Apple continuing to work on new Apple Watch SE with plastic chassis, says Gurman

Despite no mention of the Apple Watch SE at Apple’s recent ‘It’s Glowtime’ special event last week, where the Apple Watch Series 10 was unveiled alongside a new color option for the Apple Watch Ultra 2, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has said that behind the scenes, work continues on the rumored new next-gen Apple Watch SE made with a plastic chassis.

Writing in his weekly Power On newsletter on Sunday, Gurman says “earlier this year, I reported that Apple is working on a plastic version of the SE watch in bolder colors. The idea is to potentially bring down the price with a cheaper material, while also making the device more kid-friendly. […] Though a new Apple Watch SE wasn’t part of last week’s launch event, I’m told that the product is still moving forward — potentially for next year.”

“Apple’s manufacturing teams have been running into some cost and quality challenges with the shift to plastic, but they may have a freer hand to resolve the issues now that the transition from steel to titanium on higher-end watches is complete. Other than adding plastic, I expect the new SE to include a processor jump. The current SE is stuck on 2020-era speeds.”

By using plastic, Apple could offer the Apple Watch SE in a range of vibrant colors not possible with aluminum. Historically, Apple used a similar approach with the iPhone 5c, which came in a variety of bright colors such as blue, yellow, pink, and green.

The current Apple Watch SE models sell for $250. However, transitioning to plastic could allow Apple to offer the device at a lower price, making it more competitive with other affordable smartwatches on the market.