Apple will finally launch the long-rumoured iPhone SE successor this week despite the knowledge that sales for the device will not hit previous internal expectations due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.
Jon Prosser revealed over the weekend that the new budget-focused iPhone, which could be called the iPhone 9 or iPhone SE 2, will be unveiled on Wednesday (15th April) and start shipping a week later.
Leaks about the new iPhone have been coming thick and fast in 2020, with analysts claiming that the device would go on sale sometime in Q2.
Recent reports then narrowed down the launch date to early April, though that came and went.
However, a release is still imminent.
Prosser says that Apple has decided against delaying the iPhone as it wants a five or six-month gap between the device and its slate of iPhone 12 models, which are likely to arrive in either September or October.
“[Apple] is not naive, they know they are not going to sell as many… it’s not perfect circumstances,” Prosser notes.
The iPhone SE successor is targeted at a different audience as it will eschew premium features in favour of the older iPhone 8 design with bezels and a physical Touch ID button.
The iPhone is expected to retail from $399 when shipments get underway on 22nd April.
Apple has found it difficult to keep a lid on the existence of the 2020 iPhone SE after it listed a case and AppleCare+ insurance for the device on its website last week.
Its Twitter support service also directed a user to keep tabs on the Apple Newsroom after they asked whether the iPhone SE successor would be either single or dual sim.
Apple is also expected to release a larger model similar to the iPhone 8 Plus, but this could arrive later on in the spring or summer as it wasn’t ready for this week’s launch.