New iPhone SE Won't Launch Early 2021, Will Only Arrive In Second Half

Apple will not launch the next version of iPhone SE in the first half of 2021.

Contrary to the expectations of the industry, the budget offering by Apple will make its way to the global markets in the second half of next year, suggests noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

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The iPhone SE range has often enjoyed the top spot in global sales by Apple. The Cupertino tech giant was hence expected to introduce its next iteration early next year. The Ming-Chi Kuo report cited by several media outlets states that this will not be the case due to increased competition in Apple¡¯s supply chain.

The report mentions that four Apple suppliers are in competition for the production of lenses for iPhone 13¡¯s camera. Kuo names the suppliers to be Taiwan's Genius Electronic Optical (GSEO), Largan Precision, Semco (Samsung Electro-mechanics), and a new firm named Sunny Optical.

(Representative Image: Reuters)

Kuo points to the possibility of GSEO losing orders to the competition. While it supplied 50 percent orders of the iPhone 12¡¯s ultra-wide lens, it might only be able to cover 30 percent of the order for iPhone 13.

Kuo believes that the market underestimates the impact of this competition. As per Kuo, it will ultimately restrain the production of the successor to this year's iPhone SE.

It was recently revealed that Apple shipped a total of 41.6 million iPhones in the third quarter of 2020. With this, the company constituted 11.8% share of the global smartphone market, as per an IDC report.

This was a 10.6% decrease from Apple¡¯s performance last year. iPhone 11 and iPhone SE were able to grab considerable sales for the company. The drop, however, is being blamed on the late launch of the new iPhone 12 series.