4-inch ‘iPhone 5se’ to feature A9 chip, always-on ‘Hey Siri’, and more

BY Rajesh Pandey

Published 25 Jan 2016

4-inch iPhone beside the iPhone 5

Up until now, reports have claimed that the 4-inch ‘iPhone 5se’ from Apple will come with an A8 chip and M8 co-processor. However, as per the latest information received by 9to5Mac, Apple now plans on using the A9 chipset and M9 motion co-processor inside its new 4-inch iPhone.

Apparently, Apple is testing multiple variants of the iPhone with some them being powered by an A8 chipset and others being powered by an A9 chipset, but in the end, it has decided to go with the more powerful A9 chipset. Beside being more powerful, the A9/M9 chipset from Apple will also make sure that the 4-inch iPhone will feature always-on ‘Hey Siri’ functionality as seen on the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

While the reason behind Apple going in for the more powerful A9 chipset on the 4-inch iPhone is not yet clear, 9to5Mac speculates that the company did not want the iPhone to run on a two-generation old chipset within a mere six months of its launch.

Additionally, 9to5Mac source claims that Apple plans on replacing the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus with the 4-inch iPhone later this year when it introduces the new iPhone 7. This means that after the launch of the iPhone 7, the 4-inch iPhone will bring up the lower-end of Apple’s smartphone lineup followed by the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, with the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus sitting right at the top.

Lastly, the source claims that Apple will continue to offer the 4-inch iPhone with only 16GB of base storage. Just like the iPhone 6 series though, the company will offer 64GB as the next storage variant instead of 32GB.

Read: 4-inch iPhone 5se captured alongside the iPhone 6s

Apple is rumored to unveil the new 4-inch ‘iPhone 5se’ sometime in March. The company is also expected to unveil new watch bands for Apple Watch and Skylake-powered MacBooks at the same event.

[Via 9to5Mac]