iPhone SE 4 case leak gives us hints about the design of Apple's next affordable iPhone

Four iPhone SE 2022 phones on a blue and pink background

(Image credit: Apple)

The unofficial consensus seems to be that the iPhone SE 4 will be announced early in 2025, and a newly leaked image supposedly showing a case for the handset gives us some idea of the design choices we can expect to see.

This image comes from well-established tipster @SonnyDickson, and taken in isolation, it doesn't look as though much is going to change from the iPhone SE 3 launched in 2022. The rear camera bump is the same size, for example, and in the same position.

The iPhone buttons are all in familiar places too – the cut-outs for the mute switch and the charging port at the bottom, and the raised areas for the volume and power buttons, are all where they should be.

pic.twitter.com/cAySCuE1czOctober 12, 2024

However, we've heard from other leaks that the iPhone SE 4 will be the first in the series to ditch Touch ID and the home button, and use Face ID instead: it's apparently going to resemble the iPhone 14, though these rather major design changes wouldn't be revealed with a look at the case.

More iPhone SE 4 rumors

Another rumored design tweak that this case leak doesn't confirm or contradict is an increase in screen size: the iPhone SE 4 display is apparently growing to 6.1 inches from 4.7 inches as well as adding the iconic notch up at the top, giving fans of small phones one less option to pick from.

While the case might not be hugely different from those for the current model – apart from the size – the leak is more evidence that a refresh for this model could be on the way. The iPhone SE 3 launched in March, and the iPhone SE 4 could follow suit.

We've also heard the next iPhone SE might have an A18 chip (matching the one inside the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus), notable camera upgrades, and a 5G modem made by Apple itself (which could well mean faster speeds on cell networks).

The phone might even support Apple Intelligence, with 8GB of RAM on board enough to get the AI features running smoothly. Hopefully, Apple will still be able to hit the $429 / £419 / AU$719 launch price of the current model.

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.