The leak of the new iPhone SE 4 case indicates a major design improvement

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With the iPhone 16 finally here, rumors have been running steadily for Apple’s next line of iPhones. Although Apple hasn’t updated its iPhone SE lineup since 2022, 2025 is likely to be the year we see the new iPhone SE 4. A new leak from Apple insider Sonny Dickson gave some of light on the updates Apple has in mind, including whether the The camera control button or the action button found on the best iPhones could make an appearance.

Over the weekend, Dickson shared with X an apparent photo of the casing of the iPhone SE 4, which is expected to launch next spring. While it doesn’t show the device itself, it does offer some hints about what to expect from Apple’s next-generation budget smartphone.

The case has a flat back panel with a cutout for the rear camera that looks slightly larger than the one on the iPhone SE 3, which could mean that the iPhone SE 4 comes with two cameras, a first for the series. The iPhone SE 4 is already expected to take design cues from the iPhone 14, becoming the first of Apple’s budget “special edition” iPhones to ditch Touch ID for Face ID and the notch , so it may be able to take another page from the iPhone 14. and adds an ultra-large camera to its array.

The iPhone SE 4 was previously tipped to include the action button that debuted on last year’s iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max before coming to all iPhone 16 models this year In a bit of a disappointment, the iPhone SE 4 case only shows a cutout for the mute switch, which was replaced by the action button. There’s also a cutout for the new camera control button introduced with the iPhone 16 line, a recessed touch switch that makes it easy to take photos and record video in an instant.

That said, there’s still a lot to get excited about with the iPhone SE 4. The budget phone is rumored to pack 8GB of RAM and Apple’s A18 chip, which would open it up to the feature suite of Apple AI, Apple Intelligence. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has also suggested that Apple Intelligence on the iPhone SE 4 is a very strong possibility. We’ve seen AI capabilities supported by budget phones like Google’s Pixel 8a before, but it would still be a big step for Apple to bring its AI feature set to its most affordable device. The iPhone SE 4 is also slated to replace its aging LCD display with a bright new 6.1-inch OLED display and swap Apple’s proprietary port for USB-C.

However, this budget phone could increase the price. The iPhone SE 3 launched at $429 in 2022, but with the new technology and the addition of Apple Intelligence, we expect the iPhone SE 4 to come in at around $500. That would still cement its position as a budget phone given the iPhone 16’s $899 starting price.

Of course, this is all still conjecture at the moment. We’re still early in the iPhone SE 4 rumor cycle, so you can expect the leaks to continue to pour in as the calendar moves closer to the early spring launch.

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