Apple Store Goes Down Ahead of iPhone SE Pre-Orders

Friday April 17, 2020 3:37 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

Apple has taken down its online store in preparation for iPhone SE pre-orders, due to start today at 5:00 a.m. Pacific Time.

apple store down iphone se 2020
The original ‌iPhone‌ SE was a budget 4-inch ‌iPhone‌ before being discontinued in 2018, but Apple has revived the name in with a new 4.7-inch model announced earlier this week that looks like an ‌iPhone‌ 8 with internals similar to those of the ‌iPhone‌ 11.

There's a single-lens 12-megapixel rear camera in the ‌iPhone‌ SE with an f/1.8 aperture, optical image stabilization, and support for Portrait Mode and Portrait Lighting. Night Mode is not supported, but there is Smart HDR, Wide color support, and more, plus an LED True Tone flash with Slow Sync capabilities.

Because the ‌iPhone‌ SE is physically identical to an ‌iPhone‌ 8, it continues to feature thick top and bottom bezels. The top bezel houses the 7-megapixel front-facing camera and microphone while the bottom bezel includes a Touch ID Home button for fingerprint-based biometric authentication.

Like the ‌iPhone‌ XR, ‌iPhone‌ 11, 11 Pro, and 11 Pro Max, the ‌iPhone‌ SE features support for Haptic Touch instead of 3D Touch. That means ‌‌3D Touch‌‌ has officially been eliminated from Apple's ‌‌iPhone‌‌ lineup as the now-discontinued ‌‌iPhone‌‌ 8 was the last ‌‌iPhone‌‌ Apple sold that supported ‌‌3D Touch‌‌.

The UK Apple Store shows a different placeholder

The second-generation ‌iPhone‌ SE features an A13 Bionic chip, 3GB RAM, and a low starting price of $399. Comes in white, black, and red, and comes with 64, 128, or 256GB of storage. First pre-orders are expected to ship in one week.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by Joe Rossignol

Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...

• 148 comments

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by Joe Rossignol

Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by Juli Clover

In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...

• 154 comments

Apple Shows Off a Key Reason to Upgrade to the iPhone 17

Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by Joe Rossignol

Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie. "Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...

• 79 comments

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by Joe Rossignol

While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...

• 37 comments

Top Rated Comments

bernoulli

76 months ago

Not for me, thank you.
I find it amazing that somehow there is a lot of buzz, even for underwhelming products like this one.

cool story.
I’m sorry that people have different opinions and needs.

Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

I7guy

76 months ago

Lol, you could wait until tomorrow to order this phone and you won't have any trouble getting it. I don't know why but it annoys me that Apple treats the launch of a retread phone like this like its some massive event that people are going to be rushing to buy.

Because people will rush to buy this phone and it is a big event for Apple and people who want this phone.

Apple, you are releasing a phone that has been out for 3 years and have put new components in it that are already outdated. Let's not overthink this one.

Apple did their homework and knows not everyone cares about the latest camera and OLED. Other than Touch ID everything else is current. There’s not much to overthink.

Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Emanuel Rodriguez

76 months ago

No I'm not suggesting that and no where did my earlier statement imply that. I just don't think that anyone using an iPhone 7 that is working fine for them is going to spend $400+ for nearly the exact same phone.

Store is back up.

better CPU, better gpu, more camera features (because of the better ISP in that CPU, mostly), better wifi, better cellular speeds, also that nice express card power save feature (useful if you're in certain cities). Enough to warrant an upgrade to what likely will be the last model of iPhone in that form factor. I thought the iPhone 8 was it, but I'm glad to be wrong.

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

44267547

76 months ago

Now they have released a phone that's been out since 2017 and stuck in last years components. Same camera with portrait mode added.

Just based off your comments in this thread, you have a very severe misunderstanding of this phone and it’s market. The fact that you’re so fixated on ‘last year‘s components’ shows that consumers don’t even pay attention (Let alone understand or care to), they see the price point and familiarized form factor, that’s it. You’re taking the simplicity of something so straightforward and over complicating it.

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

nermal0

76 months ago

Name any other tech company whose online store goes down for 2 hours when they add a new product to it

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)