It’s been a long enough wait for Apple’s newest iPhone SE but the day is rather nigh. That’s the prime projection following Apple head Tim Cook’s post on X revealing the launch date for… something. It’s probably the iPhone SE.
Why? Timing, mostly. iPhones are almost always announced from September onward but the SE is a somewhat different beast. Uncle Tim’s post references “the newest member of the family,” which could mean anything but iPhone SE rumours have been thick in recent weeks.
Early iPhone SE
Get ready to meet the newest member of the family.
Wednesday, February 19. #AppleLaunch pic.twitter.com/0ML0NfMedu
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) February 13, 2025
The smart money is on Apple announcing the newest member of its budget smartphone lineup, supporting our speculation that Apple’s Wednesday event is the SE’s debut. It’s a little early in the year — March is more conventional — but Apple might have a fuller slate than usual this year. A robotic iPad, anyone?
Generally, there’s a hint of some sort in these event announcements but the animated graphic (embedded above) gives very little away. It wouldn’t make much sense to release a titanium version of a budget (for Apple) smartphone, so the metal hue probably isn’t that. The logo pulsates like the Siri icon, suggesting Apple Intelligence is headed to the lineup.
Assuming the iPhone SE shows its face on 19 February — there’s no time for the launch yet — it’ll supposedly feature Apple’s Dynamic Island notification bar, a simplified design (the home button is apparently on the way out), and an increased display size. It’ll also include Face ID support for the first time.
Apple is thought to be including Apple Intelligence in its more affordable handset, thanks to the A18 chipset expected to power the thing. The new Action button could also make the jump to this lineup and the SE might prove to be the launching ground for Apple’s first in-house cellular modem hardware.
