New Apple iPhones for 2018: SE 2, X Plus, 8S — The Best Leaks and Rumors

It’s iPhone season, and the rumors aren’t letting up. Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference is set to kick off on June 4, and it’s been nothing but speculation galore in the weeks leading up to the summer conference. While it’s likely we won’t get much information about upcoming iPhones during WWDC, this hasn’t stopped blogs and leakers from doing their best to pull the curtain off what Apple has planned for 2018.

From a bigger iPhone X to a modern take on the candy-colored iPhone 5c, there have been a mind-boggling number of predictions of what the next trio of iPhones could look like. Apple hasn’t given us any hints as to what it’s cooking up, many leaks and rumors paint a solid, albeit speculative picture of what Apple smartphones will be in our pockets come September.

New Apple iPhones for 2018: iPhone SE 2 ($799)

Possibly the most anticipated rumored release is the 2018 rebirth of the iPhone SE. The iPhone X’s $999 price tag raised a lot of eyebrows upon its launch and also sparked rumors of potentially cheaper iPhones to come. All the emerging information about a potential revival of the SE points to the fact that it will be “budget option” in this year’s releases.

The internet has dubbed this rumored phone the iPhone SE 2. But established smartphone leaker Evan Blass tweeted a screenshot of what appeared to be insider documents that state the smartphone will be named the “iPhone SE (2018).”

Renders of this phone were published by Chinese smartphone case maker Olixar and online accessories store Mobile Fun. These images depict an iPhone that melds together the compact chassis of the iPhone SE with FaceID capabilities and the notched, edge-to-edge display of the iPhone X — only with an LDC screen instead of OLED.

Japanese Apple blog Macotakara published a May 13 report claiming there are currently three prototypes of the phone in existence and that Apple has yet to begin producing it, according to sources interviewed at the Japan IT Week Spring 2018 Mobile Expo. The same report stated that it will likely come to market sometime between July 1 and September.

So don’t expect to hear about iPhone SE (2018) at WWDC.

New Apple iPhones for 2018: iPhone X Plus ($999)

Next on the list is the rumored iPhone X Plus, which would essentially be a beefed-up version of the iPhone X. A May 8 Macotakara report claimed that it could come with an edge-to-edge, 6.5-inch OLED display.

The same report claimed that it would be around 0.2mm thicker than the iPhone 8 Plus, which would make it comparable to the iPhone X that comes in at 7.7mm thick. Samsung — the company contracted to make most of Apple’s phone displays — is expected to begin production of this iPhone X Plus as early as May or June, according to the Economic Daily News.

We don’t know much else other than these specs and a tentative production date, but a visual artist designed some of their own renders of the rumored iPhone in a concept video of the iPhone X Plus that you can keep looping until Apple officially announces something.

New Apple iPhones for 2018: iPhone X2 ($899)

The iPhone X Plus has also been said to be being released alongside a direct successor to the iPhone X. This phone has been predicted to have a 5.8-inch, OLED display. MacRumors also reported that it will likely be the same size as the current iPhone X, aside from a larger rear camera.

Although this second generation iPhone X might sound a lot like its predecessor, it will likely be cheaper. The Economic Daily News predicted it could start at $100 less than what the iPhone X is currently selling for.

In order to pull off this decrease in price, Apple could lower the cost of manufacturing its phone by as much as 10 percent, according to DigiTimes. So your wallet might be spared this iPhone season.

New Apple iPhones for 2018: iPhone 8S (Unknown Price)

Aside from these three rumored heavy-hitters, there has also been chatter around a potential revamp of the colorful iPhone 5c. The last time we’ve heard any mentions of rainbow-colored Apple phones was back in 2013, but now the company might bring back these phones as an adjacent generation to the aforementioned iPhone trio.

According to a note written by analyst Jun Zhang that was leaked by AppleInsider, Apple “could launch multiple colors for the iPhone 8s (LCD model)” during the latter half of this year. Zhang’s report did not cite any of the firm’s usual sources, making this prediction speculative at best.

The analyst attempts to back up his claims by stating this could be a move to target a “younger consumer market.” This would make some sense, seeing at the iPhone 5c was a bit of an unsung success. According to Forbes, the smartphone drove more profits than the iPhone 5, yet it was often painted as a flop by the media. It could be that Apple is trying to recreate its past successes — sort of like how it’s reviving the iPhone SE.

On Thursday, a leaker known as Mr. White tweeted a photo of what looks like iPhone display panels with the caption “iPhone X 6.1 OLED.” The problem is that Apple’s 6.1-inch model is said to ship with an LCD screen instead of OLED. It’s not clear what 2018 iPhone model this screen is for, if it’s legitimate. Read more here.

We probably won’t get any solid information regarding all four of these phone models until the iPhone Keynote in September. But until then, at least we have something to dream about.