According to a recent filing at the Eurasian Economic Commission, Apple may soon announce an iPhone SE 2.
The iPhone SE 2, a followup to the incredibly popular handset that offered a more affordable Apple device, is reportedly pretty far along in development as it has passed through the Eurasian Economic Commission – an organization which certifies devices for a number of different countries including Russia and Armenia. It’s important to note that the filing doesn’t specify any model names, but many are suspecting that this will signal the release of the iPhone SE 2.
The filings for the iPhone SE2 were discovered by Consomac, and are identified with the model numbers A1920, A1921, A1984, A2097, A2098, A2099, A2101, A2103, A2014, A2015, and A2016. Because none of the other iPhones or products that Apple has launched in the past use these model numbers, it’s safe to say that it’s a brand new phone – lending credence to the suggestion that we could soon see an iPhone SE 2.
As far as other information being released regarding the iPhone SE 2, it appears as if the phones will ship using iOS 11 – presumably iOS 11.3. The fact that the phones will feature this software suggests that we’ll see the release sooner rather than later, as Apple certainly is getting closer and closer to the release of iOS 12. If the phones were to ship after the launch of iOS 12, we’d expect them to feature that operating system, so it’s possible we’ll see the iPhone SE 2 within the next couple of months.
The iPhone SE was launched around two years ago on March 21, 2016, which makes it long overdue for an update. With the rest of Apple’s smartphone line receiving a yearly revamp, it’s clear that the iPhone SE 2 took the back burner for quite some time. However, the SE did see a significant amount of success – particularly in international markets where the high-end luxury flagships weren’t nearly as affordable. By creating a device that is more attractively priced yet still has all the convenience and sleek aesthetics of the Apple operating system, the company has managed to expand their market share even further – and they stand to continue this trend with the release of a successor to their incredibly popular device. Considering that the phone did launch in March around two years ago, it would make sense that we’ll see a launch within the next few months if the suggestions that the regulatory registration is truly the iPhone SE 2.
The fact that these model numbers passed through the regulatory agency is significant because the Eurasian Economic Commission has a 100 percent accuracy when it comes to providing model information, and the filings are made public just a few days or weeks before it’s actually released. This means that we’ll likely see an announcement of a new Apple product – whether the iPhone SE 2 or something else entirely – in the immediate future.
While the filing at the Eurasian Economic Commission is the first news we’ve gotten that looks concrete, rumors have been floating around the web since back in November regarding the potential release of the iPhone SE 2 – set to be manufactured by Wistron in India. Other reports have given information the phone will have a glass back to support wireless charging – just like the iPhone 8 and iPhone X.
More rumors about the iPhone SE 2 confirm that it will be offered at a less expensive price point that the other phones in the iOS family, and that part of the way the phone will cut costs is by skipping “3D sensing.” What exactly that means is unclear at this point in time. It may be referring to the TrueDepth camera system that runs FaceID, suggesting that this new device may not feature the new quirk that many have grown to love about the iPhone X and are looking forward to using once again in this upcoming generation of phones.
The exact specifications of the iPhone SE 2 are unknown at this point in time, but it’s been suggested that the phone will ship with an A10 processor, 2GB of RAM, and 32GB or 128GB storage configurations. This is definitely toned down from the power we’ve seen from the company’s other phones, but considering that the SE line is meant to appeal to those looking for a more affordable device, the tradeoff in power is more than understandable. Considering that the iPhone SE launched with the same chip as the iPhone 6S when it first launched, however, there’s a real possibility that we’ll see the A11 Bionic chip instead – the same processor running the iPhone 8 and the iPhone X.
