iPhone SE 2 inventory shrinking as successor draws closer
Apple is widely anticipated to introduce the third generation iPhone SE this month and market research conducted by iMore suggests the iPhone SE 2 is already well on its way out.
The iPhone SE 2 has become a scarce commodity and is now out of stock at various physical Apple Stores, carriers, and third-party resellers. The places that do still have the phone seem to be low on stock.
The device was released in 2020 for $399 and is currently Apple's cheapest phone. It comes with an iPhone 8-esque design, a 4.7-inches LCD screen, and a 12MP single rear camera. It runs on the Apple A13 Bionic and was offered in three storage configurations - 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB - and three hues: Black, White, and Red. The 256GB model was discontinued last year after the introduction of the iPhone 13.
It looks like the iPhone SE 2 stock has begun to dry up in the US, Canada, and the UK. Only some configurations are available in the stores surveyed in major cities of the US and Verizon has no stock whatsoever. Similarly, key stores in Canada also seemingly have limited supplies and a check of popular UK stores like John Lewis and Argos indicate a similar situation.
Additionally, the lead times for deliveries in the UK through Apple's website are now stretching beyond 2 weeks. iMore says that one Apple retail source in the country has confirmed that it has been receiving fewer iPhone SE 2 units since early February and also added this is only true for the iPhone SE 2, which indicates the problem likely isn't connected to the ongoing global components shortage.
Even though the scope of the market study prevents us from concluding that Apple is planning to discontinue the iPhone SE 2 after the arrival of the iPhone SE 3, that does seem to be the case. That would make sense, considering the forthcoming model is expected to have the same design as the SE 2, and a couple of reports also claim that it will be around $100 cheaper.
In addition to a lower price tag, the phone is also likely to gain 5G connectivity and will allegedly be powered by the new A15 Bionic chip that fuels Apple's latest flagship phones. The new iPhone SE will purportedly be unveiled on March 8 and it may put the loyalty of even the most die-hard Android fans to the test and emerge as the best budget phone of 2022.
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