2020 iPhone SE has a centered Apple logo, no longer says “iPhone”

The second-generation iPhone SE has some of the cleanest iPhone designs yet: the new handset features a centered Apple logo out the back and it no longer says “iPhone”.

This is part of Apple’s updated design trend for iPhones that was first tried and tested last year on the iPhone 11 family of smartphones. Those phones marked first iPhones that removed the word “iPhone” from the backplate and repositioned the Apple logo to the center of the back.

I own an iPhone XS Max and it has “iPhone” printed on the back, near the bottom, along with certification markings. The Apple logo on my phone is not centered on the back. Rather, it’s closer to the top-third portion of the back, in close proximity to the camera system.

In fact, Apple may have been forced to reposition its own logo because the camera hump on these recent phones has become so massive that it takes an entire corner.

Small wonder the logo has been shifted to the center of the backplate.

The new layout has created a visual spot around the center of the back, potentially visually guiding customers where to wirelessly charge, say, their AirPods or Apple Watch (remember, the iPhone 11 is the first iPhone model that’s capable of wirelessly charging other Qi devices).

iPhone XS has the Apple logo near the top-third on the back, and it says “iPhone”

I’m not making this up, I read it on Bloomberg last summer:

The Apple logo on the back of the new phones will be centered so users know where to put their AirPods and Apple Watch for charging.

At any rate, retaining the same layout on the new iPhone SE is definitely a smart move because it does make modern iPhone design consistent and way cleaner than it used to be.

The iPhone 11 introduced a cleaner layout

Even Apple’s press release announcing the new iPhone SE proudly boasts logo repositioning:

The rear glass finish includes a centered Apple logo and is made using a seven-layer color process for precise hue and opacity, delivering rich depth of color with a color-matched aluminum band. .

I searched Apple’s other iPhone press releases. To my knowledge, this is the first time the company has officially acknowledged the new logo placement.

Thoughts?