Welcome to our weekly Apple Breakfast column, which incorporates all of the Apple information you missed final week in a useful bite-sized roundup. We name it Apple Breakfast as a result of we expect it goes nice with a Monday morning cup of espresso or tea, but it surely’s cool if you wish to give it a learn throughout lunch or dinner hours too.
Massive information
It’s been a rollercoaster trip for the iPhone SE because the glory days of the second-gen mannequin from 2020, with moderately extra downs than ups. However now, based mostly on a collection of unexpectedly promising leaks, it appears to be like like we is likely to be headed for an uphill phase.
Earlier this month a Weibo account dropped some alluring particulars concerning the iPhone SE 4 that made it sound like the perfect $499 smartphone ever. Boasting a 6.1-inch OLED display screen, Face ID, and an A16 processor, the brand new telephone would characterize an enormous improve over the 2022 mannequin, and that’s earlier than you even get to the 48MP rear-facing digital camera, LPDDR5 RAM, and chunky battery.
All this, the leaker claimed, will are available in at $499, a $70 improve on the earlier SE however far decrease than we’d count on for a handset with this type of spec. The iPhone 13, for instance, has the identical 6.1-inch display screen, an older A15 chip, and a digital camera that may have two lenses however is proscribed to only 12MP… and at the moment prices $599. Following the frustration of the third-gen SE in 2022, this has the whiff of a comeback.
However wait! There’s extra. This week one other leak emerged referring to the next-gen SE, and this time it centered closely on the machine’s bodily dimensions, which is able to apparently be a little bit greater than these of the iPhone 15. The report corroborates the Face ID and single-camera components of the earlier leak, and strongly means that the 6.1-inch display screen half is true, too.
There are just a few conclusions to be drawn from the a number of rumors which were cropping up these days concerning the SE 4. One is that the road isn’t lifeless: there’s curiosity, and there’s hypothesis, and no one needs the SE journey to be over. One other is that the times of the small telephone seem like gone for good; and I do know some readers gained’t be joyful about that. The SE has traditionally had a distinct segment as each the smallest and the most cost effective telephone Apple makes, and that’s most likely about to vary. However the optimistic is that, by embracing a narrower remit as merely the most cost effective telephone on its roster, the corporate could free itself as much as ship one thing altogether extra compelling.
Readers with irritatingly good reminiscences could recall this very column opining that the iPhone SE line can’t be saved, and I stand by most of that argument. However one ingredient seems to have modified for the higher, and that’s Apple’s understanding of what made the second SE so good, and what made the third SE so dangerous. If the leaks are correct–and that’s certainly not a given–then they recommend that Apple goes to return to the unique thought of up-to-date innards in an older design at a lower cost, a compromise that many purchasers will discover interesting.
By enhancing the battery and the digital camera, it’s addressing two of probably the most notable weaknesses in earlier SE fashions. And by bumping up from the antiquated design with a house button to one thing comparatively extra fashionable, it’s making an effort to search out the candy spot between too previous and too new which was so compelling in 2020. Add a $499 price ticket—simply $70 greater than the present outdated SE—and also you’ve obtained the perfect price range telephone within the enterprise.
The very best Android price range telephones on this vary are most likely the Google Pixel 7a and OnePlus 12R, and this rumored iPhone SE will give them each a run for his or her cash, with a greater digital camera, much better biometric safety, and what needs to be glorious battery life.
I nonetheless preserve that the candy spot isn’t as candy because it was again then, and should by no means be once more, for the easy cause that the swap from dwelling button to full display screen was a one-off shift that left a big rump of customers briefly eager about conserving an older design. In that sense the true glory days of the SE most likely are gone for good. However within the absence of a real blockbuster, the indicators recommend that Apple could give you the following neatest thing, which is just an excellent price range smartphone.
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Podcast of the week
Apple has filed a civil lawsuit towards Apple, and it’s a giant one. On this episode of the Macworld Podcast, we speak concerning the case–what it’s about, why was it filed, what this implies to Apple, what it means for customers, and extra.
You’ll be able to catch each episode of the Macworld Podcast on Spotify, Soundcloud, the Podcasts app, or our personal website.
Evaluations nook
The rumor mill
The subsequent main step for Apple chips may occur subsequent yr. And the AI-packed M4 chip is coming ahead of we thought.
New iPads will ‘most likely’ arrive week of Could 6, says trusted analyst.
iPadOS 17.5 beta confirms the brand new iPad Professional’s greatest improve.
iPhone SE leak paints a portrait of the finest $499 smartphone ever.
The subsequent Apple Watch may have a brand new low-power show.
Apple Pencil 3 with a brand new squeeze gesture could possibly be coming quickly.
Apple’s work on a folding iPad has hit a doubtlessly deadly roadblock.
Should you actually assume Apple is making a robotic, I’ve an iCar to promote you.
Report: Apple TV with a built-in digital camera ‘mentioned’ at Apple.
2024 iPhone colours: What’s coming, what’s going, and what’s the new new pattern?
Software program updates, bugs, and issues
Apple warns customers in 92 nations of spyware and adware assault.
‘Ghost Contact’ bug impacts extra Apple Watches than beforehand thought.
And with that, we’re performed for this week’s Apple Breakfast. Should you’d prefer to get common roundups, join our newsletters. You can even observe us on Fb, Threads, or Twitter for dialogue of breaking Apple information tales. See you subsequent Monday, and keep Appley.