Apple's new low-cost iPhone could launch sooner than you think

Apple’s low-cost iPhone — potentially called the iPhone SE 2 — could launch as early as March this year. A new report from Bloomberg cites people familiar with Apple’s road map saying that the new phone will go into production starting February.

The report goes on to say that the assembly of the 4.7-inch iPhone will be split between Hon Hai Precision Industry, Pegatron Corp, and Wistron Corp.

This is Apple’s second budget iPhone after the iPhone SE which was launched back in 2016. Renders of the so-called iPhone SE 2 were also leaked a few weeks back depicting an iPhone 8-like design.

According to Bloomberg, the phone will be powered by Apple’s A13 Bionic processor. The same silicon also powers the current iPhone 11 lineup.

Additionally, the purported iPhone SE 2 is expected to come with a physical home button. Apple will seemingly give Face ID a skip on this one. Instead, the phone’s home button will double up as a fingerprint sensor, just like the iPhone 8 series.

Can cheaper iPhones help Apple reclaim market share?

Apple is currently the third largest smartphone vendor in the world. It is preceded by Samsung and HUAWEI which claim the number one and two spots respectively. By releasing more affordable iPhones, Apple is reportedly hoping to increase shipments in 2020.

Even the iPhone 11 lineup came in cheaper this year, starting at $699. According to a recent report from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CRIP), the iPhone 11, 11 Pro, and 11 Pro Max accounted for 69% of all iPhone sales in the US between October and December 2019. Of this, the cheaper iPhone 11 rang in 39% of all iPhone sales in the same period.

Another cheaper iPhone might help Apple bolster iPhone sales in 2020 and further grow its market presence. It’ll also better equip the company to compete with upcoming Android rivals, especially in price conscious markets like India.

What are your thoughts on Apple lowering prices of its handsets? Are you questioning your Android loyalty yet? We bet we know the answer but we’d love to hear from you in our comments section below.