Analysts tip the new Apple iPhone SE coming next week could reverse Australia smartphone slump

Apple’s new smaller, cheaper iPhone coming next week is tipped to save Australia from it’s dramatic smartphone slump.

The smaller, cheaper iPhone SE that Apple is tipped to unveil next week is being hailed as the unlikely hero to save Australia’s dramatic smartphone slump.

When Apple jumped from the 4-inch iPhone iPhone 5s to the iPhone 4.7-inch iPhone 6 18 months ago, the market responded by embracing the larger phablet with open arms and ready hands. But while it opened new markets for Apple, it also shut the door on those people who just don’t want a bigger phone.

A week from today Apple’s CEO Tim Cook will lead a team of Apple executives at the first Apple launch for the year, and the headline item is expected to the iPhone SE, as in Special Edition, which is rumoured to have a 12-megapixel camera like the iPhone 6S, an A9 process and support Apple Pay.

Some might criticise the new iPhone as being just looked the iPhone 6S launched last year, but likely to be missing the 3D Touch feature which adds the extra navigation feature of accessing menu items by pushing the screen harder.

But the new iPhone has already been flagged as the new hero to kick Australia out of its smartphone slump.

Technology analyst firm Telsyte today released the Australian Smartphone and Wearable Devices Market Study which found 7.9 million smartphones were sold in 2015, which is a dramatic drop of 11 per cent from the previous year of 8.9 million sales.

The smartphone industry is facing its biggest hurdle and it is one of its own making. The market is nearing saturation with 17.6 million Australians already having a smartphone.

But the report predicts a turnaround out the slump, with the new iPhone SE flagged as the first catalyst to get people buying new smartphones.

The report shows that 3.5 million Australians are still using regular normal phones — phones that can make calls and text but can’t do the million and one things that the smartphone offers.

The trouble for those Australians who “just want a phone that makes calls” is that they’re facing a deadline. Telstra and Optus will be decommissioning their old 2G networks in the next 12 months (Telstra by the end of this year and Optus by April 1 next year) and that will force those 3.5 million Australians to step into the smartphone era.

Just how cheap with this new iPhone be? Probably not that cheap.

When Apple released the iPhone 5C, the rumours were that the C would be for Cheap. It turned out it was for colour. The iPhone SE will be cheaper than the regular iPhone 6S, but it won’t be cheap.

Meanwhile, here are five more things to expect at next week’s event in Apple’s Cupertino headquarters:

• A new 10-inch iPad, possibly called the iPad Pro. Like the 12.0-inch iPad Pro launched last year and pitched as a productivity tool, this is likely to have a Smart Connector and the option of a keyboard plus integration with the Apple Pencil.

• New watch bands for the Apple Watch, probably a woven nylon band, and possibly some software tweaks. If Apple does release a new Apple Watch this year, it is probably going to be later in the year.

• iOS9.3, the update to the operating system on the iPhone and iPad. One of the features will be Notes you can mark as private and unlocked with a password or fingerprint on Touch ID. For all of us who store bank details and other private information on our phones, this is a great improvement.

• An update to the tvOS, the operating system for the Apple TV. Expect to see more use of voice controls and Bluetooth keyboards.

• One more thing ... the words every Apple fan hopes to hear at the end of every Apple event.

Originally published as Analysts tip the new Apple iPhone SE coming next week could reverse Australia smartphone slump