Feb 19 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL ) is set to launch its

latest budget iPhone model on Wednesday as it looks to grab a

bigger share of the mid-range smartphone market and fend off

competition from rivals such Samsung and China's

Huawei.

The fourth generation of the lower-cost model, so far known

as iPhone SE, will take on popular Android smartphones at a time

when consumer electronics makers are looking to add artificial

intelligence tools into their devices.

The current-generation of iPhone SE, released in 2022, is

available at $429 and the latest version is likely to be priced

at a premium to the outgoing model. The iPhone 16, launched in

September, starts at $799 for the base variant.

"If the SE 4 offers meaningful upgrades in design,

performance, and AI features, it could reinvigorate its market

appeal and strengthen Apple's ( AAPL ) position across different price

segments," Counterpoint Research senior analyst Varun Mishra

said.

Apple ( AAPL ) late last month forecast strong sales growth

signaling that the company will recover from a dip in iPhone

sales as it rolls out artificial intelligence features in the

coming months to more regions and languages.

However, analysts have been cautious about the sales

boost such tools could provide, as Apple's ( AAPL ) AI features are set

to be rolled out in phases in some regions on its latest iPhone

16 line-up and the iPhone 15 Pro model.

The SE model's sales as part of total revenue for iPhones

has dropped from 10% from its introduction in 2016 to about 1%

last year, according to Counterpoint Research.

This year's update is expected to revamp its slab-design,

ditch the physical home button and introduce its FaceID feature,

apart from camera and processor updates to support AI features,

according to analysts and media reports.

The SE model would be the last among iPhones to adopt the

USB Type-C port for charging, a departure from its proprietary

Lightning connector.

Apple ( AAPL ) has already discontinued the current SE and iPhone 14

in the European Union as the products do not conform with local

laws requiring USB Type-C charging standard. The latest SE model

would let it return to the EU.

(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun

Koyyur)