Apple announces 2022 iPhone SE for budget-conscious users

The new iPhone SE has essentially the same body as the 2020 model, but it uses the A15 Bionic chip that we’ve seen in the iPhone 13. The A15 chip brings faster processing speeds; Apple says that the new SE has a CPU that’s 1.8x faster than the iPhone 8 and a GPU that’s 2.2x faster. And while not every aspect of the new phone will use all of that power, such performance ensures years of support for new versions of iOS.

The iPhone SE has a single 12-megapixel rear camera and a 7-megapixel front-facing camera. The A15 chip also brings some weighty improvements to the cameras, including advanced features including Smart HDR 4, Photographic Styles and Deep Fusion. It also has 5G Support as well.

The iPhone SE still has a home button with Touch ID and lacks Face ID. The 4.7-inch LCD display is the same one used on the 2020 iPhone SE and the iPhone 8, which came out in 2017. The back of the phone is still glass, but during the event Apple said it was the “toughest glass on a smartphone.” But the SE doesn’t seem to have a ceramic shield over the display like the iPhone 12 and 13 series.

The iPhone SE comes in three colors: midnight (black), starlight (white) and Product Red and will be available starting March 18 with preorders beginning Friday March 11 and costs $429.