The iPhone 17e could land ‘imminently’, with no price rise – but it might not be much of an upgrade

• The iPhone 17e will reportedly land "imminently"
• It's also said to stick at its predecessor's $599 starting price
• However, aside from a new chipset and MagSafe it might not have many upgrades

There could be both good and bad news for Apple’s upcoming mid-ranger, as the latest leak suggests it will land very soon, and with no price rise – but also with little in the way of upgrades.

According to Apple watcher Mark Gurman, writing for Bloomberg (via Apple Insider), the iPhone 17e will land “imminently”, which could mean within the next few days, though we’ve previously heard that it might launch on February 19, which is slightly further out but could still be considered imminent, depending on your perspective.

The even better news is that it will apparently start at $599 in the US, meaning no price rise there, at least for the base model. If the iPhone 16e’s pricing applies elsewhere too then you can expect a starting price of £599 / AU$999 in the UK and Australia.

Barely an upgrade

But Gurman also claims that this phone won’t see too many changes from its predecessor, with the main upgrades simply being an A19 chipset (up from an A18), and MagSafe support.

Such modest upgrades would go some way to explaining how Apple could keep last year’s price, even in the face of rising RAM prices. And Gurman is a very reputable source, so it’s likely that this information is accurate.

If so, then even with its limited upgrades the iPhone 17e has a shot at being one of the more compelling mid-range phones to land this year, especially as the Pixel 10a – which is likely to be one of its main rivals, and which is also set to launch soon – is reportedly even less of an upgrade over its predecessor.

So with big-name alternatives to the iPhone 17e potentially either costing more or offering less, Apple could find itself in a good position with this upcoming phone – even if it doesn’t sound remotely exciting.

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