Apple Reportedly Developing Apple Watch SE With Plastic Casing

Apple is developing a new version of the low-cost Apple Watch SE with a plastic casing, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today claimed.

apple watch se 2022
Writing in this weekend's "Power On" newsletter, Gurman mentioned Apple's work on an ‌Apple Watch SE‌ that features a rigid plastic casing in lieu of anodized aluminum. He postulated that this may be one technique Apple may be planning to use to bring the cost of the ‌Apple Watch SE‌ down. The current ‌Apple Watch SE‌ sells for $249, but Samsung's cheapest rival watch, the Galaxy Watch FE, sells for $199.

Apple famously released the iPhone 5C with an "unapologetically" plastic casing in 2013, which was effectively a rehoused version of the ‌iPhone‌ 5. The polycarbonate exterior was available in various vibrant color options. The device was somewhat controversial because critics argued that the plastic casing was a step down from the luxurious metal finishes of previous models and some consumers felt that the device's price point was still too high for what was perceived as an inferior product.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch SE
Related Forum: Apple Watch

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Top Rated Comments

Joshuaorange Avatar
14 months ago
The plastic casing was perfect at that price point and it was a great phone. Lots of kids had them. They were very tough and could be dropped without causing damage most of the time. Plastic is a far better choice than aluminum for things that bounce off the ground.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Joshuaorange Avatar
14 months ago

Plastic cases are much better than metal ones for antenna reception. Besides being much lighter as well. And not getting so hot to the wrist touch…

And Apple should do other changes to the Watch as well to boost sales; unless for the Apple Watch Ultra: truly standalone (not requiring any other device to setup and use, albeit Mac dependency could be acceptable, but not iPhone or iPad dependency) and built-in camera, ideally telescopic rotating retractable camera inside the watch crown. Until that happens, the only alternative are Android watches. A shame for Apple!
A camera in a watch is even more useless than a camera in a tablet.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WarmWinterHat Avatar
14 months ago
I'd be fine with that.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mrkevinfinnerty Avatar
14 months ago
Unapologetically time to increase the price of the aluminium models
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
14 months ago

Really? You have insights into Apple pricing plans you’d like to share?
No need. Years of experience with Apple.

Latest example: Non-Leather Case being charged for the same price even though the new material is much cheaper and basically falls apart by just looking at it
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sunapple Avatar
14 months ago
Unapologetically… compromised?
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)