First Impressions Roundup: iPhone SE and 9.7" iPad Pro

[splitpea]

There are things I don't like about the iPhone SE...

In the end, even though I'm willing to pay $650 for a 4" 6s, Apple is only asking me to pay $400 to accept these compromises. And that's enough to appease my realistic disappointment.

Well put.

Moreover, I'm expecting Apple to come out with a 7SE in a year, which will not only look like the 7, but also have similar feature parity to the 7, and I will expect to pay for it accordingly...

I don't know about you, but I'm going to go on the Apple monthly payment plan when I buy the SE next week, and in 12 to 18 months when they hopefully introduce a new 4" 7 premium design, I'll upgrade.

Is there any indication yet that they'll offer the upgrade plan for the SE?

I have both (actually the 6 was sold a couple months ago) and I couldn't see any difference in reliability. iPhone 5S TouchID works just fine.

I thought that was a software or firmware issue that they'd resolved?

 

[jamezr]

On another thread you were the one calling 3D Touch as irrelevant (because Samsung hasn't it) and here you are asking where is 3D Touch on the iPhone SE.
Because here it became relevant.
Lol.

Where did i say it was relevant? It is still a gimmicky feature on my 6s+. But now Apple is fragmenting the iphone brand. Now you will have different feature sets across different iphone models. where is the great unified user experience across iphones models. Apple has always been praised for this. Now it is fragmenting the iphone brand.
Rumors are there will be 3 different iphone 7 models...each with a different feature set. More fragmentation.

 

[aces99]

I wish the SE had advanced LTE and MIMO Wifi support.

 

[tedson]

The most important number to me is 250. I'm happy to make a few trade-offs (no 3d touch, etc) to save $250 compared to a 6s with the same memory configuration. The only thing I trying to decide is if I can live with 16GB or should I get the 64GB model. Based on my current use cases, the 16GB would work just fine and be 25% cheaper than the 64GB model but in the future I might use the extra space. My current iPhone 4s 16GB has 4.4GB and I don't suffer for not having more memory.

I know a lot of people think the 16GB is too small because they want to keep a bunch of games or photos and videos on there phone. I have a 64GB iPad Air 2 that I much prefer for games or watching videos and even that device is only half full.

 

[aces99]

The SE uses the same TouchID hardware as the 6/+. So it's not as fast as the 6S/+, but it's a step up from the sensor originally released with the 5S. That's where the comparison comes from, between the 5S and the SE.

That's my take on that anyway.

I thought the Touch ID sensor in the 5S and 6 were the same?

 

[Mac 128]

Is there any indication yet that they'll offer the upgrade plan for the SE?

I don't know why they wouldn't. Guess we'll find out for sure next week. I actually don't find the buy back program to be an unacceptable alternative, especially if you need other Apple gear at the same time, assuming they don't.

 

[joe-h2o]

The A9 is old, the A9X is new. The old processor was used.
The 6s+ camera has better image stabilization.

You have no idea what you're talking about.

The 'X' designated SoCs are designed for the heavier workloads like the iPad, not for the phone, and *especially* not for a phone with a 4" screen - there's just zero reason to use the A9X over the A9 for the SE.

It makes perfect sense to choose the A9 - it is the current generation phone SoC and the SE doesn't need the extra GPU grunt.

Thinking of the A9 and A9X as "previous" and "latest" is wrong. They are both the "latest" but they were designed for different roles. Just slapping the A9X into the SE just because it's "the best" is a stupid way to design a phone. The A9 confers benefits that make it attractive to use in a phone - namely, lower power consumption and lower thermal output. The A9X offers more of the grunt it can provide in a bigger chassis where there is a) a bigger battery to feed that increased power draw and b) more thermal headroom to cool it and c) an actual need of the extra power to drive the tablet's bigger screen.

So no, the "old" processor was not used. The current best publicly released SoC was used.

 

[kazmac]

the price is certainly more reasonable and I'm glad the specs are pretty close to the 6s.

 

[Waughy]

Nope. The iPhone SE has the same fingerprint sensor as the iPhone 5s. There have only been two generations of Touch ID. The first-gen in the iPhone 5s and iPhone 6/6 Plus and the second-gen in the iPhone 6s/6s Plus.

This isn't really a bad thing either as some people still think the second-gen of Touch ID is too fast anyway.

I thought the Touch ID sensor in the 5S and 6 were the same?

I stand corrected, and thanks for pointing that out. I thought I had read somewhere that the sensor on the 5S was different to the 6, then 6S was updated again.
I'm using a 6S+ now and do agree the Touch ID is very fast. I tap the home button very quickly to turn the screen on to check the time/messages etc and more often than not it will unlock the phone. Not complaining though, the sensor on my iPad Air 2 can be a bit slow a times. I should probably delete the prints stored and start over.

 

[Max(IT)]

I thought the Touch ID sensor in the 5S and 6 were the same?

they are the same

 

[Zendokan]

False.
The 64 Gb iPhone 6S in Belgium costs 859€.
The 16 Gb is 749€.

Indeed, you are right. I misread the website.

So if the iPhone 7 is revealed, the price of the 64 iPhone 6S will drop frow €859 to €749.
Making a price difference of €160 between the SE and the 6S

So €160 extra for a barometer, 3D Touch and 0,7 inch extra screen space, newer design...here I'm conflicted between choosing the SE or 6S.

 

[Yank in UK]

Apple today provided members of the press with hands-on time using the iPhone SE and 9.7" iPad Pro, and first impressions of the new products are beginning to surface across the web. Below is a roundup of some of the more interesting observations and opinions about the new smartphone and tablet.

iPhone SE

The Verge said the iPhone SE "finally makes a small phone feel powerful," which is unsurprising given it is essentially an iPhone 6s shrunk down into an iPhone 5s form factor. The 4-inch smartphone is powered by a 64-bit A9 chip with M9 motion co-processor, which is up to twice as fast as the iPhone 5s. Other features are outlined in our iPhone SE announcement coverage.

TechnoBuffalo described the iPhone SE's top five new features as its 4-inch screen size, $399 starting price, 4K video recording, Live Photos support, and full Apple Pay support without needing an Apple Watch.

Business Insider highlighted how Apple used more scratch resistant materials for the iPhone SE shell, meaning it should not be prone to scratches and scuffs as easily as the iPhone 5s. This includes matte-chamfered edges and a slightly different aluminum backing with a color-matching Apple logo.More: Ars Technica, Engadget, TechRadar, and SlashGear

Click here to read rest of article...

Article Link: First Impressions Roundup: iPhone SE and 9.7" iPad Pro

[doublepost=1458724826][/doublepost]Where was Sir Jony Ive? Did not see him in front row with other Apple Execs or hear from him in person or even voiceover during presentation. Was he there and I missed it or ...

 

[Max(IT)]

Indeed, you are right. I misread the website.

So if the iPhone 7 is revealed, the price of the 64 iPhone 6S will drop frow €859 to €749.
Making a price difference of €160 between the SE and the 6S

So €160 extra for a barometer, 3D Touch and 0,7 inch extra screen space, newer design...here I'm conflicted between choosing the SE or 6S.

It's all about your preference ...
Do you need a very compact phone ? The SE is just great because it has high end performance.
Do you need a better overall device ? The 6S is about the best on the market.

 

[odaw]

Apple today provided members of the press with hands-on time using the iPhone SE and 9.7" iPad Pro, and first impressions of the new products are beginning to surface across the web. Below is a roundup of some of the more interesting observations and opinions about the new smartphone and tablet.

iPhone SE

The Verge said the iPhone SE "finally makes a small phone feel powerful," which is unsurprising given it is essentially an iPhone 6s shrunk down into an iPhone 5s form factor. The 4-inch smartphone is powered by a 64-bit A9 chip with M9 motion co-processor, which is up to twice as fast as the iPhone 5s. Other features are outlined in our iPhone SE announcement coverage.

TechnoBuffalo described the iPhone SE's top five new features as its 4-inch screen size, $399 starting price, 4K video recording, Live Photos support, and full Apple Pay support without needing an Apple Watch.

Business Insider highlighted how Apple used more scratch resistant materials for the iPhone SE shell, meaning it should not be prone to scratches and scuffs as easily as the iPhone 5s. This includes matte-chamfered edges and a slightly different aluminum backing with a color-matching Apple logo.More: Ars Technica, Engadget, TechRadar, and SlashGear

Click here to read rest of article...

Article Link: First Impressions Roundup: iPhone SE and 9.7" iPad Pro

Nothing wrong with recycling a great design, I'm a big fan of the smaller version since I replaced my laptop for an iPad. What I don't buy into is the lack of OLED and the thick screen borders. Effective pixel area should be wider with no change on the design, then I'll pay for it

 

[4jasontv]

I'm sorry, but comments like this make you seem even more out of touch. The A9X is only used in the iPad Pro. There never will be an iPhone with this chip. Arguably it's overkill and inappropriate for such a small device. And then you're talking about hardware image stabilization available only on Apple's largest phone, something that's not even available on the flagship 6s. Why on earth would anyone expect that to be available on a smaller phone!?



OK I get it. You're being completely unreasonable. Even the iPhone 6s Plus won't have the same specs as the iPad Pro, and arguably features that are totally unecessary, and many of which are just impossible (I suppose you'd like four speakers with the same quality as the Pro too).

The reality here is that if the 4" phone had been released in September with the 6s, with the exact same specs -- that 6 months later, you'd still only have the same tech available to you 6 months ago, and for the next 6 months. You realize that the iPad Pro was introduced a month after the 6s. You must have been livid that Apple screwed their customers so badly with an old A9 chip. And now 6 months later they still expect their customers to buy the same iPhone they were selling 6 months ago with an old chip, and have the gall to keep selling such old tech for 6 more months.

Sorry, but you're off the rails on this.

The SE is a premium product with modern specs.

And I never called you ignorant. I called you unreasonable. But after reading the bold sentence above, I am having second thoughts. They are never going to squeeze all of the features of a 6s Plus into a 4" 6s even if they wanted to. Not without making some major sacrifices. And that's true for every single product in Apple's catalogue. The old beloved 17" MacBook Pro was a perfect example. It had features that were simply not available on the smaller MBPs -- and it's not because Apple was withholding something, it's because the features physically wouldn't fit.

Now for the practical -- there's no way in the world that Apple is going to introduce a new product, that has better features than their current flagship, not in a phone size that only sold 30 million units last year. They are also not going to release next generation iPhone features 6 months before the 7 series is released, nor would I expect them to invest a single cent more to continue the 6 series design style which also comes to an end in 6 months. Better to put all of their resources into the next generation which has two years in front of it. So rather than reengineer the 6s to fit into a 4" phone, what they did makes a lot of sense. Being frustrated because it's missing a few minor features, not just from the 6s, but the 6s Plus no less, and now saying you want it not just to have parity with the largest iPhone Apple sells, but also the largest most technically advanced iPad Pro Apple sells is extraordinarily unreasonable, nor is it very well thought out. Even the iPhone 7 won't have all of the features of the iPad Pro, if for no other reason than they all won't physically fit within the enclosure.

That's reality.

Whatever you may think Apple used to do, there were always choices a customer had to make. This fantasy of every product having feature parity regardless of the form factor is really unrealistic, and an unreasonable expectation at best. I realize you're disappointed, and understand why. All I'm suggesting is that you look at this reasonably. You're never going to get the phone you want from Apple, and that wouldn't be any different if this were the old Apple or the new -- simply because it's just not yet possible. There are things I don't like about the SE -- I wish it were a few mm thinner. I wish it had 6s design cues, I wish it had more available storage, I wish the FaceTime camera was better. But I don't really care about 3D Touch, or a better display (having had no problems with my 5s), which are about the only other features that aren't comparable to the 6s. Using your logic, no one should buy a new iPhone even a month after its released because technology is improving every day. A person who buys 6 month old technology for the same price it was introduced is getting a bad deal. So the only solution is for Apple to constantly upgrade every aspect of the iPhone every month as new technology becomes available. Which I guess makes sense for someone who is willing to pay whatever the cost, and must have the latest, greatest technology at all times. But that's not practical for any other business or product.

In the end, even though I'm willing to pay $650 for a 4" 6s, Apple is only asking me to pay $400 to accept these compromises. And that's enough to appease my realistic disappointment. Moreover, I'm expecting Apple to come out with a 7SE in a year, which will not only look like the 7, but also have similar feature parity to the 7, and I will expect to pay for it accordingly. Meanwhile, Apple has given me almost the equivalent of the 6s, and is charging me almost half as much, surely knowing that even the current flagship will be outdated in less than 6 months. It's a brilliant business move because it doesn't commit them to a phone that would only have 6 months of maximum profitability, if that, and encourages them to offer a flagship replacement much sooner, while giving them a phone with excellent features to depreciate over the next 3 years.

I don't know about you, but I'm going to go on the Apple monthly payment plan when I buy the SE next week, and in 12 to 18 months when they hopefully introduce a new 4" 7 premium design, I'll upgrade, turning in my SE which will get refurbished and re-sold to someone who will get an amazing entry level phone and an even more bargain basement price than I got it new. And I'll get everything I want within reasonable expectation. And I won't care that a new 4" phone potentially released 6 months after the 7, doesn't have better specs, nor will I be concerned that in another 6 months a brand new phone will come out with better specs. As long as the phone does what I need it to do at that moment, it doesn't matter. If I'm really lucky, they'll release a new 4" 7 in September, and if I'm really unlucky, it'll be 18 months when the 7s comes out. But that's a much better prospect than not having a 4" upgrade at all until then, and having lived without one for the past 18 months. But that's the nature of tech.

Oh my. You didn't get my point. I don't want them to shoehorn features into a smaller device, I want them to not add features to the bigger one so that the larger and smaller ones match. That way when it comes time to purchase the choice is only screen size. Apple has a history of not including features until they do it right. I ask they

You have really lost it.
Se has the best iPhone camera(front and back available) , ok no ois that is in an iPhone that is twice as big and twice as expensive.
For the a9x, are you kidding? Apple manages to put in a soc that is faster than the s7 and as fast as 6+ and these are the fastest around.
An a9x with 4gb that is only in the biggest 13 inch iPad ? You should read anandtech' s article. The chip is so big, it wouldn' t even fit in the se.
[doublepost=1458673145][/doublepost]

You are wrong.
iPad Pro with a9x was announced at the press conference before the iPhone 6s with an a9.
So technically iPad Pro was announced and after that iPhone 6s with a9.
The a9 is their latest cpu

Wow, your right, but I totally didn't get that from the loop presentation. The way they tried to sell the two made me think they were using the older A9 over the newer A9x.

And yes, I want them to work at making the Ois fit in a 4" display. For two reasons, the first being what I posted above that I would like their products to return to jobs simplicity. Two, it's a useful feature that makes the other devices less functional once your us

You have no idea what you're talking about.

The 'X' designated SoCs are designed for the heavier workloads like the iPad, not for the phone, and *especially* not for a phone with a 4" screen - there's just zero reason to use the A9X over the A9 for the SE.

It makes perfect sense to choose the A9 - it is the current generation phone SoC and the SE doesn't need the extra GPU grunt.

Thinking of the A9 and A9X as "previous" and "latest" is wrong. They are both the "latest" but they were designed for different roles. Just slapping the A9X into the SE just because it's "the best" is a stupid way to design a phone. The A9 confers benefits that make it attractive to use in a phone - namely, lower power consumption and lower thermal output. The A9X offers more of the grunt it can provide in a bigger chassis where there is a) a bigger battery to feed that increased power draw and b) more thermal headroom to cool it and c) an actual need of the extra power to drive the tablet's bigger screen.

So no, the "old" processor was not used. The current best publicly released SoC was used.

Which, as I stated here , was not how it was presented recently. I appreciate the explanation of size and power draw.

 

[Pilgrim1099]

[doublepost=1458724826][/doublepost]Where was Sir Jony Ive? Did not see him in front row with other Apple Execs or hear from him in person or even voiceover during presentation. Was he there and I missed it or ...

I suspect he's an introvert and prefers to stay in the shadows. He's not the type to go on stage or sit in front row.

 

[thomasguide]

When are they going to make some design changes and get rid of their giant frames/bezels? They could fit the 4.7inch screen in that frame if they didnt have huge frames/bezels around the phone.

Pretty sad they keep trying to get thinner and thinner when no one gives a **** about that but their phones are super tall and wide because of huge bezels.

They can't shrink those bezels, they've gone all in with the home button as the finger print reader. If they shrink the bezels at the top and sides but still have a home button the phone will look like it's from the bizarro planet. The only way to get rid of the bezels is do get rid of the home button either put it on the back or imbed it into the glass. Then they can shrink that behemoth down to a more manageable size. Their whole lineup of phones would shrink with bigger screens.

 

[rohitkalra90]

"The good news: The iPhone SE gives you everything great about the iPhone 6s for $250 cheaper."

Does this confirm it has 2gb ram? That's one of the major features of the 6s.

Yes it has 2 GB RAM.
[doublepost=1458775310][/doublepost]

The iPhone SE is a way for Apple to test how the market responds to what is essentially a flagship 4" model. If it reacts favorably and sells well, then they would probably start releasing one every year, probably starting with the iPhone 7s. If it reacts unfavorably and does not sell well, then that's why it was a "special edition." Works either way!

Hope iPhone SE succeeds and iPhone 7s mini/SE has all the features like the 3D Touch. I'm ready to pay more premium than this however want each and every feature the bigger ones have.

PS - Apple please bring OIS and that good battery backup of the Plus models to 4.7 as well.

 

[ValO]

They can't shrink those bezels, they've gone all in with the home button as the finger print reader. If they shrink the bezels at the top and sides but still have a home button the phone will look like it's from the bizarro planet. The only way to get rid of the bezels is do get rid of the home button either put it on the back or imbed it into the glass. Then they can shrink that behemoth down to a more manageable size. Their whole lineup of phones would shrink with bigger screens.

Yes, true,
But there still is some room left. They could shrink the bezels with 1mm each and both chins by 2mm each. Would still be in proportion.

 

[Mr Bigs]

The iPhone SE is a way for Apple to test how the market responds to what is essentially a flagship 4" model. If it reacts favorably and sells well, then they would probably start releasing one every year, probably starting with the iPhone 7s. If it reacts unfavorably and does not sell well, then that's why it was a "special edition." Works either way!

They're not loosing anything since the pretty much have all the parts already !!!

 

[952863]

Sounds like two solid devices from Apple.

 

[FFR]

When are they going to make some design changes and get rid of their giant frames/bezels? They could fit the 4.7inch screen in that frame if they didnt have huge frames/bezels around the phone.

Pretty sad they keep trying to get thinner and thinner when no one gives a **** about that but their phones are super tall and wide because of huge bezels.

I want a thinner iphone and I like their current design language.
All I'm looking for in the iPhone 7 is a slimmer frame and a higher density screen.

 

[\-V-/]

Been playing with my 5S the last week ... especially using it during exercise. Just ordered my SE last night. Very excited. The gigantic screen on my 6P is nice, but I have small hands and small pockets. I forgot what a joy typing with one hand is ... and taking pictures ... I can barely hold the 6P when snapping a shot. Two of my other friends just bought the SE as well ... switching from their 6S.

Hope iPhone SE succeeds and iPhone 7s mini/SE has all the features like the 3D Touch. I'm ready to pay more premium than this however want each and every feature the bigger ones have.

I hope so too. This is the phone I wanted all along. Was a bit disappointed there was no 4" option when they revealed the iPhone 6 ... then they released the 5C which was not any sort of upgrade whatsoever except for a minor battery size bump.
[doublepost=1459535353][/doublepost]

Not only that, but by stuffing it into the same form factor they seem to have recognized many of us have cases and accessories married to a certain form factor that we'd rather not replace. Not to mention permanently creased back pocket outlines in our jeans

As a family of 4, each of us with a 5s, I welcome this new phone. It's exactly what's needed the next time one of us demolishes a screen. And at the current price point it means not having to worry about buying a used phone on eBay.

Would have been nice to start at 32gb, though.

Yeah, I'm pretty excited about it. My folks want the SE as well after having upgraded from their 5's to the 6S recently. They don't like the size. But they're under contract so they can't switch at the moment. The price is definitely great for what this phone is.
[doublepost=1459536088][/doublepost]

Maybe not expecting, but hoping for full feature parity with the (6 month old by the time his ships) 6s, at a similar price point to that phone. People with small hands want top of the line phones too. But I realize that's a difficult concept to grasp, especially for Apple.

I agree ... I am one of those people with small hands. This is a much better option than that 5C garbage was, though.

 

[aces99]

Anyone notice the 9.7 ipad pro has an embedded sim, and is the first Apple device to have LTE Advanced?

Actually iPhone 6S and 6S plus is the first Apple device to have advanced LTE. The iPad Pro is the first iPad to have advanced LTE