when you start evaluating the 64gb model for 500 bucks with a tiny low resolution screen
It's not low resolution. It's a retina screen with over 300 dpi. And there are a lot of people like me who need extensive one handed use of their phone, which is just about impossible with a 6/6S. Many times electronics that are smaller cost MORE than those that are larger, because you are paying for the portability of a small form factor. When I see people using their phones with 2 hands for the most trivial tasks it seems nightmarish to me - for that I use an iPad.
🙂
Basically, take the iPhone 5S, which is an awesome phone and was a huge hit, super-update it, then cut $250 off the price, and you have the SE. Just because you think a 4" phone isn't cool doesn't mean everyone does. If form factor didn't matter, everyone would carry around 6s+ phones, but form factor DOES matter. (BTW, I'm guessing in the past you weren't one of those people who paid $850 for an iPhone with a 3.5" screen.)
And BTW, don't price the 16GB models if you don't want 16GB. Compare the 64GB models instead. $500 for a *NEW* iPhone is insanely low - it's hard to find used iPhones that cheap. Compare it to a $1,300 iPad Pro and it's a real bargain...
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It's not low resolution. It's a retina screen with over 300 dpi. And there are a lot of people like me who need extensive one handed use of their phone, which is just about impossible with a 6/6S. Many times electronics that are smaller cost MORE than those that are larger, because you are paying for the portability of a small form factor. When I see people using their phones with 2 hands for the most trivial tasks it seems nightmarish to me - for that I use an iPad. 🙂
Basically, take the iPhone 5S, which is an awesome phone and was a huge hit, super-update it, then cut $250 off the price, and you have the SE. Just because you think a 4" phone isn't cool doesn't mean everyone does. If form factor didn't matter, everyone would carry around 6s+ phones, but form factor DOES matter. (BTW, I'm guessing in the past you weren't one of those people who paid $850 for an iPhone with a 3.5" screen.)
And BTW, don't price the 16GB models if you don't want 16GB. Compare the 64GB models instead. $500 for a *NEW* iPhone is insanely low - it's hard to find used iPhones that cheap. Compare it to a $1,300 iPad Pro and it's a real bargain...
OK, that was really just rehashing what other posts have pointed out - that in the context of iPhones, the SE is a really good deal, not overpriced. But I think your real question was more saying "iPhones shouldn't cost this much." Well, we all know from BOM that Apple is only charging about 40% over the raw cost for the phone. So Apple isn't padding the prices much. (Except for flash, of course). So what you're really asking is should Apple drastically change the quality of their materials so they can make a similar profit selling iPhones for half the current price. Where the main draw would just be for people that have to use iOS software, so they need an iPhone instead of an Android phone. Well, I'm not sure I would want that, but some people would, and the entire concept of an SE phone is the first step Apple has ever taken in that direction (since the iPhone 5c that is.) The problem there is Apple will not stop making higher end, expensive phones, so people will always look at the low cost iPhones and say "yeah, but I want the GOOD one to be cheap".