Apple is preparing to mass-produce the rumoured iPhone SE 2, according to a new report. Individuals familiar with the California-based firm’s plans claim that the new budget iPhone will enter mass production in February, with a launch slated for the following month.

To be clear, there’s no proof that the phone entering production is the iPhone SE 2 – all we have are extensive rumours. These rumours suggest that the new cheap handset will look like the iPhone 8, with a 4.7in screen and a Home button that will reportedly have Touch ID built-in. It will supposedly use the same A13 Bionic processor as the current iPhone 11 handsets.

Lending weight to these rumours is Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who claimed last year that the iPhone SE 2 would launch in March 2020. As it happens, we also have precedent to work with: the iPhone SE launched on 31 March 2016.

More recent leaks claim that the iPhone SE 2 will in fact be called the iPhone 9. Given that Apple skipped the 9th generation in favour of the Roman numeral X, and that the rumoured handset will mimic the design of the iPhone 8, this certainly makes a lot of sense.

If these rumours turn out to be accurate, this iPhone will be the first budget offering from Apple since the original SE launched in 2016. For reference, the iPhone SE cost £379 at launch, shoehorning the processor and camera of the iPhone 6S into the body of the iPhone 5. The strategy worked: by the second quarter of 2016, the iPhone SE accounted for almost 10% of UK smartphone sales.

The launch itself couldn’t be better timed: with competitors Samsung and Google both extending their reach into the budget or mid-range markets with the Galaxy A series and Pixel 3a respectively, Apple is no doubt keen to dispel the myth that its products are exclusively expensive.

Source: expertreviews.co.uk