Speculation regarding a new 4-inch iPhone coming out of Cupertino has run rampant the past few months with rumors claiming the device will look like an tiny iPhone 6, but a new report claims the device will actually look more like a special edition iPhone 5s.
Apple plans to upgrade the existing iPhone 5s that launch in the fall 2013, only instead of making the device a preview of the iPhone 7, 9to5Mac claims the device “will mostly retain the 5s’s design and still include a headphone jack.”
“The new device is internally codenamed ‘N69,’ but the launch name will likely be the ‘iPhone 5se.’ The ‘se’ suffix has been described in two ways by Apple employees: as a ‘special edition’ variation of the vintage 4-inch iPhone screen size and as an ‘enhanced’ version of the iPhone 5s.”
The only major design change will come in the form of a new curved glass screen similar to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s that replaces the iPhone 5s’ chamfered edges. The rest of the upgrades will all be internal, adding new tech from the last two iPhone models.
New features coming to the iPhone 5se include an 8MP iSight camera, 1.2MP FaceTime camera, barometer, NFC for Apple Pay, an A8 processor and M8 co-processor, 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.2. The report also claims iPhone 5se will support Live Photos, but it won’t come with a pressure sensitive 3D Touch display.
Color options will be the same as the iPhone 6s line with Rose Gold also being available. Production on units has already begun overseas, with the official unveiling expected to take place in March with the launch coming by early April.
