhone SE has always been the best iPhone for people looking to spend as little as possible. That hasn't always made it a great buy, however, but whether that remains the case will depend on what Apple puts inside this thing and whether Face ID is included. As always, we'll need to wait and see.
