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Right now, when you buy an iPhone in the US at an Apple retail store or through the company’s website, you are asked to provide your wireless phone number as well as the last four digits of the Social Security number. This helps carriers conduct a credit check and greenlight the transaction. The downside is that this adds time to the buying process and also results in a poor customer experience in scenarios when activation servers are overloaded.
Apple’s website has already adopted the new process and stores will begin following it from March 29. The feature will also be extended to Verizon users at a later unspecified date. Apple will also allow consumers to purchase the iPhone SE 3 in stores with Apple Card monthly installment plans without connecting the device to a carrier.
The new iPhone SE 5G has the same design as its 2020 predecessor but is powered by the company’s latest A15 Bionic processor, which has brought some new camera tricks to the phone. At $429, it is a little more expensive than the $399 iPhone SE 2, but still a lot more affordable than the base iPhone 13 model, which starts at $699.
