An Apple Inc. iPhone SE, a member of the iPhone series, is displayed at the company's Omotesando store on March 31, 2016 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo : Getty Images/Tomohiro Ohsumi)
Imagine the iPhone SE boasting of specifications and features that not only match what have been seen with the iPhone 7 but also exceed what the latter has to offer. A freshly leaked concept of the upgraded device imagined a stunning render but for 2017 it seems unlikely that a refresh from Apple will be touching down.
The concept pointed to by WCCFTech imagined the SE as a 5.2-inch handset or bigger than the regular iPhone and possibly powered by the same A10 Fusion chip that was introduced with the iPhone 7/7 Plus. The concept creator visualized the second SE as an all-screen or bezel-free phone, which is in line with the rumors that for the next iPhone Apple will redesign its flagship and mostly gone are the physical control keys.
And true to the speculated reengineering of the upcoming series, the sequel to the SE will abandon all physical buttons. As the YouTube clip showed (can be viewed below), the volume rocker is activated by mere sliding gestures of up and down on the side of the device. As expected, the Home key that became capacitive in time for the iPhone 7 is nowhere to be found.
The rest of the specs and features are simply jaw-dropping: likely AMOLED display that renders in QHD resolution, 6GB of RAM and up to 256GB of internal memory, camera combo of 16MP on the front and 23MP on rear that is of dual-camera setting and fully capable of 4K video recording at 120FPS and a massive 5000mAh battery.
These exciting iPhone SE enhancements that were dreamed about would hopefully become real next year, perhaps by March 2017 or a year after the original's 2016 debut. But it seems remote that Apple is working on the second SE or at least the sequel that will hit the market next year.
According to KGI Securities analyst Ming-chi Kuo, who is regarded as the most accurate when it comes to Apple-related predictions, there are no signs that the iPhone maker is doing a follow up to the SE. The plan for Apple appears to focus on selling as many as iPhone 7 and 7 Plus and come up with new devices until the next regular release cycle.
That would mean no new handset from the tech giant until fall of next year or the usual time that Apple rolls out new iPhone models. The move, Kuo said, is to further increase profit margins and apparently Apple will do so by cutting down production costs, which explains the supposed pushback of an iPhone SE sequel, and negotiate for lower component prices for the next iPhone mass manufacture.
Kuo, per the report from MacRumors, is convinced that "Apple will exert pressure on its iPhone component makers to drop prices in an effort to maintain its margins. And setting aside the iPhone SE sequel for now to focus on selling the iPhone 7 actually makes sense as the latter, which is more expensive, delivers higher profits.
