Kuo: 2022 iPhone SE Will Be the 'Cheapest 5G iPhone Ever'

Apple is planning to launch an updated version in the first half of 2022, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today in a note to investors.

As he has said previously, the design of the new iPhone SE will be "roughly the same" as the existing SE, which is modeled after the iPhone 8.

Kuo says that the new 2022 iPhone SE will support 5G, and it will include processor updates. The device will be positioned as the "cheapest 5G iPhone ever." The most affordable iPhone with 5G right now is the iPhone 12 mini, so presumably the iPhone SE will be a good deal more affordable than the $699 price point of that device.

There have been rumors of an "iPhone SE Plus" with a larger display and a Touch ID power button, which Kuo has also mentioned in the past, but there's no word of this bigger iPhone SE in Kuo's note and we haven't heard new details about it for some time, so it is not clear if it's been scrapped or is something that's coming at a later date.

Kuo also previously said that Apple is developing a new version of the iPhone 11 with a 6-inch LCD, Face ID support, and 5G, and it's possible thst this future device, which is said to be launching in 2023, will also be in the SE family.

There is no specific word on when we can expect the next-generation iPhone SE, but the first half of 2022 perhaps suggests a spring event.