If you’re looking to buy a phone for under $500 right now, it’s hard to recommend an iPhone. The only iPhone priced under $500, the $429 iPhone SE, is more than three years old and has an outdated design and an old camera. The iPhone 13, which is a better phone, starts at $599.
But that could be changing. Rumors have been swirling for months that Apple is preparing a new SE that will be a radical departure from previous SEs in that it won’t have a Home button or an outdated display. Now a new report from since-deleted X account Revengnus (via MacRumors) claims that Apple wants to keep the price of the iPhone SE under $500.
That would directly compete with the Google Pixel 8a, one of the best mid-range Android phones you can buy. With a starting price of $499, there’s no iPhone equivalent for what you get in the Pixel 8a:
- 6.1-inch OLED display
- Wireless and fast charging
- Google Tensor G3 processor
- 8 GB RAM/128GB storage
- Dual 64 MP Quad PD wide + 13 MP ultrawide camera
A sub-$500 iPhone SE would change things. Rumors say that Apple is building a phone that will be somewhat similar to Pixel 8a:
- 6.1-inch OLED display
- Wireless and fast-charging
- A18 processor
- 6GB RAM/128GB storage
- 48MP wide camera
There will be differences, of course. The Pixel 8a is almost certain to have a larger battery, and the iPhone SE will have a 60Hz display versus the 120Hz screen on the Pixel 8a. Some camera features will be held back as Apple did with night mode on the current SE.
Then there’s AI. Google calls the Pixel 8a “AI-full” with an “AI-mazing Pixel Camera” loaded with AI features, including Best Take, Audio Magic Eraser, and Magic Editor, as well as Circle to Search and Chat with Gemini. That’s a feature set no current iPhone can challenge–least of all the SE–but by the time the iPhone SE arrives next year, Apple will be well along in its AI era with iOS 18 and any feature exclusive to the iPhone 16 will almost certainly be part of the SE’s feature-set.
Add it all up, and for $499, the iPhone SE will be a full AI phone with the promise of updates for years to come. So buy a Pixel 8a at your own risk.
Apple is expected to launch the new iPhone SE next spring.
iPhone 16 is the next iPhone to arrive in September 2024, and will be followed in 2025 by the iPhone 17 and iPhone SE 4. The new iPhone will arrive at a September launch event – find out how to watch the Apple September event live stream. For iPhone SE 4 and other new Apple products, see when is the next Apple event. You might also like our iPhone buying guide, best iPhone deals, and comparison of every iPhone that is available to buy today.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor, Macworld
Michael Simon has been covering Apple for more than 20 years. He started covering rumors with Spymac when the iPod was the iWalk, and has owned nearly every iPhone Apple has ever made. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, son, and far too many gadgets.