Gaming subscription services are all the rage now, but Apple Arcade isn’t quite like Google Stadia or Xbox Game Pass. So if you’ve got questions about it, we’ve got plenty of answers.

Updated 07/07/23: Slay the Spire+ and LEGO DUPLO World+ are now available.

What is Apple Arcade?

Apple Arcade is a gaming subscription service for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and AppleTV that features more than 150 games. The games are a mix of genres and styles, and include original games you’ll only find on the service and others that can be found on the regular App Store or even other platforms. Apple Arcade isn’t a streaming service like Xbox Live Cloud Gaming or GeForce NOW. Games must be downloaded onto your device in order to be played.

What do I need to run it?

Apple Arcade is available as part of iOS 13, iPad OS 13, tvOS 13, and macOS Catalina or later. Some of the more visually-intensive games may only run well on newer hardware, though, and some Mac games require macOS 11 (Big Sur).

How much does Apple Arcade cost?

Apple Arcade costs $4.99 per month, and you’ll also get a one-month free trial. You can also sign up for the annual plan, which is $49.99.

If you’re currently on the $4.99 month-to-month plan and want to switch to the annual plan, you can do so on your iPhone or iPad. Open the App Store app, then tap your account icon in the upper right. Tap Subscriptions, then tap the entry for Apple Arcade. Here, you can switch to the annual plan. Apple Arcade is also included in the
Apple One subscription bundles, which range from $10 a month to $30 a month.

How do I sign up for Apple Arcade?

There isn’t an Apple Arcade app—it’s built into the App Store. On your iPhone, iPad, or Mac open the App Store and look for the Apple Arcade tab at the bottom of the screen (or in the left column on macOS). A sign-up screen with a Try It Free button will appear. After the trial you’ll be charged either the monthly or annual fee, depending on your selection. When subscribing, you’ll need to enter your Apple ID password or use Touch ID or Face ID to sign in, and you’ll have to confirm your subscription purchase a few times.

Once you’re done with the sign up, the Arcade section of the App Store shows what games are available to you. To access a game, tap on it in the App Store, then tap the Get button. When the game is done installing on your device, the Get button turns into a Play button, and you can tap it to launch the game. The game app icon will also appear on your device’s Home page.

On the Apple TV, there actually is an Arcade app. Open that to see the sign-up offer. You’ll also find an Arcade tab within the App Store.

Does my subscription include family sharing?

Yes. One $4.99 per month subscription can be shared between up to six people (including you).

How do I cancel Apple Arcade?

First off, keep in mind that if you cancel Apple Arcade (either before your free trial is up or after subscribing), you won’t be able to keep playing the games unless you re-subscribe. If you’re okay with that, you can use the same process you use to cancel any other subscription service. Here’s the easiest way to do it on the iPhone and iPad:

1. Open the App Store app and tap on your profile photo in the upper right.
2. In the screen that pops up, press Subscriptions near the top of the page.
3. You’ll then see a list of active subscriptions, and Apple Arcade should be listed there. Tap it.
4. You’ll either see Cancel Free Trial or Cancel Subscription toward the middle of the page that appears. Tap whatever option is available, then Confirm Cancellation.

And here’s how to cancel Apple Arcade on the Mac:

1. Open the App Store app and then press the icon with your profile photo in the lower left.
2. The Account window will appear, and you should then click View Information at the top of the window. Enter your password when/if prompted.
3. When your Account Information appears, scroll down to the Manage section and click the Manage link to the right of Subscriptions.
4. When the list of your active subscriptions appears, click Edit to the right of Apple Arcade.
5. Toward the middle of the page that appears, you’ll see a button that says either Cancel Free Trial or Cancel Subscription. Click it, then click Confirm Cancellation and Confirm.

How do I access Apple Arcade games?

Apple Arcade is its own tab in the App Store. You can find games to download there, and grab anything you like without fear of being charged, seeing ads, or having to later buy in-app purchases.

Once downloaded, Apple Arcade games are found just like any other app on your device.

Does Apple curate the games on Apple Arcade?

Yes. Apple says it is “handpicking the games in Apple Arcade” and that it curates them “based on originality, quality, creativity, fun, and their appeal to players of all ages.”

Do Apple Arcade games have in-app purchases?

No. In Apple’s words, “since every game includes access to the full experience, including all game features, content, and future updates, no additional purchases will be required.” Even games that have in-app purchases on the App Store won’t have any in Apple Arcade.

Do Apple Arcade games have ads?

Also no. On a related note, Apple says Apple Arcade has no ad tracking.

Is Apple Arcade a game streaming service like Google’s Stadia or Xbox Game Streaming?

No. All Apple Arcade are downloaded.

Are Apple Arcade games available on other systems?

Apple Arcade games were originally exclusive to Apple Arcade—not in the regular App Store nor on any other mobile platform. Some would appear on PC or consoles, but never in a subscription service.

Apple has since relaxed that policy somewhat, and you can find games in Apple Arcade that also exist in the regular App Store or on Android. They are usually denoted by a “+” at the end, to differentiate the Apple Arcade version (free to download with your subscription, and free from ads or in-app purchases) from the App Store version. For example
Mini Metro (App Store) vs.
Mini Metro+ (Apple Arcade).

Will I still be able to buy games on the App Store without an Apple Arcade subscription?

Yes. There’s no sign that the existing games model will be going away, as it works fine for freemium games like Idle Heroes or Toon Blast. Apple is focusing on “handpicked” games for Apple Arcade, so there’s little doubt that the library will be much smaller than the thousands of games available in the App Store.

Are there demos for Apple Arcade games?

No, and they’re not really necessary. Like App Store apps, games download quickly and can easily be removed if you don’t want to keep it anymore.

Apple partly envisions Apple Arcade as a way of letting players try out games with more freedom than the App Store currently allows (which is basically none). In Apple’s words, “rather than pay upfront for each game, a subscription to Apple Arcade will give players the opportunity to try any game in the service without risk.”

The service has a free trial, though, as we’ve seen with both Apple Music and Apple News+.

Am I able to keep playing Apple Arcade games if I cancel my subscription?

No. As with most subscription services, you only have access while you’re a subscriber.

Can I use controllers with Apple Arcade games?

Yes. In additional to traditional MFi (Made for iOS) controllers, you can pair some specific Bluetooth controllers for both the
PlayStation 4 and
Xbox One with either your iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV. Since many Apple Arcade games are playable on Mac and Apple TV (where controller support is more common), many games will support them. Some games, especially those that are also available in the broader App Store and only for iPhone or iPad, have no controller support.

How often are new games released?

Games are typically released on Fridays, but not every Friday. The release schedule is sporadic—some Fridays there are no new games released, some see one game released, some more than one. Sometimes there will be no new game release, but existing games will get a big update with new content and features.

On average, new games are released at a rate of about one every 2-3 weeks, though this may improve as Apple has loosened the rules around Apple Arcade exclusivity.

What games have been released so far?

There are over 150 games available for Apple Arcade, and the list grows all the time.

Title	Publisher	Release Date
A Fold Apart	Lightning Rod Games	04/17/20
A Monster’s Expedition	Draknek Limited	09/10/20
Agent Intercept	Prodigy Design	09/19/19
Air Twister	YS Net Inc.	06/24/22
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure	ustwo	12/11/20
All of You	Alike Studio	11/06/20
Alto’s Odyssey: The Lost City	Team Alto / Snowman	07/16/21
Alto’s Adventure—Remastered	Team Alto / Snowman	03/25/22
Amazing Bomberman	Konami	08/05/22
Angry Birds Reloaded	Rovio	07/16/21
Asphalt 8: Airborne+	Gameloft	08/27/21
Assemble With Care	ustwo	09/19/19
ATONE: Heart of the Elder Tree	Wildboy Studios	09/19/19
Badland Party	HypeHype Oy	05/06/22
Baldo: The Guardian Owls	Naps Team	08/27/21
Ballistic Baseball	Gameloft	10/18/19
Battleheart Legacy+	Mika Mobile	11/04/22
BattleSky Brigade: Harpooner	BattleBrew Productions	09/19/19
Beyond a Steel Sky	Revolution Software	06/26/20
Beyond Blue	E-Line Media	04/17/20
Big Time Sports	Frosty Pop Games	09/19/19
Bleak Sword	Devolver Digital	09/19/19
Bold Moves+	Red Games Co.	06/09/23
Bridge Constructor+	Headup GmbH	02/04/22
Butter Royale	Mighty Bear Games	01/24/20
Card of Darkness	Pendleton Ward	09/19/19
Cardpocalypse	Versus Evil	09/19/19
Castle Crumble	Orbital Knight	02/03/23
Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls	Konami	09/17/21
Cat Quest II	The Gentlebros.	09/19/19
Charrua Soccer	Batovi Games	02/07/20
Chess Universe+	Tilting Point	05/04/23
ChuChu Rocket! Universe	Sega	09/19/19
Cityscapes: Sim Builder	Playstack	05/04/23
Clap Hanz Golf	Claphanz	04/02/21
Clue: The Classic Mystery Game+	Marmalade Game Studio	03/24/23
Construction Simulator 2+	Astragon Entertainment	04/15/22
Cooking Mama: Cuisine!	Office Create Corp.	06/17/22
Cozy Grove	Spry Fox	03/18/21
Crashlands+	Butterscotch Shenanigans, Inc.	01/14/21
Crayola Create and Play+	Red Games Co.	10/29/21
Creaks	Amanita Design	07/10/20
Cricket Through the Ages	Devolver Digital	09/19/19
Crossy Road+	Hipster Whale	10/08/21
Crossy Road Castle	Hipster Whale	02/28/20
Cut the Rope Remastered	Paladin Studios	04/02/21
Dandara: Trials of Fear+	Raw Fury	12/03/21
Dead End Job	Headup GmbH, Ant Workshop	09/19/19
Dead Cells+	Playdigious	12/02/22
Dear Reader	Local No. 12	09/19/19
Decoherence	Efecto Estudios	10/11/19
Detonation Racing	Electric Square	07/30/21
Discolored	Shifty Eye Games & Jason Godbey	11/08/19
Disney Coloring World+	StoryToys Entertainment	05/04/23
Disney Getaway Blast+	Gameloft	05/04/23
Disney Melee Mania	Mighty Bear Games	12/17/21
Disney SpellStruck	Artist Arcade	05/04/23
Doctor Who: An Unlikely Heist	Tilting Point	04/07/23
Dodo Peak	Moving Pieces Interactive	09/19/19
Don’t Bug Me!	Frosty Pop Games	09/19/19
Doodle God Universe	JoyBits	07/16/21
Doomsday Vault	Flightless	01/03/20
Down in Bermuda	Yak & Co	09/19/19
Dread Nautical	Zen Studios	09/19/19
EarthNight	Cleaversoft	09/19/19
Episode XOXO	Episode Interactive	01/06/23
Exit the Gungeon	Devolver Digital	09/19/19
Explottens	WRP Pvt.	09/19/19
Fallen Knight	FairPlay Studios	10/25/19
Fantasian	Mistwalker	04/01/21
Farm It!	Tummy Games	03/26/21
Farming Simulator 20+	Giants Software	05/04/23
Farmside	The Label	02/17/23
Fledgling Heroes	Subtle Boom	09/19/19
Football Manager 2023 Touch	SEGA	11/08/22
Frenzic: Overtime	The Iconfactory	06/18/21
Frogger and the Rumbling Ruins	Konami	06/03/22
Frogger in Toy Town	Konami	09/19/19
Galaga Wars+	Bandai Namco	11/12/21
Game Dev Story+	Kairosoft Co., Ltd	06/18/21
Game of Thrones: Tale of Crows	Devolver Digital	08/07/20
Garden Tails: Match and Grow	Playdots, Inc.	09/16/22
The Gardens Between+	The Voxel Agents	10/14/22
Gear.Club Stradale	Eden Games	04/08/22
Getting Over It+	Bennett Foddy	05/04/23
Gibbon: Beyond the Trees	Broken Rules	02/25/22
Gin Rummy Classic+	MobilityWare	10/07/22
Goat Simulator+	Coffee Stain Publishing	05/13/22
Grand Mountain Adventure+	Toppluva	04/28/23
Grindstone	Capybara Games	09/19/19
GRIS+	Devolver	09/30/22
Guildlings	Sirvo Studios, Inc.	11/08/19
Hanx101 Trivia	BlueLine Studios Inc.	09/02/22
Hearts: Card Game+	MobilityWare	01/07/22
HEROish	Sunblink	07/22/22
Hexaflip: The Action Puzzler	Rogue Games, Inc.	09/19/19
Hidden Folks+	Adriaan de Jongh	01/28/22
Hill Climb Racing+	Fingersoft	05/04/23
HitchHiker	Versus Evil	03/26/21
Hogwash	Bossa Studios	10/25/19
Horizon Chase 2	Aquiris Game Studio	09/09/22
Hot Lava	Klei Entertainment	09/19/19
Human: Fall Flat+	505 Games	03/31/23
HyperBrawl Tournament	Milkey Tea Limited	09/19/19
Illustrated	BorderLeap	01/13/23
INKS.+	State of Play Games	06/25/21
INMOST	Chucklefish Limited	10/11/19
Iron Marines+	Ironhide Irl	05/04/23
JellyCar Worlds	Walaber Entertainment	12/09/22
Jenny LeClue	Mografi	09/19/19
Jet Dragon	Grezzo Co.	06/16/23
Jetpack Joyride+	Halfbrick Studios	07/23/21
Jetpack Joyride 2	Halfbrick Studios	08/19/22
Jigsaw Puzzle by MobilityWare+	MobilityWare	06/10/22
Jumper Jon	Ogre Pixel	11/01/19
Kimono Cats	HamaNature Studios	03/03/23
King’s League II	Kurechi Sdn. Bhd.	09/19/19
Kingdom Rush Frontiers TD+	Ironhide Irl	11/12/21
Kingdom Rush Vengeance TD+	Ironhide Irl	07/29/22
Kingdom Two Crowns+	Raw Fury	05/04/23
Kings of the Castle	Frosty Pop	01/17/20
Layton’s Mystery Journey+	Level-5 Inc.	09/03/21
Legend of the Skyfish 2	Crescent Moon Games	04/03/20
Legends of Kingdom Rush	Ironhide Game Studio	06/11/21
LEGO Brawls	The Lego Group	09/19/19
LEGO Builder’s Journey	The Lego Group	12/19/19
LEGO DUPLO World+	StoryToys Entertainment	07/07/23
LEGO Star Wars Battles	TT Games	09/24/21
LEGO Star Wars: Castaways	Gameloft	11/19/21
Leo’s Fortune+	1337 & Senri LLC	06/25/21
Lifelike	kunabi brother	10/25/19
Lifeline+	3 Minute Games	02/24/23
Lifeslide	Dreamteck	09/19/19
Limbo+	Playdead	05/04/23
Little Orpheus	Sumo Digital	06/12/20
Love You to Bits+	Alike Studio	08/26/22
Lumen	Lykkegaard International	02/05/21
Manifold Garden	William Chyr Studio	10/18/19
Marble It Up: Mayhem!	Marble it up	11/08/19
Marble Knights	WayForward	09/18/20
MasterChef: Let’s Cook!	Tilting Point	09/03/21
Mind Symphony	Rogue Games, Inc.	10/11/19
Mini Motorways	Dinosaur Polo Club	09/19/19
Millionaire Trivia: TV Game+	Uken	06/30/23
Monomals	Picomy	11/01/19
Monster Hunter Stories+	Capcom	08/06/21
Monument Valley 2+	ustwo games	03/11/22
Moonshot – A Journey Home	Noodlecake	04/22/22
Murder Mystery Machine	Blazing Griffin	09/19/19
Mutazione	Die Gute Fabrik	09/19/19
My Bowling 3D+	iWare Designs	07/01/22
My Little Pony: Mane Merge	Gameloft	12/16/22
My Talking Tom+	Outfit7 Limited	08/12/22
My Town Home – Family Games+	My Town Games	05/04/23
NBA 2K21 Arcade Edition	2K Sports	04/02/21
NBA 2K22 Arcade Edition	2K Sports	10/19/21
NBA 2K23 Arcade Edition	2K Sports	10/21/22
Necrobarista	Route 59	07/17/20
Neo Cab	Chance Agency	09/19/19
Neversong	Serenity Forge	05/01/20
Next Stop Nowhere	Night School Studio	08/14/20
Nickelodeon Extreme Tennis	Viacom International	01/21/22
Nightmare Farm	Hit-Point Co., Ltd.	10/05/19
No Way Home	SMG Studio	01/10/20
NUTS	Noodlecake Studios	01/22/21
Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm	Cornfox & Bros.	09/19/19
Oceanhorn: Chronos Dungeon	Cornfox & Bros.	01/08/21
Octodad: Dadliest Catch+	Young Horses	05/04/23
Oddmar+	Mobje Ltd.	12/03/21
Old Man’s Journey	Broken Rules	11/18/22
Operator 41	Shifty Eye Games	09/19/19
Osmos+	Hemisphere Games	03/17/23
Outlanders	Pomelo Games	09/19/19
Over the Alps	Stave Studios	09/19/19
Overland	Finji	09/19/19
PAC-MAN Party Royale	BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment	10/18/19
Painty Mob	Devolver Digital	09/19/19
Patterned	BorderLeap	09/19/19
Pilgrims	Amanita Design	10/05/19
Pocket Build+	MoonBear LTD	04/01/22
Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On!	Game Freak	01/20/23
Populus Run	FIFTYTWO	01/29/21
Possessions	Noodlecake Studios	09/19/19
PPKP+	Shimada Toshiro	05/04/23
Pro Darts 2022+	iWare Designs	05/27/22
Pro Snooker & Pool 2022+	iWare Designs Ltd.	04/15/22
Projection: First Light	Blowfish Studios	09/19/19
Prune+	Joel McDonald	04/29/22
Punch Planet	Sector-K Games	09/19/19
Rayman Mini	Ubisoft	09/19/19
Red Reign	Ninja Kiwi Limited	09/19/19
Redout: Space Assault	34BigThings	10/05/19
Reigns: Beyond	Devolver Digital	11/06/20
Retro Bowl+	New Star R&D	06/23/23
Retro Goal+	New Star R&D	06/23/23
Riptide GP: Renegade+	Vector Unit	02/10/23
Rosie’s Reality	RosieReality	11/15/19
Roundguard	Wonderbelly Games	03/13/20
Samorost 3+	Amanita Design	07/08/22
Samurai Jack: Battle Through Time	Cartoon Network	08/21/20
Sayonara Wild Hearts	Annapurna Interactive	09/19/19
Scrappers	Q-Games	04/10/20
Secret Oops!	Mixedbag	01/31/20
Shadow Blade+	Crescent Moon Games	03/04/22
Shantae and the Seven Sirens	WayForward	09/19/19
Shinsekai: Into the Depths	Capcom	09/19/19
ShockRods	Stainless Games	10/11/19
Shovel Knight Dig	Yacht Club Games	09/23/22
Simon’s Cat – Story Time	Tactile Games Limited	04/02/21
Skate City	Snowman	09/19/19
Slash Quest	Noodlecake Studios	10/01/20
Slay the Spire+	Humble Bundle	07/07/23
Snake.io+	Kooapps	05/04/23
Sneaky Sasquatch	RAC7	09/19/19
Sociable Soccer	Rogue Games, Inc.	11/08/19
Solitaire Stories	Red Games Co.	07/02/21
SongPop Party	Gameloft	04/02/21
Sonic Dash+	Sega	04/08/22
Sonic Racing	Sega	09/19/19
South of the Circle	State of Play	10/30/20
Sp!ng	SMG Studio	03/05/21
Spaceland	Tortuga Games	09/19/19
Spades: Card Game+	MobilityWare	01/07/22
Speed Demons	Radiangames	09/19/19
Spek	RAC7 Games	09/19/19
Spelldrifter	Free Range Games	09/19/19
Spider Solitaire: Card Game+	MobilityWare	10/07/22
Spidersaurs	WayForward	09/19/19
Spire Blast	Orbital Knight sp.	01/22/21
Splitter Critters+	RAC7 Games	12/10/21
Spongebob SquarePants: Patty Pursuit	Nickelodeon	05/28/20
Spyder	Sumo_Digital	03/20/20
Squiggle Drop	Noodlecake	01/27/23
Star Fetched	Crescent Moon Games	11/01/19
Star Trek: Legends	Tilting Point LLC	04/02/21
Stela	SkyBox Labs	10/11/19
Stellar Commanders	Blindflug Studios	09/19/19
Steven Universe: Unleash the Light	Cartoon Network	11/27/19
Stitch.	Lykkegaard Europe	10/28/22
Stranded Sails	Shifty Eye Games	09/19/19
Subway Surfers Tag	Sybo Games	07/15/22
Summon Quest	The Label	04/21/23
Super Leap Day	Nitrome	08/06/21
Super Impossible Road	Rogue Games, Inc.	09/19/19
Super Mega Mini Party	Red Games Co, LLC	11/01/19
Super Stickman Golf 3+	Noodlecake	08/06/21
Survival Z	Ember Entertainment	02/19/21
Taiko no Tatsujin Pop Tap Beat	BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment	04/02/21
Takeshi and Hiroshi	Oink Games Inc.	11/08/19
Tales of Memo	Tendays Studio	10/25/19
Tangle Tower	SFB Games	09/19/19
Temple Run+	Imangi Studios	05/04/23
Temple Run: Puzzle Adventure	Scopely, Inc.	09/17/21
Tetris Beat	N3twork Inc.	08/20/21
The Bradwell Conspiracy	Bossa Studios	10/05/19
The Collage Atlas	Robot House Games Ltd	10/16/20
The Enchanted World	Noodlecake Studios	09/19/19
The Get Out Kids	Frosty Pop Games	09/19/19
The Last Campfire	Hello Games	08/27/20
The Loud House: Outta Control	Nickelodeon	02/14/20
The Lullaby of Life	1 Simple Game	07/24/20
The Mosaic	Raw Fury	11/01/19
The Oregon Trail	Gameloft	04/02/21
The Otherside	The Label	05/08/20
The Pathless	Annapurna Interactive	11/12/20
The Pinball Wizard	Frosty Pop Games	09/19/19
The Survivalists	Team17	10/08/20
Things That Go Bump	Tinybop Inc.	10/18/19
Thumper: Pocket Edition+	Drool LLC	10/01/21
Time Locker+	Sotaro Otsuka	05/04/23
tint.	Lykkegaard International	09/19/19
Tiny Wings+	Andreas Illiger	10/15/21
TMNT Splintered Fate	Paramount Global	05/04/23
Transformers Tactical Arena	Red Games Co	11/05/21
Towaga: Among Shadows	Noodlecake Studios	09/19/19
Towers of Everland	Cobra Mobile Limited	05/22/20
UFO on Tape: First Contact	Revolutionary Concepts	11/08/19
Ultimate Rivals: The Court	Bit Fry Games	07/09/21
Ultimate Rivals: The Rink	Bit Fry Games	12/12/19
Various Daylife	Square Enix	09/19/19
Very Little Nightmares+	Bandai Namco	05/04/23
Warp Drive	Supergonk	11/27/20
Warped Kart Racers	Electric Square	05/20/22
Way of the Turtle	Illusion Labs	09/19/19
What the Car?	Triband ApS	05/04/23
What the Golf?	Fig	09/19/19
Where Cards Fall	Snowman	09/19/19
Winding Worlds	KO_OP	05/15/20
Wonderbox: The Adventure Maker	Aquiris	04/01/21
Word Laces	minimega	09/19/19
World of Demons	PlatinumGames	04/02/21
World’s End Club	IzanagiGames	09/04/20
Wurdweb	Aran & Adriaan	08/13/21
Wylde Flowers	Studio Drydock	02/22/22
Yaga	Versus Evil	10/25/19
Zen Pinball Party	ZEN Studios	09/03/21
Zombie Rollerz: Pinball Heroes	Firefly Games	12/04/20
Zookeeper World	Kiteretsu Inc.	09/10/21

Personal Software

For a product that isn’t debuting until 2024, Apple has said a lot about the Vision Pro, its mixed reality headset. Apple spent nearly an hour in the WWDC keynote discussing it. It has rolled out developer tools for visionOS, which has given us even more clarity about what visionOS can and can’t do.

And yet I remain firmly convinced that Apple hasn’t told us the whole story. The WWDC keynote was the time to make a first impression–but there’s half a year to go before the final story is told. As a result, Apple emphasized the features of the device that it felt would best represent the device. It emphasized the fact that it’s an augmented-reality product that keeps you connected with people around you as a way to blunt criticism that Apple’s trying to use its technology to wall people off from each other.

With the Vision Pro, there’s more to come. Here’s where I think Apple will have a much larger story to tell.

Yes, it’s really a VR headset

By defaulting to a view of the world around you and requiring that the user dial reality out via the Digital Crown, Apple sends the signal that the Vision Pro is an augmented-reality headset. But the truth is, it’s a VR headset that emulates AR, and that emulation can be dropped easily. If you don’t want to work in the very spacious rooms on display in Apple’s demo video, you can just as easily work in a virtual-reality environment.

But even more than that, app developers can create entire VR experiences within their apps. While Apple will strongly encourage apps to work in augmented reality–and if you want to walk around objects, it’s required–that won’t stop the ability for apps that do what we think of as “traditional” VR experiences.

In other words, Apple didn’t talk about VR games, the most popular category of software in existing VR hardware, but VR games will absolutely be a part of the Vision Pro experience. No, we don’t know how good Apple’s hand- and eye-tracking technology will be when it comes to the needs of various VR games. But we will certainly find out.

Yes, there will be fitness apps

Apple didn’t announce any Vision Pro integration with its Fitness+ service, which I admit was a bit of a surprise. On Meta’s headsets, apps like Supernatural and Beat Saber have gained huge followings as ways to spice up the drudgery of regular workouts.

I can’t say whether Fitness+ will appear on Vision Pro at launch–Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggests it won’t–but if Apple doesn’t fill the gap, someone else will. Savvy app developers will try to be the next Beat Saber. And no matter how heavy or awkward the Vision Pro might be, no matter how much sweat the Vision Pro’s 3-D-knit headband might soak in, people will try to use VR for workouts. It’s going to happen.

Yes, there will be Memoji

Apple wanted to impress everyone with the Digital Persona, a replica of your face created via an in-depth initial scan that’s animated by Vision Pro sensors looking at your eye, face, and body gestures. I found them creepy, and I definitely wasn’t the only person who used the Vision Pro at WWDC who thought so.

I’m pretty sure Apple has never intended the Digital Persona to be the only option for users who need a proxy for interaction with other people when wearing the Vision Pro. It’s technology Apple was proud of, so it showed it off as a way to boast–as well as a way of explaining how the EyeSight feature was created.

But it can’t be the only option. Let’s start with the fact that not everyone will feel comfortable using a representation of themselves as they are if they can help it. There’s a good reason why Apple’s Memoji creation interface lets you choose a wide range of characteristics, including many that don’t even exist in human beings! Or you can choose to be an animated emoji character.

And really, if we’re being honest, it’s highly likely that the entire Memoji project was an early move in the direction of avatars for the Vision Pro. Do we really think Apple’s going to insist on Digital Personas for everyone, even if they’d rather just be an elephant? Not gonna happen.

Yes, Siri will be involved

Apple’s film about the Vision Pro shows a user reading out a website address via voice at one point. It’s pretty much the only example of Apple’s voice assistant being shown with the headset. But it’s almost inconceivable that voice control won’t be a major portion of the device’s interface.

When I used the Vision Pro, there were numerous moments when I realized that rather than manipulating a virtual interface via hand gesture, I’d probably be better off just issuing a voice command. But Siri wasn’t active on our demo headsets, probably because it’s just not good enough–and because if Apple leaned into it too much, it would make the rest of the Vision Pro interface work the company has done look a little less special.

A reliance on voice control by all of those people in solitary environments, sprawled on couches or sitting in chairs, might also reinforce the antisocial nature of these devices–if you’re comfortable constantly interjecting to Siri, that implies that nobody else is within earshot–and that’s very much not the impression Apple wants to give right now.

But there’s just no way that visionOS is a platform that isn’t strongly linked to voice commands. It just makes too much sense.

Yes your other Apple devices will play a role

The Vision Pro appears to be a peer to the iPad and iPhone, capable of running iOS apps itself without any connection to those devices. Still, we didn’t see much direct integration between Apple’s most popular product and the Vision Pro.

Perhaps it won’t be there on day one, but I have a hard time believing that the iPhone won’t work tightly with Vision Pro. In macOS Sonoma, Apple’s introducing the concept of iPhone widgets that are projected right onto your Mac desktop. Why not extend that to Vision Pro? What about launching apps on your iPhone and viewing them right within Vision Pro? Maybe even more than one at a time?

Sure, you can look down and use your iPhone while using Vision Pro, but that’s always going to be a pretty limited experience. I have to think that Apple is working hard to figure out the best ways to use Continuity features to attach all of its devices to the Vision Pro–but most especially the iPhone.

The Vision Pro won’t be here for some time yet. We’ve heard Apple’s opening sales pitch, but it isn’t nearly time for the company to close the deal. There’s more to this story than we’ve heard so far. Stay tuned.

Virtual Reality

The words “generative AI” are on everyone’s lips at the moment. These technologies can create text, images, or video clips from simple prompts, and could change the media landscape as we know it. Adobe certainly thinks generative AI is worth further investigation, and is putting its marketing muscle behind Generative Fill, a new Photoshop feature that allows you to edit or manipulate your images in entirely new ways.

You can see for yourself how it works in the image below: drag the slider left and right to see the before and after. The blank areas were filled in–which is to say, extrapolated from what’s in the rest of the image–by Photoshop’s artificial intelligence. Thanks to technologies like this it has never been easier to transform images in portrait format into landscape format.

Generative Fill is still officially in beta. We’ve been using the Photoshop beta for several weeks now, and continue to be surprised by it on an almost daily basis. Some of the results are incredibly realistic. Others are so inaccurate they’re funny.

Installing and using the Photoshop beta

If you’d like to install the Photoshop beta, you’ll need a valid license for Adobe Creative Cloud and an active internet connection, as the Generative Fill feature requires cloud processing. Once you’ve got a license, open Creative Cloud and select Beta Apps in the lefthand tab. Select this and you can then install the Photoshop beta and start using it straight away.

Save 30% on Adobe Creative Cloud

Photoshop Generative Fill: Limitations

With great power comes great responsibility. Fortunately, Adobe knows that you can do great damage with AI, so there are many rules to maintain “the high quality of creative content.” Anyone who does not follow the Adobe Generative AI beta user guidelines risks having their account blocked.

Adobe prohibits the use of generative AI for certain purposes:

• Pornographic material or explicit nudity
• Hateful or highly offensive content that attacks or dehumanizes a group based on ethnicity, national origin, religion, serious disease or disability, gender, age or sexual orientation
• Graphic violence or gore
• The promotion, glorification, or threats of violence
• Illegal activities or goods
• Self-harm or the promotion of self-harm
• Depictions of nude minors or minors in a sexual manner
• Promotion of terrorism or violent extremism
• Disseminating misleading, fraudulent, or deceptive content that could lead to real-world harm
• Personal or private information of others (like full name, home address, phone number, email address, government-issued IDs, or any other information relating to an identifiable individual)

Photoshop Generative Fill: How to get started

The Generative Fill AI saves time. A lot of time. It retouches unwanted picture elements, enables new perspectives, and creates new things, all via text command. The possibilities are limitless. You simply select the area, using the appropriate selection tool (shortcut: M), in which the AI is to do its work.

To fill in the rest of an image, you’ll want to leave the search field blank to let Adobe’s AI scan the image and fill in the blank area. Photoshop then creates three different variants for you to choose from.

You can cycle between the different options. If you don’t like any of the options, you can try the process again or add some descriptive words to the search box.

Photoshop Generative Fill: False realities and extraordinary landscapes

At first glance, this appears to be a normal picture. At a second glance, you notice minor inconsistencies, such as the door handles and the house’s windows in the background. Things aren’t quite right.

Photographed Neuschwanstein Castle in portrait orientation, but want something more panoramic? No problem, Photoshop will fill in the rest.

Of course, the results have nothing to do with reality. Anyone familiar with the surroundings of Neuschwanstein Castle will recognize that the content created by the AI is artificial. It’s an image manipulation. But to the untrained eye, it’s pretty spectacular.

Photoshop still has big problems with people and animals. While the dog in the image below looks quite realistic, it’s immediately obvious that something is wrong with the man’s face.

Hands also pose a problem for Photoshop’s AI. The fingers are often distorted and look unnatural and occasionally have extra digits.

Realistic textures and large-scale AI content can also be problematic. It depends entirely on the subject. While AI can handle images from nature well, architecture is evidently more of a challenge.

AI manipulation is easiest to spot if you know the original image, of course, but large-scale changes can also be obvious. Small changes are the key to success. Would you even notice if we only extended the image by a few pixels? The AI proves particularly handy in cases where, for example, you want to turn a 3:2 image into a 16:9 one.

In another test, we took an image of a church tower (left), cropped it (center), and then set Photoshop to reconstruct the tower (right). Other than the church clock, the result is quite respectable.

This article originally appeared on Macwelt and was translated and edited by David Price.

Professional Software

For a product that isn’t debuting until 2024, Apple has said a lot about the Vision Pro, its mixed reality headset. Apple spent nearly an hour in the WWDC keynote discussing it. It has rolled out developer tools for visionOS, which has given us even more clarity about what visionOS can and can’t do.

And yet I remain firmly convinced that Apple hasn’t told us the whole story. The WWDC keynote was the time to make a first impression–but there’s half a year to go before the final story is told. As a result, Apple emphasized the features of the device that it felt would best represent the device. It emphasized the fact that it’s an augmented-reality product that keeps you connected with people around you as a way to blunt criticism that Apple’s trying to use its technology to wall people off from each other.

With the Vision Pro, there’s more to come. Here’s where I think Apple will have a much larger story to tell.

Yes, it’s really a VR headset

By defaulting to a view of the world around you and requiring that the user dial reality out via the Digital Crown, Apple sends the signal that the Vision Pro is an augmented-reality headset. But the truth is, it’s a VR headset that emulates AR, and that emulation can be dropped easily. If you don’t want to work in the very spacious rooms on display in Apple’s demo video, you can just as easily work in a virtual-reality environment.

But even more than that, app developers can create entire VR experiences within their apps. While Apple will strongly encourage apps to work in augmented reality–and if you want to walk around objects, it’s required–that won’t stop the ability for apps that do what we think of as “traditional” VR experiences.

In other words, Apple didn’t talk about VR games, the most popular category of software in existing VR hardware, but VR games will absolutely be a part of the Vision Pro experience. No, we don’t know how good Apple’s hand- and eye-tracking technology will be when it comes to the needs of various VR games. But we will certainly find out.

Yes, there will be fitness apps

Apple didn’t announce any Vision Pro integration with its Fitness+ service, which I admit was a bit of a surprise. On Meta’s headsets, apps like Supernatural and Beat Saber have gained huge followings as ways to spice up the drudgery of regular workouts.

I can’t say whether Fitness+ will appear on Vision Pro at launch–Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggests it won’t–but if Apple doesn’t fill the gap, someone else will. Savvy app developers will try to be the next Beat Saber. And no matter how heavy or awkward the Vision Pro might be, no matter how much sweat the Vision Pro’s 3-D-knit headband might soak in, people will try to use VR for workouts. It’s going to happen.

Yes, there will be Memoji

Apple wanted to impress everyone with the Digital Persona, a replica of your face created via an in-depth initial scan that’s animated by Vision Pro sensors looking at your eye, face, and body gestures. I found them creepy, and I definitely wasn’t the only person who used the Vision Pro at WWDC who thought so.

I’m pretty sure Apple has never intended the Digital Persona to be the only option for users who need a proxy for interaction with other people when wearing the Vision Pro. It’s technology Apple was proud of, so it showed it off as a way to boast–as well as a way of explaining how the EyeSight feature was created.

But it can’t be the only option. Let’s start with the fact that not everyone will feel comfortable using a representation of themselves as they are if they can help it. There’s a good reason why Apple’s Memoji creation interface lets you choose a wide range of characteristics, including many that don’t even exist in human beings! Or you can choose to be an animated emoji character.

And really, if we’re being honest, it’s highly likely that the entire Memoji project was an early move in the direction of avatars for the Vision Pro. Do we really think Apple’s going to insist on Digital Personas for everyone, even if they’d rather just be an elephant? Not gonna happen.

Yes, Siri will be involved

Apple’s film about the Vision Pro shows a user reading out a website address via voice at one point. It’s pretty much the only example of Apple’s voice assistant being shown with the headset. But it’s almost inconceivable that voice control won’t be a major portion of the device’s interface.

When I used the Vision Pro, there were numerous moments when I realized that rather than manipulating a virtual interface via hand gesture, I’d probably be better off just issuing a voice command. But Siri wasn’t active on our demo headsets, probably because it’s just not good enough–and because if Apple leaned into it too much, it would make the rest of the Vision Pro interface work the company has done look a little less special.

A reliance on voice control by all of those people in solitary environments, sprawled on couches or sitting in chairs, might also reinforce the antisocial nature of these devices–if you’re comfortable constantly interjecting to Siri, that implies that nobody else is within earshot–and that’s very much not the impression Apple wants to give right now.

But there’s just no way that visionOS is a platform that isn’t strongly linked to voice commands. It just makes too much sense.

Your other Apple devices will probably be more involved

The Vision Pro appears to be a peer to the iPad and iPhone, capable of running iOS apps itself without any connection to those devices. Still, we didn’t see much direct integration between Apple’s most popular product and the Vision Pro.

Perhaps it won’t be there on day one, but I have a hard time believing that the iPhone won’t work tightly with Vision Pro. In macOS Sonoma, Apple’s introducing the concept of iPhone widgets that are projected right onto your Mac desktop. Why not extend that to Vision Pro? What about launching apps on your iPhone and viewing them right within Vision Pro? Maybe even more than one at a time?

Sure, you can look down and use your iPhone while using Vision Pro, but that’s always going to be a pretty limited experience. I have to think that Apple is working hard to figure out the best ways to use Continuity features to attach all of its devices to the Vision Pro–but most especially the iPhone.

The Vision Pro won’t be here for some time yet. We’ve heard Apple’s opening sales pitch, but it isn’t nearly time for the company to close the deal. There’s more to this story than we’ve heard so far. Stay tuned.

Virtual Reality

7 companies have notified the Commission that they meet the #Gatekeepers thresholds under the Digital Markets Act (#DMA):

Alphabet
Amazon
Apple
ByteDance
Meta
Microsoft
Samsung

Following our review process, official designation will be announced no later than 6 September pic.twitter.com/1qr5Scly0S

— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) July 4, 2023

If you’re looking for an iPhone but don’t want to spend a fortune, the third-gen iPhone SE, Apple’s cheapest current handset, is the phone for you. It features a powerful processor (the A15, which also appeared in the flagship iPhone 13 Pro from 2021) at an affordable price, starting at $429 in the U.S. or £449 in the U.K.

For a phone that’s even cheaper, however, you may want to consider the second-gen iPhone SE from 2020. Apple no longer sells this device itself, but other vendors may still sell you one for a bargain price.

In this article we round up the best deals and discounts currently available on each iPhone SE model, as well as cheap bundle offers worth considering. We cover both SIM-free and contract deals, identifying which retailers which have the handsets in stock, and which offer the best price. If you want to get yourself an iPhone SE, read on for the best deals.

Amazon Prime Day

Amazon’s Prime Day sales event takes place on July 11 and 12, 2023. Prime Day might see some significant iPhone discounts, and then again it might not, but either way it’s probably worth waiting until then to see. You can read about the best Prime Day Apple deals in a separate article.

How much does the iPhone SE cost?

Apple’s most affordable iPhone starts at $429/£449. (And you can get it for less if you trade in an older qualifying phone.) The 2022 model is currently available in three configurations:

• iPhone SE (2022, 64GB): $429 / £449 / AUD$719
• iPhone SE (2022, 128GB): $479 / £499 / AUD$799
• iPhone SE (2022, 256GB): $579 / £609/ AUD$969

That’s a slight price increase on the previous model. The 2020 iPhone SE is no longer available from Apple itself, but had the following MSRPs at launch:

• iPhone SE (2020, 64GB): $399 / £399 / AUD$679
• iPhone SE (2020, 128GB): $449 / £439 / AUD$759

(If you’re buying the iPhone SE we recommend that you avoid the lowest-capacity model. We explain in a separate article: Why you shouldn’t buy the 64GB iPhone SE.)

Where to buy iPhone SE (2022) SIM-free

Apple sells the new iPhone SE starting at $429/£419. You can buy from Apple right now. (That’s the U.S. store; depending on where you are, the U.K. store or the Australia store may be more suitable.)

It’s also available from other retailers, who in time will start to offer discounts on Apple’s price. But this phone is relatively cheap (at least by Apple’s standards) and still relatively new, so you’re unlikely to see any startling savings just yet. In the U.S., in fact, all the major retailers are sticking at Apple’s price.

The best option in the U.K. at time of writing is KRCS, which has the third-gen SE for £444.51: a dinky discount of £4.49.

You can check the best and latest offers in our automatic pricing tables, below.

iPhone SE (64GB), MSRP $429/£449

iPhone SE (128GB), MSRP $479/£499

Numerous retailers are stocking the iPhone SE. Just make sure you get the third-gen or 2022 version of the iPhone SE: many will continue to stock the second-gen model from 2020, which features the older A13 processor and doesn’t support 5G.

U.S. readers should check the following stores:

• Amazon
• Best Buy
• Target
• Walmart

U.K. readers, meanwhile, should check the retailers below.

• Affordable Mobiles
• Amazon
• Argos
• Carphone Warehouse
• Currys
• E2Save
• Giff Gaff
• John Lewis
• KRCS
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct
• Very

Where to buy iPhone SE (2022) on contract

Try the following stores and carriers for the best iPhone SE contract deals.

As mentioned above, make sure you’re getting the 2022 model with the A15 processor and 5G. It’s also bearing in mind that you’ll want the contract to include 5G support too: you need both hardware and contract to support the tech, and this may cost extra. If in doubt, ask a member of the sales support staff.

• AT&T
• T-Mobile
• Verizon

U.K. readers can browse the best contract deals using the table below:

If you’d like to research further, try the following U.K. carriers:

• Affordable Mobiles
• BT Mobile
• Carphone Warehouse
• EE
• E2Save
• iD Mobile
• Fonehouse
• Giff Gaff
• O2
• Sky Mobile
• Tesco Mobile
• Three
• Virgin Mobile
• Vodafone
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct

iPhone SE (2020) deals

The iPhone SE model from 2020 is no longer sold by Apple itself, but there are good deals available from other vendors.

Where to buy the iPhone SE (2020) SIM-free

You’ll see the lowest prices from third-party retailers in the automatic pricing table below.

You can also buy the iPhone SE SIM-free from a number of other retailers. Try these U.S. stores:

• Amazon
• Best Buy
• Target
• Walmart

U.K. readers should try the following:

• Affordable Mobiles
• Amazon
• Argos
• Carphone Warehouse
• Currys
• E2Save
• John Lewis
• KRCS
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct
• Very

Where to buy the iPhone SE (2020) on contract

You can pick up the iPhone SE from a number of different networks in the U.S. and U.K.:

• AT&T
• T-Mobile
• Verizon

U.K. contract providers:

• Affordable Mobiles
• BT Mobile
• Carphone Warehouse
• EE
• E2Save
• iD Mobile
• Fonehouse
• O2
• Sky Mobile
• Tesco Mobile
• Three
• Virgin Mobile
• Vodafone
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct

We’ve also compared the original iPhone SE to the iPhone SE 2 if you want to know what kind of upgrades and differences to expect.

Trade-in discounts

Don’t forget you can save when you trade in your old qualifying phone with Apple or other retailers participating in a trade-in programme.

Apple offers up to hundreds of dollars off the iPhone SE when you trade in your old iPhone (but if your phone is older, you’ll likely get much less). You’ll have to select the trade-in option during purchase and answer a few questions about your existing phone model, storage capacity and condition. You’ll need to provide your IMEI number as well. Read about Apple’s Trade In scheme in the U.S. and U.K.

In the U.K. you could get even more money off if you trade-in via Currys PC World, which has offered up to £240 off previous iPhone SE models when you trade in an older iPhone. Head to Currys to see how much your device is worth.

Amazon offers some good trade-in values, so you should see if you can get more there. Check out Amazon’s Trade In program in the U.S. U.K. readers can see how Amazon trade-in process works here.

Apple reseller KRCS also offers a trade-in scheme.

Refurbished deals

You can save on the iPhone SE by opting for a refurbished model. This is an excellent option for the second-gen model from 2020.

Although you’re buying a device that has been pre-owned, buying refurbished isn’t the same as simply buying second-hand, the main difference being that the product has been repaired and rigorously tested to ensure it works just like new. Refurbished devices often come with additional warranty arrangements for peace of mind if you are to run into any issues after purchase.

Decluttr (better known as MusicMagpie in the U.K.) is a great source to shop for refurbished deals, although right now its prices are higher than Amazon’s. You reduce the rate if you choose to trade-in your old device or old tech for cashback.

When shopping refurbished, look out for Apple Certified Refurbished products. These have been repaired, with parts replaced as needed, and thoroughly tested (and cleaned) to meet the Apple standard. You can find Apple Certified Refurbished iPhones from the Apple Refurbished Store.

We have a dedicated guide on buying refurbished iPhones with everything you need to know, as well as the best refurbished iPhone deals.

Wondering if there’s a more affordable option than the SE? We answer the question What is the cheapest iPhone? in a separate article. Our iPhone buying guide, meanwhile, offers in-depth advice for those looking to buy or upgrade.

iPhone Macworld

If you’re looking for an iPhone but don’t want to spend a fortune, the third-gen iPhone SE, Apple’s cheapest current handset, is the phone for you. It features a powerful processor (the A15, which also appeared in the flagship iPhone 13 Pro from 2021) at an affordable price, starting at $429 in the U.S. or £449 in the U.K.

For a phone that’s even cheaper, however, you may want to consider the second-gen iPhone SE from 2020. Apple no longer sells this device itself, but other vendors may still sell you one for a bargain price.

In this article we round up the best deals and discounts currently available on each iPhone SE model, as well as cheap bundle offers worth considering. We cover both SIM-free and contract deals, identifying which retailers which have the handsets in stock, and which offer the best price. If you want to get yourself an iPhone SE, read on for the best deals.

Amazon Prime Day

Amazon’s Prime Day sales event takes place on July 11 and 12, 2023. Prime Day might see some significant iPhone discounts, and then again it might not, but either way it’s probably worth waiting until then to see. You can read about the best Prime Day Apple deals in a separate article.

How much does the iPhone SE cost?

Apple’s most affordable iPhone starts at $429/£449. (And you can get it for less if you trade in an older qualifying phone.) The 2022 model is currently available in three configurations:

• iPhone SE (2022, 64GB): $429 / £449 / AUD$719
• iPhone SE (2022, 128GB): $479 / £499 / AUD$799
• iPhone SE (2022, 256GB): $579 / £609/ AUD$969

That’s a slight price increase on the previous model. The 2020 iPhone SE is no longer available from Apple itself, but had the following MSRPs at launch:

• iPhone SE (2020, 64GB): $399 / £399 / AUD$679
• iPhone SE (2020, 128GB): $449 / £439 / AUD$759

(If you’re buying the iPhone SE we recommend that you avoid the lowest-capacity model. We explain in a separate article: Why you shouldn’t buy the 64GB iPhone SE.)

Where to buy iPhone SE (2022) SIM-free

Apple sells the new iPhone SE starting at $429/£419. You can buy from Apple right now. (That’s the U.S. store; depending on where you are, the U.K. store or the Australia store may be more suitable.)

It’s also available from other retailers, who in time will start to offer discounts on Apple’s price. But this phone is relatively cheap (at least by Apple’s standards) and still relatively new, so you’re unlikely to see any startling savings just yet. In the U.S., in fact, all the major retailers are sticking at Apple’s price.

The best option in the U.K. at time of writing is KRCS, which has the third-gen SE for £444.51: a dinky discount of £4.49.

You can check the best and latest offers in our automatic pricing tables, below.

iPhone SE (64GB), MSRP $429/£449

New
Refurbished

Retailer

Price

$429.00

View Deal

$429.00

View Deal

$429.99

View Deal

Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide

Condition – fair

iPhone SE (2022) 64GB – Midnight – Unlocked

$246.48

View Deal

Price comparison from Backmarket

iPhone SE (128GB), MSRP $479/£499

Retailer

Price

$455.34

View Deal

Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide

Price comparison from Backmarket

Numerous retailers are stocking the iPhone SE. Just make sure you get the third-gen or 2022 version of the iPhone SE: many will continue to stock the second-gen model from 2020, which features the older A13 processor and doesn’t support 5G.

U.S. readers should check the following stores:

• Amazon
• Best Buy
• Target
• Walmart

U.K. readers, meanwhile, should check the retailers below.

• Affordable Mobiles
• Amazon
• Argos
• Carphone Warehouse
• Currys
• E2Save
• Giff Gaff
• John Lewis
• KRCS
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct
• Very

Where to buy iPhone SE (2022) on contract

Try the following stores and carriers for the best iPhone SE contract deals.

As mentioned above, make sure you’re getting the 2022 model with the A15 processor and 5G. It’s also bearing in mind that you’ll want the contract to include 5G support too: you need both hardware and contract to support the tech, and this may cost extra. If in doubt, ask a member of the sales support staff.

• AT&T
• T-Mobile
• Verizon

U.K. readers can browse the best contract deals using the table below:

If you’d like to research further, try the following U.K. carriers:

• Affordable Mobiles
• BT Mobile
• Carphone Warehouse
• EE
• E2Save
• iD Mobile
• Fonehouse
• Giff Gaff
• O2
• Sky Mobile
• Tesco Mobile
• Three
• Virgin Mobile
• Vodafone
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct

iPhone SE (2020) deals

The iPhone SE model from 2020 is no longer sold by Apple itself, but there are good deals available from other vendors.

Where to buy the iPhone SE (2020) SIM-free

You’ll see the lowest prices from third-party retailers in the automatic pricing table below.

You can also buy the iPhone SE SIM-free from a number of other retailers. Try these U.S. stores:

• Amazon
• Best Buy
• Target
• Walmart

U.K. readers should try the following:

• Affordable Mobiles
• Amazon
• Argos
• Carphone Warehouse
• Currys
• E2Save
• John Lewis
• KRCS
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct
• Very

Where to buy the iPhone SE (2020) on contract

You can pick up the iPhone SE from a number of different networks in the U.S. and U.K.:

• AT&T
• T-Mobile
• Verizon

U.K. contract providers:

• Affordable Mobiles
• BT Mobile
• Carphone Warehouse
• EE
• E2Save
• iD Mobile
• Fonehouse
• O2
• Sky Mobile
• Tesco Mobile
• Three
• Virgin Mobile
• Vodafone
• Mobiles.co.uk
• Mobile Phones Direct

We’ve also compared the original iPhone SE to the iPhone SE 2 if you want to know what kind of upgrades and differences to expect.

Trade-in discounts

Don’t forget you can save when you trade in your old qualifying phone with Apple or other retailers participating in a trade-in programme.

Apple offers up to hundreds of dollars off the iPhone SE when you trade in your old iPhone (but if your phone is older, you’ll likely get much less). You’ll have to select the trade-in option during purchase and answer a few questions about your existing phone model, storage capacity and condition. You’ll need to provide your IMEI number as well. Read about Apple’s Trade In scheme in the U.S. and U.K.

In the U.K. you could get even more money off if you trade-in via Currys PC World, which has offered up to £240 off previous iPhone SE models when you trade in an older iPhone. Head to Currys to see how much your device is worth.

Amazon offers some good trade-in values, so you should see if you can get more there. Check out Amazon’s Trade In program in the U.S. U.K. readers can see how Amazon trade-in process works here.

Apple reseller KRCS also offers a trade-in scheme.

Refurbished deals

You can save on the iPhone SE by opting for a refurbished model. This is an excellent option for the second-gen model from 2020.

Although you’re buying a device that has been pre-owned, buying refurbished isn’t the same as simply buying second-hand, the main difference being that the product has been repaired and rigorously tested to ensure it works just like new. Refurbished devices often come with additional warranty arrangements for peace of mind if you are to run into any issues after purchase.

Decluttr (better known as MusicMagpie in the U.K.) is a great source to shop for refurbished deals, although right now its prices are higher than Amazon’s. You reduce the rate if you choose to trade-in your old device or old tech for cashback.

When shopping refurbished, look out for Apple Certified Refurbished products. These have been repaired, with parts replaced as needed, and thoroughly tested (and cleaned) to meet the Apple standard. You can find Apple Certified Refurbished iPhones from the Apple Refurbished Store.

We have a dedicated guide on buying refurbished iPhones with everything you need to know, as well as the best refurbished iPhone deals.

Wondering if there’s a more affordable option than the SE? We answer the question What is the cheapest iPhone? in a separate article. Our iPhone buying guide, meanwhile, offers in-depth advice for those looking to buy or upgrade.

iPhone

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