Rumor claims iPhone SE 4 could have a Dynamic Island — but I have my doubts

The Dynamic Island on an iPhone 14 Pro Max
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

The iPhone SE 4 is coming at some point, and there’s been a lot of speculation about what sort of design it may have. Because the iPhone 8-inspired look of the iPhone SE 2020 and iPhone SE 2022 is looking really dated — especially by cheap phone standards.

Speculation on the design ranges from Apple taking inspiration from the iPhone XR and the iPhone 14, both of which have prominent notches at the top of the display. However a new rumor claims that the iPhone SE 4 may actually swap the notch for a Dynamic Island cutout instead.

That’s according to leaker MajinBu on Twitter/X at any rate. They don’t offer any additional details about the cutout itself, but the iPhone SE 4 may come with a design inspired by the iPhone 16.

How that will work isn’t entirely clear, since Bu also claims that the phone will have similar dimensions to the 6.1-inch iPhone XR and a single camera lens — something only currently seen on other iPhone SE phones.

It’s worth remembering that Majin Bu has a pretty mixed track record with Apple leaks, and even points out that the design isn’t certain. Evidently it’s still too early for the design to have been finalized, and things may change. No doubt because Apple is currently prototyping multiple designs before making a final decision.

Honestly, though, I wouldn’t be mad if Apple released the iPhone SE 4 with the Dynamic Island. Display notches became a necessary evil for a time, but most phone makers realized that cutouts were a much less intrusive option. But Apple clung to the design for several years, likely because of Face ID requirements, only starting to phase it out with the launch of the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max in 2022.

But you have to remember that the iPhone SE is supposed to be the cheap iPhone, and that means compromise and sacrifice. If you want the phone to stay under $500, you’re not going to get a whole range of premium features. Hence the single camera lens, the current dated design and so on. I’d wager the odds of having a Dynamic Island before the iPhone SE 5 are slim.

But we’re not going to know for sure until we get much closer to the phone’s release date. The iPhone SE 4 is currently expected to arrive some time in 2025, three years after the launch of its predecessor, which means there’s some waiting to do. But in the meantime you can keep up to date with all the latest news and rumors in our iPhone SE 4 hub.

More from Tom's Guide

Category
Arrow
Arrow
Back to Mobile Cell Phones
Brand
Arrow
Storage Size
Arrow
Colour
Arrow
Condition
Arrow
Price
Arrow
Any Price
Showing 10 of 81 deals
Filters
Arrow
Load more deals
Tom Pritchard
UK Phones Editor

Tom is the Tom's Guide's UK Phones Editor, tackling the latest smartphone news and vocally expressing his opinions about upcoming features or changes. It's long way from his days as editor of Gizmodo UK, when pretty much everything was on the table. He’s usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or complaining about how terrible his Smart TV is.