<P> The iPhone Special Edition ( SE ) is a smartphone designed and marketed by Apple Inc. as part of the iPhone series of devices . It was unveiled on March 21 , 2016 , at Apple 's Cupertino headquarters , and was released on March 31 , 2016 . Despite chronologically succeeding the iPhone 6 family 's launch , the iPhone SE serves as a successor of the iPhone 5S . It maintains the 4 - inch screen size and largely identical design to the 5S , but includes selected hardware upgrades from the larger iPhone 6S model , including its updated processor , rear camera , and support for iOS 10 and iOS 11 software features , such as Apple Pay , always - on Siri activation , and Live Photos . It also features a new color in Rose Gold along with the standard Space Gray , Silver and Gold . The model was re-released with new improved options on March 24 , 2017 . </P>
when did the apple iphone se come out
March 21 , 2016