Part of me is in the same boat. I am contemplating selling my 11 Pro and going with the SE. However, the other part of me wants to wait to see what Apple offers this fall (especially with rumors of a 5.4" iPhone).
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iPhone SE Reviews: High-End Performance With Budget-Friendly Price
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Part of me is in the same boat. I am contemplating selling my 11 Pro and going with the SE. However, the other part of me wants to wait to see what Apple offers this fall (especially with rumors of a 5.4" iPhone).
I’m not generally a huge fan of iOS or the iPhone (just switched over from Android to an iPhone 11 a few months ago and it has been a mixed bag).
But Apple knocked it out of the park with this one. There will, of course, be some areas where, say, a pixel 4a might have a slight advantage. But the combination of the ultra fast processor with the longevity of the typical iOS device (in terms of security updates) means that for those for whom value is a huge consideration (like me) the field has suddenly tilted. Instead of being heavily weighted in favor of Android phones, it is now even more heavily weighted in favor of the iPhone SE.
I’m impressed.
But Apple knocked it out of the park with this one. There will, of course, be some areas where, say, a pixel 4a might have a slight advantage. But the combination of the ultra fast processor with the longevity of the typical iOS device (in terms of security updates) means that for those for whom value is a huge consideration (like me) the field has suddenly tilted. Instead of being heavily weighted in favor of Android phones, it is now even more heavily weighted in favor of the iPhone SE.
I’m impressed.
Problem with Apple provided review units is that the reviewers are limited in what they can say so Apple biased. Have to wait for out-of-pocket purchased for unbiased reviews.
For example, noticed they gloss over the battery life or state best case as in video playback. Want to know screen on time for gaming, mixed use, etc. ~3000mAh would've been better and typical of ~5" phones and considering $250 Moto G8 Power has 5000mAh.
Does it fix the throttling lag on sustained gaming performance that the iPhone 11 Pro suffers from? My guess it does since it's driving lower resolution but need confirmation.
Overall, don't mind the compromises in design, large bezels, camera and lower resolution but they should've equipped a larger battery, offered night mode instead of upsell and a Plus size since people are on lockdown and use their phone more as a small tablet. Touch ID is a plus since mask friendly and I hate finger gymnastics gestures.
For example, noticed they gloss over the battery life or state best case as in video playback. Want to know screen on time for gaming, mixed use, etc. ~3000mAh would've been better and typical of ~5" phones and considering $250 Moto G8 Power has 5000mAh.
Does it fix the throttling lag on sustained gaming performance that the iPhone 11 Pro suffers from? My guess it does since it's driving lower resolution but need confirmation.
Overall, don't mind the compromises in design, large bezels, camera and lower resolution but they should've equipped a larger battery, offered night mode instead of upsell and a Plus size since people are on lockdown and use their phone more as a small tablet. Touch ID is a plus since mask friendly and I hate finger gymnastics gestures.
Absolutely! This thing will be quite a hit, and they have a very easy upgrade in the pipeline by simply reducing the top and bottom bezels. I don't know whether it will be the one rumoured for the fall or whatever, but it will be the next significant SE upgrade, I would think. Then squaring the edges like the iPad Pro and rumoured upcoming iPhone. It will morph neatly into a mini iPhone, looking much like the others, but with elements keeping it more keenly priced.
I expect how it will go is this: that any engineering at all will happen at the flagship end, that the iPhone 12 will come out in whatever number of sizes, the 11 will bump down to a lower spot on the offering list, etc. I don't think we see a new iPhone SE for another four years, at which time they'll assumedly do the same dance again: offer up their latest chip in an iPhone 11 body, and I would guess by that time their flagship design will be something significantly different. Some variation on that scenario.
What confuses me is the suggested SE Plus, which rumor has being pushed back to 2021. I'm at a loss why, if they were going to do an SE Plus, it wasn't launched side-by-side with the SE. Perhaps there were more engineering challenges. Perhaps they decided to try to put an iPhone 11 camera in there, which would be awesome but feels like it would fly in the face of the SE's philosophy.
I’m a software developer and a photography enthusiast. I’m trading in my iPhone XS for an iPhone SE. I’m looking forward to better photos, better battery life, and an even more lightweight phone, for basically free.
I’ll keep it at least as long as I have to wear a mask in public, since FaceID simply doesn’t work if my face is masked. Maybe I’ll pick up an iPhone 12 secondhand once this whole coronavirus thing has died down. (Crossing fingers on that)
I agree. Truthfully, I’d like to see that other rumor come to fruition with the ‘SE Plus’ variant next year. If that happens, it still keeps touch ID relevant and it offers a larger display for those who still want a cheaper price point without all the other technology. I know that’s a long ways away, but if it does happen, it truly does show that Apple has ‘mastered’ the smart phone cluster with price points/sizes for everyone for almost every country.
Get an Apple Watch and you’ll wonder why people barbarically pull their phones from their pockets to pay for things.
Maybe the best phone to launch during a pandemic is a $399 (US) phone with a mask-approved home button.
It is great the phone is snappy, no lag.
It is great the phone is snappy, no lag.
I might, but I really dig my Swatch my wife got me for my birthday this year!
The Apple Watch isn’t really my thing. They seem really great, but I get some kind of weird fragile masculine ego sort of feeling when I think of wearing one. It’s funny cause I’m totally into wearing a Swatch, go figure. 😂
Do like I did and chip the display while jumping rope with a boxer’s weighted leather rope. Really manly.
Of course, I did cry for a while just after it happened.
Actually, I agree that the SE launched at a perfect time. Others might disagree, but the fact that it’s at ~$400 price point during the pandemic, it gives the alternative a cheaper entry-level price for those who can’t afford/are unwilling to spend that kind of money $800+ iPhones. Plus, this is a ‘global phone‘, not just a phone for the North American market. I suspect this phone should be in Apples line-up at least until 2022 for long-term sales.
Oh man! I would cry too, as manly as I am. 😂
If you’re jumping rope with a boxer’s weighted rope, you’re way more manly than I am. All I really did is climb at the rock gym, before all this coronavirus stuff. My callouses are pretty much gone, ugh!
I'm pretty sure we all realize this, but that a pandemic is happening when the launch of the SE comes around is just a coincidence. I expect that the SE would have done well under "normal" circumstances as well. But you're right, given the current circumstances, its timing is fortunate.
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I climb from the sofa into a standing position and that's it for me. Unfortunately that evidently doesn't count as a "step". Darn it.
It’s looking like it takes great photos too! Tomsguide compared it favorably to the Pixel 3a camera. Except for shots in the dark of course, pity about the lack of night mode.
Yup they hit at least two points:
First was having Touch as you said when Face is a hassle with masks.
Second was preorders meshed with the $1200 stimuli starting to flow.
I've read a couple of reviews, and it's interesting that a lot of them like the home button vs no home button.
From the UX point of view the home button/lack of home button seems to be a wash, in that there's a benefit to no button (screen size), but there's also more load associated with no button (more awkward).
From the UX point of view the home button/lack of home button seems to be a wash, in that there's a benefit to no button (screen size), but there's also more load associated with no button (more awkward).
I haven't had a phone with Face ID (in fact, my current SE is the only one I've had with Touch ID), but I'm not anxious to move to it. I don't know where this falls among your UX factors, but I feel more in control with Touch ID. I feel like I'm the active participant and the phone the passive one. It feels to me like with Face ID those roles are reversed. The act of reaching with my thumb and hitting the home button feels very purposeful to me, whereas the act of looking at my phone is something that happens all the time. Though I don't know what it is like in practice, it feels like something that could happen accidentally. I could hit the home button accidentally in pulling the phone out of my pocket, too, but at least the phone is not a participant at all in that, that's all me. With Face ID the phone itself is complicit too.
I totally get that. I think Apple was deliberately trying to make the entire authentication process more of a transparent and passive step. it’s almost like having no authentication at all, it’s a weird feeling. It’s annoying when it doesn’t work for whatever reason, or when it fails a few times in a row EVERY TIME I use my flashlight, forcing me to type in my access code again.
I really love the swipe UI, I’ll miss that when I switch to my iPhone SE. I’ll also miss being able to touch the screen to wake the phone.
I’ll switch back to a FaceID iPhone later on when I don’t have to wear a mask all the time. I like the longer screen and FaceID too, despite its quirks.
The camera lacks night mode, but still appears to do as good or better than the Xr in low-light thanks to the software, based on the few comparisons I've seen so far. All other shots in good-to-great light appear to be on par with the 11/11 Pro. I know it lacks updated hardware, but if the software is capable of doing that on a consistent basis, that's still pretty great. I don't see how they could've gotten the newer camera hardware in a smaller form factor anyway.
The CNET review is one of the better reviews, in my opinion.
Less than 72 hours to go.
Less than 72 hours to go.
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Absolutely, the SE Plus variant could attract those who have a 6s+, 7s+ or even an 8+ who are looking to slip into a familiar form factor without face id. Just make sure the battery is big enough to give it a solid days' worth of usage.
So the battery life is better than iPhone 8?
CNET says it lasts even several hours longer, hmmm.
CNET says it lasts even several hours longer, hmmm.
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I saw that! My hopes are a bit higher now, my iPhone XS doesn’t have the best battery life. I mean, not that it matters since I never leave the house.
I think the title nails the key points. It’s fast and relatively inexpensive. This means it should also be supported and provide a great experience for a long time. As Apple’s smallest offering with the newest chipset it also follows SE tradition. Big like!