All the rumors about the next iPhones and what could come at WWDC

Apple has used its June Worldwide Developers Conference to release new iPhones in the past. Will it this time?

While early rumors pointed to Apple possibly using Monday’s event in San Jose to introduce an improved iPhone SE, it now seems that Apple’s smaller, cheaper iPhone will get its update alongside the rest of the line in the fall.

Here’s what we know about the iPhone SE 2 and the other iPhones Apple might have planned.

iPhone SE 2

First introduced in spring 2016, the iPhone SE brought many of the features of the iPhone 6S into the iPhone 5 and 5s’ body, creating a capable, smaller iPhone option. The phone was also cheaper at $399 without a contract compared to the $600 on up that the larger iPhones commanded.

But in the two years since it was introduced, the SE has seemingly been neglected. Save for a small update last year to bump the storage options to 32GB on the base model and 128GB on the higher capacity version, Apple has done very little to update its cheapest iPhone.

Plenty of rumors in recent weeks have pointed to Apple working on an updated iPhone SE for this year.

Noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggested in a note earlier this year, and obtained by the website MacRumors, that Apple will simply give the device a modest bump by boosting the specs and lowering the price. But he predicted no radical changes like Face ID facial recognition, a drastic redesign or wireless charging.

Others, including a case maker called Olixar, are preparing for the SE 2 to follow the design of the iPhone X, dropping the home button, Touch ID fingerprint sensor and headphone jack in favor of a notched display and Face ID like the $1,000 iPhone X. This phone would be smaller and cheaper than the iPhone X, but as it has an edge-to-edge display, will pack more than the current SE’s 4-inch display into a similarly sized body.

A recent post from Japanese Apple blog Macotakara – which had correctly predicted Apple would drop the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 – says Apple is still in the process of deciding which design it wants to go with, making a fall release for the iPhone SE 2 more likely than one Monday.

Olixar, meanwhile, is so convinced that this is the next iPhone design that it is already taking pre-orders for its case.

Before you place that order, however, it is worth noting that plenty of companies try to get the “jump” on Apple’s plans with their accessories. You’re best taking all of these leaks with a healthy dose of salt and save your money until Apple officially announces its newest device.

Tl;dr: A new low-cost iPhone SE seems to be in the works, though what it will look like and when it might actually appear seem to be destined to be answered in September, not June.

Other iPhones

Beyond the iPhone SE 2, rumors are rampant that Apple will be introducing several new iPhone models later this year, all of which would embrace the iPhone X’s design but at various price points.

According to Kuo, who has a history of accurately predicting Apple’s plans, the company will release second generation of the 5.8-inch iPhone X, as well as a larger iPhone X “Plus” with a 6.5-inch display. Both devices are said to have dual rear cameras, stainless steel casings and OLED displays.

While 6.5-inches would be the largest screen yet on an iPhone, don’t expect the design to be too unwieldly. According to Macotakara, the phone will be roughly the same size as today’s iPhone 8 Plus, with the extra screen real estate coming from the removed bezels found above and below the current iPhone 8 Plus’ display.

On the cheaper side will be a 6.1-inch iPhone, which will have a similar design to today’s iPhone X – no fingerprint sensor, Face ID facial recognition, notched edge-to-edge display. While similar in appearance, as the cheaper iPhone of the bunch it will utilize an LCD display instead of the fancier OLED and feature aluminum casing and just a single rear camera.

Other reports, including one by Bloomberg, seem to echo the idea that these three iPhones will headline Apple’s fall lineup.

It is unclear exactly how much Apple will charge for the new iPhones or what these new models will be named. As for when they might be released, the company traditionally announces new iPhones in September and all signs point to that happening again this year.

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