Apple Sacrifices New iPhone SE Design For iPhone 12 Success

While many will be excited about the upcoming launch of Apple’s iPhone SE (2020 edition), the flagship remains the September handsets. The presumptively named iPhone 12 family will pack in the latest technology such as 5G,Lidar assisted photography, and a faster processor, but there is a bigger advantage coming out of Cupertino.

Removing the serious curves and switching to a more boxy structure offers a number of advantages. You get the double-whammy of more internal volume and a more regular structure that aids in packing in the electronics. Every smartphone packs in a lot of technology into the space, but the iPhone 12 family has to take a step up here. The addition of 5G requires more circuitry and antennae, along with considerations around the extra battery capacity needed to maintain the ‘all-day’ life of the phone.

The new design also creates a visual point of differentiation between the iPhone 12 and the iPhone 11. This is a new lineage of devices, and for those who are looking for new – and looking to be seen to be owning something new – then a new design is the perfect lure.

Contrast this with the approach to the upcoming iPhone SE. Using the iPhone 8 design, which itself goes back to 2014’s iPhone 6. This year’s SE may pack premium level specifications and come in at a much lower price than expected for an iPhone compared to the last few years; but throughout the eyes of fashion or style it is not a new handset. No new features, no new design, no leap forwards, no ‘sexy’.

By all means celebrate Apple (finally) stepping up to the plate with 5G. Get ready for the table stakes increase in power from the new Axx processor. And prepared to be marvelled at the new images from the Lidar camera. That’s not the pitch the mainstream will see.The real sales pitch for the iPhone 12 is that it looks new.