Any iPhone SE Remorse?

[cortez31]

I don't regret getting the SE for the screen size. I don't regret getting the SE for the selfie camera. I don't regret getting the SE for its lack of 3D Touch.

But what I regret getting it for is the poor build quality. The vibration is weaker than in my old iPhone 5 to the point, where I don't feel it in my pocket anymore. There is also a loud and very annoying rattling noise when it vibrates in horizontal position. Last but not least the Home Button feels broken and makes a very loud plastic noise when releasing it.

I really don't want to be too nitpicky about this, but it just feels wrong and doesn't do my overall impression of Apple products any justice. Of all the Apple devices I owned, this feels like the cheapest by a mile.

I will probably contact support and try to get an exchange SE, because I really love this phone apart from the issues above. It is blazingly fast, its battery lasts forever, it takes great pictures and it is the perfect size for me. I really hope I just got a bad SE.

If anyone is wondering how it turned out: I went to the Apple Store, showed them the vibration rattle and got a new SE right away. No rattling issues during vibration with that one. The home button feels the same though, it just seems to be the way it is. All the other SEs on display had the same strange home button. Well, I'll just live with it, I read somewhere that 5S users had the same problem and that it got better over time!

With my new SE I now have no regrets anymore and I'm going to keep it until the next big iPhone (considering the rumors probably the 8).

 

[maflynn]

If Apple eventually gives the SE form 3D Touch and an updated screen, like the 6S, I'm not sure the size of the 6S would tempt me as much.

See, I don't need an iPhone 6s in the size of the SE, nor would I want to pay the price of a 6s, which Apple would presumably do.

Perhaps because I never had 3d touch, but its not a feature that is a must have for me. From what I see from others, who do have the 6s, they don't seem to use it much either. I'm not sure its caught on to the level that perhaps Apple was expecting. I could be wrong, as its just my very limited observation

 

[EDH667]

See, I don't need an iPhone 6s in the size of the SE, nor would I want to pay the price of a 6s, which Apple would presumably do.

Perhaps because I never had 3d touch, but its not a feature that is a must have for me. From what I see from others, who do have the 6s, they don't seem to use it much either. I'm not sure its caught on to the level that perhaps Apple was expecting. I could be wrong, as its just my very limited observation

I agree with you on 3d touch. I have gone from the iPhone 6s Plus to the SE and do not miss the 3d touch feature at all. For me I did not use it and was not impressed with the feature. Most of the time it got in my way when I was trying to do other things like organize icons into folders.

 

[rijc99]

See, I don't need an iPhone 6s in the size of the SE, nor would I want to pay the price of a 6s, which Apple would presumably do.

Perhaps because I never had 3d touch, but its not a feature that is a must have for me. From what I see from others, who do have the 6s, they don't seem to use it much either. I'm not sure its caught on to the level that perhaps Apple was expecting. I could be wrong, as its just my very limited observation

Two of the best uses for 3D touch is the 3 person speed dial when pushing on the phone icon and the precise keyboard cursor. Also wish reachability would be added on the SE. When I'm using the SE in the left hand in a tight grip it seems easier to use reachability to bring the top right corner down rather than shift the phone to a loose hold and stretch to get to it.

 

[Zimmy68]

I think if anything, people that went from a 6 to a "SE" feels a little silly for paying for a new device when the 5S has been around for years.

 

[MrGuder]

I think if anything, people that went from a 6 to a "SE" feels a little silly for paying for a new device when the 5S has been around for years.

This makes no sense of a remark. The people who ordered an SE knew what they were getting before they ordered, did you not watch the keynote? It's not like they ordered blindly not knowing what they would get, so there is nothing to feel silly about. Comment makes no sense since the internals are equivalent to the 6s and greater than a 6.

 

[rijc99]

I think if anything, people that went from a 6 to a "SE" feels a little silly for paying for a new device when the 5S has been around for years.

Only if you're superficial.

 

[Z3man]

Had two SE's now and sent both of them back.

The first one had the rattling power button and quite a bad yellow band across the top of the screen, the home button was a bit clicky and cheap feeling as well but i could live with that, it was the yellow band that bothered me the most, so i sent it back and ordered another one hoping it would be of better quality as it would be newer stock, the first one was a launch day phone.

The second one turned out to be worse, the yellow band across the top of the screen was still there but was only slight and hardly noticeable so i could have quite easily lived with that. But the power button was even worse and it also had a terrible rattle coming from the camera lens as well that the first one didn't have, add the home button rattle and the camera lens rattle together and this thing was like a rattle snake. But what was even worse was it had an amazingly loud home button as well, every time i pressed it it felt like is was going to break. This thing just felt so cheap it was unreal, i cant believe Apple can release such cheap garbage to the market place. This is not why i started buying Apple products about twelve years ago, i started buying them because if their high build quality and attention to detail which made them very desirable, this has totally gone out of the window with the SE.

I am going to go back to using my 6s, luckily i didn't sell it straight away after getting the SE, i hung on to it just in case and i am glad i did now. I do prefer the smaller size of the SE, but i cant put up with the appalling build quality. In hindsight i probably should have kept the first SE, i didn't think the second one would be worse. I might try another one in a few months if i hear reports that Apple have improved the bull quality.

Apple did a good job of putting a lot of the latest 6s specifications into the SE, but they have just cut costs in too many other areas, my 5s never had any of these problems.

Just for the record i think both of the SE's i had were from totally different factories as the serial numbers were totally different.

First SE = F17RCONKH2XN

Second SE = C39RLOAPH2XN, this one had appalling build quality

All the SE's i have checked out in the shops while checking to see if they are all of poor build quality, all begin with F17 or F18, never seen another one beginning with C39.

Apple really need to get their act together and start producing high quality products again like my 12" rMB.

 

[erure]

I'm happy with the SE except the build quality seems noticeably poor (the rattle sounds so bad when the phone vibrates, even in the Apple leather case) and the reception seems to be noticeably poor compared to the 6s. These issues bother me enough that I'm probably going to send it back, but I was stupid and sold my 6s already. Not sure what to do because I don't have another phone to use.

 

[James.K.Polk]

3 iPhone SEs, so maybe I can comment:

1st: 16 GB Silver - Yellow band across the top. Got used to it in a few days. Would not have exchanged for that reason. Maybe it rattled - am I the only one who doesn't shake their phone? Returned for 64 GB.

2nd: 64 GB Gold - Weird, IPS-caused ripple effects when pressing with any pressure at all. Never had it on an iPhone before, very weird. Genius acknowledged right away. Because I was within 14 days, went to silver (the color I really wanted).

3rd: 64 GB Silver - Awesome. The mute switch is mushy/sticky (from what I can tell) but nowhere near worth returning. I feel bad for going through 3 phones but I'm glad I ended up with what is perfect for me. Hope to keep this phone a long time - I guess I'll be picking up AppleCare+ for it soon.

 

[G.McGilli]

I'm loving that since the 5/SE design is so old - you can get all kinds of accessories for it dirt cheap.

 

[Lockon]

I'm loving that since the 5/SE design is so old - you can get all kinds of accessories for it dirt cheap.

No kidding! Amazon and eBay have had great deals. My latest buy was a brand new speck candyshell for $5 on eBay. And, recently found a new Belkin armband for under $4 on Amazon, normally $25.

 

[CYKBC]

None at all.

 

[Traverse]

I really like both for different reasons. Swapping out the sims cards is easy and I have unlimited w/ Verizon so it's all good!!

I am currently under contract with Verizon on my iPhone 6. They both use Nano sim. Does that mean I can buy an SE and swap the cards without violating the contract or paying a fee?

 

[MrGuder]

I am currently under contract with Verizon on my iPhone 6. They both use Nano sim. Does that mean I can buy an SE and swap the cards without violating the contract or paying a fee?

Yes but you have to order a sim free version of the SE.

 

[Zippy3505]

Loving the SE. Came from a 6s, battery life is great, one handed is great. No regrets

 

[Sampple]

Build quality on both of mine are perfect and both came from different places... Verizon version from Best Buy and one from Apple. No rattle, no yellow. LOVE this phone. Kept 6S for my daughters to use as a camera but tried to go back after a couple weeks and couldn't... SE is perfect for me. May skip several generations of iPhone, it's too perfect.

 

[nordique]

See, I don't need an iPhone 6s in the size of the SE, nor would I want to pay the price of a 6s, which Apple would presumably do.

Perhaps because I never had 3d touch, but its not a feature that is a must have for me. From what I see from others, who do have the 6s, they don't seem to use it much either. I'm not sure its caught on to the level that perhaps Apple was expecting. I could be wrong, as its just my very limited observation

3D touch is underrated to a degree, I find. Personally, I do miss 3D touch quite a bit: I miss the short cuts, the live wallpapers, peeking & popping, the cursor and most especially the super convenient and fast multi-task switcher...for me this was the best use of 3D touch, quickly switching between apps. It really was much faster than double clicking the home button, especially when moving back and forth between apps. Best overall multitasking experience I have had on a smart phone due to the ease and speed. I noticed it immediately how "clunky" and "old" double clicking the home button felt...kind of like using buttons to navigate a menu on old smartphones vs. simply using a touch screen to scroll down and open things.

I also miss the larger screen "real estate" that came with using the 6s, yet it was not too large that I found it uncomfortable to pocket and use with one hand (using one thumb comfortably is another matter)

That said, given all of that, given how much I like the design and the larger screen and genuinely prefer 3D touch, I must agree with you that given the price difference, it is difficult to justify paying more than the SE.

In Canada it is a 320$ price difference and I find it difficult to justify paying that much more money just for 3D touch and all the other nice features like 7000 series aluminum, faster touch ID, faster LTE, front camera etc...features I think either genuinely enhance the user experience and give one the most premium features, but also features that are in no way worth 320$ more for what ends up being the same GPU and CPU, RAM powering the device and the same rear camera.

So what I am trying to get at is that, even as someone who loves 3D touch (versus for instance you stated you never had it and thus weren't able to appreciate the benefits) and all the other newer features in the 6s, I still agree with you that the price difference isn't worth it. That is on top of the larger screen and all that.

Now if the 6s was 100$ (CAD) more, sure that would be a different story - for the build quality, larger display, and all the additional features. But 320$ more? For myself, nope. I agree with you on the cost there. And that only serves to make the SE much more value, given the prices Apple has currently in their iPhone lineup.

Further, if someone has a preference to smaller phones, its an even better product

 

[Chronus]

I bought mine today, it didn't last 6 hours. It's a dream to hold and carry but I found myself not wanting to browse the web or enjoy my phone, all due to the size. It was a chore just browsing the web and having to zoom into non mobile sites.

Perhaps I'm the wrong demographic for it, but the whole iPhone experience for me is far more enjoyable on my 6S+, but it is a delight to hold and pocket.

I'm sure it will appeal to a lot of folk, but for me it is really hard to go back to 4 inch and if I'm not getting that vibe a few hours in I'm not going to try and convince myself it's for me.

 

[ElysiumY2K]

No regrets for me.

I came from a 6S Plus and don't really miss force touch or the big screen. I'm sort of glad I went back to a smaller screen to be honest as I really did struggle to fit the 6S Plus in my everyday work/casual clothes (especially as it's coming to the Summer and I'm not wearing a jacket).

I also find myself using the iPhone less compare to the 6S Plus and rather read my Kindle on the commute to work.

Maybe it's due to the lack of screen size, or maybe I convinced myself that my new SE is only going to be used as a phone this time. Anything like maps, music I will still use but browsing the phone like a morning zombie I told myself to stop lol

 

[Traverse]

I finally got up the nerve to swap out my iPhone 6 for an SE. Honestly, I have no regrets.

I never had a 5/5S, so this design is new for me. It's fast, sleek, and easy to use. I don't mind the 4" screen and adjust very easily. In a perfect world, I'd like the iPhone SE body with a 4.3" display, but that goes against the entire reason for the SE to exist.

I'm happy with my purchase.

 

[Channan]

See, I don't need an iPhone 6s in the size of the SE, nor would I want to pay the price of a 6s, which Apple would presumably do.

Perhaps because I never had 3d touch, but its not a feature that is a must have for me. From what I see from others, who do have the 6s, they don't seem to use it much either. I'm not sure its caught on to the level that perhaps Apple was expecting. I could be wrong, as its just my very limited observation

I still would have bought the SE if it was a shrunken down iPhone 6s for the same price, but I'm perfectly fine with the things Apple excluded to bring the price down. I hope they continue to offer smaller iPhones with the same processor and rear camera as their "flagship" iPhone, as well as awesome battery life, for a couple hundred dollars cheaper.

 

[8012R3]

I miss my 6S+ but it's gone so I'm stuck with the SE for the time being.

Kinda wondering if I should buy an iPad mini 4 or if I'll regret that too!

 

[robes1]

Went from a 5C to the SE. Love it.

 

[jclardy]

I have a 6S+ that is now my dev testing device for iOS 10, bought an SE to use for the next few months till the 7. Love it so far, but I think for me the 4.7" is the sweet spot.

Only things I've noticed:
1. Display - obviously. Not just the resolution/size, but contrast and viewing angles are noticeably worse.
2. Vibrate motor - SE is so loud and unrefined compared to the taptic engine
3. Power button - even on the smaller size I miss the side power button.