Forget the iPhone 16, Apple has something much better

Updated July 21 with new design details of the upcoming iPhone SE.

With the launch of Apple Intelligence, Apple is ready to join the world of AI-powered smartphones. While the iPhone 16 Pro will be the workhorse, Tim Cook and his team will ensure that the iPhone 16 can deliver on the same promise. But a better iPhone is waiting in the wings, offering value, new hardware, and the power of AI to Apple’s loyal consumers… the next-generation iPhone SE

The iPhone SE has always been popular, offering the benefits of Apple’s ecosystem and hardware in an attractively priced smartphone. The tone was set in 2016 with the first iPhone SE based on the iPhone 5S design, the second in 2020 based on the iPhone 8, and the third in 2022 based on the same iPhone 8 design but offering the same chipset as the then-current iPhone 13.

An iPhone SE for 2025 will be just as popular, if not more popular, than previous models, given the ever-increasing price of the Pro iPhones.

Specs-wise, we’re likely looking at an iPhone 14 form factor, but smaller than the vanilla and Pro models, which many will welcome. After all, not everyone wants a large smartphone. Given the three-year gap between this SE and the previous iteration, you can expect plenty of Apple’s hardware improvements to be included; there’s potential for a larger 48-megapixel main camera, the first use of the notched display in an SE, and the same fast-charging battery tech expected for the iPhone 16.

Perhaps the biggest advancement comes in the display. While previous SE models came with cheaper, less vibrant LCD screens, the 2025 edition is also expected to feature an OLED display.

Updated: Sunday, July 21.

While the iPhone SE’s designs have always referenced previous models, they’ve remained relatively fresh thanks to Apple’s iterative design process that rarely makes significant design leaps.

9to5Mac reports that the iPhone SE design could adopt a modern look and echo the same rear design as the iPhone 16. Any new iPhone SE will have key identifying features such as the vertically stacked camera and notched display:

“…In other words, the backs of the two devices could be largely indistinguishable from each other. That’s not a huge surprise, as CAD renders earlier this year indicated that the upcoming iPhone SE 4 would be the largest SE model yet, with a form factor that mostly resembles the iPhone 14.

There’s also an important point to consider. The iPhone 16’s dual camera lens layout is moving to a vertical layout to allow for stereoscopic video recording in landscape mode… videos that could be viewed in 3D on the Vision Pro. Apple is looking to extend this feature to the iPhone 16 family, and it makes sense that the upcoming iPhone SE would be part of that push.

The iPhone 16, by its nature, has always been a compromise device in the past. Apple is putting the latest and greatest technology available on the Pro models, which will be the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max this year. It has always been a balancing act to keep the standard iPhone 16 specced high enough to be considered a good enough iPhone while leaving enough room to create demand for a more expensive Pro model.

In previous years, this meant using a previous generation of Axx chipsets, reducing storage options for consumers, and keeping memory specifications as low as possible. This is no longer the case, as the need to support generative AI demands the latest Apple Silicon chip and higher memory to enable as much processing as possible on a local device.

If the iPhone SE is to support Apple Intelligence, it will need to have the same core specifications as the iPhone 16, especially in terms of Apple Silicon. The iPhone SE already has the same chipset as the main lineup, and it’s more than likely that it will do so with this generation as well.

After all, if AI is the future, then Apple’s AI needs to be everywhere. And if it needs to be everywhere, it needs to be supported by the iPhone SE.

There’s also the question of the timing of generative AI. Apple Intelligence, which proudly bears the Apple name, was previewed at last month’s Worldwide Developer Conference and will play its part in iOS 18. However, while iOS 18 will be available to the public with the launch of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro in September, the critical AI components aren’t expected to appear until the first quarter of 2025.

The Apple community may be expecting an “AI boom” with sales of the iPhone 16, one of the first AI-powered iPhones, but there’s no indication in the supply chain that Apple is planning to increase its order book. If Apple is waiting until Q1 2025 to launch the revolution, wouldn’t it be better to wait until then to see what form that revolution will take?

If you want the extra power and all the capabilities of the iPhone platform, you’ll be looking at the iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max, and there’s not much point in considering any other iPhone. If you’re looking to maximize your value, the iPhone SE will be a better deal than the iPhone 16, and thanks to the late arrival of Apple Intelligence, there’s not a huge advantage to buying your next iPhone before then.

Now read the latest iPhone, iPad and App Store headlines in Forbes’ weekly Apple Loop news roundup…