We’re all anticipating the third-generation iPhone SE to launch in only a few weeks, and there isn’t a lot we don’t learn about it. We all know what it’ll seem like, how a lot quicker it will likely be, and what the premier function can be. However there would possibly nonetheless be one shock left.

Investor’s Enterprise Day by day reported late final week that Loop Capital Markets analyst John Donovan has “heard rumors” that the brand new iPhone SE may begin at $300. That’s 25 % decrease than the present mannequin and world characterize a shocking value reduce. But it surely additionally form of is smart.

We’ve learn stories for months that the third-generation iPhone SE will acquire 5G together with an upgraded A15 processor and higher digicam. A 5G iPhone SE—which can reportedly be referred to as the iPhone SE Plus—could be a killer discount at $399. However the present iPhone SE can be a killer handset with out 5G.

In his newest Energy On publication, Mark Gurman posits that “Apple proceed to promote the older iPhone SE at a brand new, lower cost—specifically, $199.” Whereas he says “it’s unclear” whether or not Apple would ever take this step, it definitely is smart. Apple routinely cuts the worth of older iPhone fashions by $100 or $200, so Gurman’s hypothesis coupled with Donovan’s report may imply {that a} value reduce is within the playing cards.

An $199 or $299 iPhone could be a problem to the most well-liked funds Android telephones. Samsung’s A12, the second most popular phone of 2021, retails for $180, whereas the A13 5G sells for $250. We don’t know what Apple has in retailer for the 2022 iPhone SE, however even when it retains promoting the second-generation mannequin at a reduced price, it will positively eat into a few of these lower-end Android gross sales.

A $399 iPhone SE is a incredible value for a 5G telephone. But when Apple expands the SE lineup with an excellent cheaper mannequin, Apple may kick off 2022 with a surprisingly reasonably priced bang.