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What It's Like Using an iPhone SE in 2019
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We can now change the headline to What It's Like Using an iPhone SE in 2020!!!
I have an XS and a Galaxy S10E but recently could not resist picking up a nice gold 64GB SE for around $100. I love it and reach for it much more than the other phones. It's a gem. Might look for another one also.
Update: Got a nice Space Gray SE 64GB with 97% battery life. Put a thin Spigen case on it and a wireless receiver and now I just put it on my wireless charger. When I pick up my XS it feels like I'm holding an Ipad. Small can be good!!
Update: Got a nice Space Gray SE 64GB with 97% battery life. Put a thin Spigen case on it and a wireless receiver and now I just put it on my wireless charger. When I pick up my XS it feels like I'm holding an Ipad. Small can be good!!
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Is it still worth buying an SE (refurbished) end of 2019 from mobile carrier on special with 12 months warranty?
I would buy brand new one if it was still available and I would love an edge to edge screen in the same SE body with headphone jack but I won’t get my hopes up!
I would buy brand new one if it was still available and I would love an edge to edge screen in the same SE body with headphone jack but I won’t get my hopes up!
My SE is working great, battery life could be better. I always carry a power bank with me just in case, though I rarely have to use it. The performance and features however, are perfect for me. It runs the latest iOS, so I think it will remain a good phone for another year. Though if buying new today, I may not recommend it as it's not entirely future-proof.
That is my concern - that it won’t be future proof. But I also know if I wait for the potential SE 2 that it will probably be more expensive, bigger, heavier and lack a headphones jack. Dilemma.
Weight and size is the biggest reason for SE and price because I don’t really need a smart phone as I use my iPad and get by with a dumb phone. However I will be needing wifi calling and google maps would be useful hence the SE consideration. A decent camera would be nice but size & weight comes first. The top end camera in the SE body would be worth paying for... but I know it won’t happen!
I originally held off buying an SE because it was rumoured an updated one would be released earlier this year, which obviously didn’t happen. Now you can only get 2nd hand & refurbs.
What I really want is an update SE with the same body. Even better would be an X design in the SE body.
I'm pretty sure Apple won't ever return to this form factor or the headphone jack, unfortunately. A new SE will at least have great battery life since it's new... The only issue is that in 1 year, it will no longer get the lates iOS version. Which is fine, until developers stop supporting the old iOS versions. Usually this happens within another year or two, depending on the app. A long time ago, I had a 2nd gen iPod Touch which I held on to for a very long time. My experience was that while the device itself was great, Apple stopped supporting it, and eventually important features like calendar and notes syncing stopped working as new versions of macOS dropped support. Then I could no longer download or update many basic apps that I needed. So eventually it stops being useful, no matter how great the hardware is.
But it's entirely possible that the apps and features you need won't stop working for several years, in which case you could be totally fine with the SE.
The 2nd gen SE will likely look like the iPhone 8 and will lack the headphone jack. To me that's still better than not being able to download an app because it's no longer supported. The price will likely be higher than the SE was at release though... but that remains to be seen. Maybe the price difference will be offset by the difference in future-proofed-ness.
I have an XR which I do love for its fine display, but only use it as a WiFi device because I find its heft and dimensions awkward for use as a cellphone on the go. So for a phone I have an SE and a spare, it's my favorite size for grab and go, just sticking it in a jeans pocket or some little compartment in a handbag.
On battery usage of my SE or its backup, I don't have much of an impression. I live in a dead zone so the thing is either off or else in WiFi mode most of the time. I use it as a phone, reading books or picking up notifications from online news apps that I generally hand off to a laptop if I'm interested in what pops up.
On battery usage of my SE or its backup, I don't have much of an impression. I live in a dead zone so the thing is either off or else in WiFi mode most of the time. I use it as a phone, reading books or picking up notifications from online news apps that I generally hand off to a laptop if I'm interested in what pops up.
If they stopped providing iOS updates for the SE they would also stop it for similar spec’ed devices (iPhone 6s, 6s plus and the recently sold iPad 9.7 5th gen 2017, as well as the lower spec’ed iPad mini 4).
As for battery life, within the last 3 months I’ve used iPhone SE, 6s, 7 and 11. All of them had battery health in the 90-100% range and had iOS installed as new devices with no restore from backup. From shortest to longest screen on time:
6s: 1hr 45mins
7: 2hr 30mins
SE: 3hr 30mins
11: 10+ hours
The SE is a solid battery performer. I’ve had it since 2017.
As for battery life, within the last 3 months I’ve used iPhone SE, 6s, 7 and 11. All of them had battery health in the 90-100% range and had iOS installed as new devices with no restore from backup. From shortest to longest screen on time:
6s: 1hr 45mins
7: 2hr 30mins
SE: 3hr 30mins
11: 10+ hours
The SE is a solid battery performer. I’ve had it since 2017.
One of the updates to ios 13 switched all apps to background refresh - killed the battery. I’ve had to switch off altogether or turn off most apps. Made a huge difference on both of our SEs. Not looking forward to a bigger phone so we’ll try to milk the SEs as long as possible. Ours will be turning 3 in the next 2-6 months and look and feel like brand new.
Other than the physical size of the new phones, as others have said, the other huge problem is the weight and density.
They literally feel like bricks you would use when making a patio.
I really can’t stand the feel of using the new/larger phones
They literally feel like bricks you would use when making a patio.
I really can’t stand the feel of using the new/larger phones
I still have two SEs, a 64GB and a 128GB. I haven't even used them in the last year and one of them has only 11 cycles on it. I decided to update them from iOS 10 to 13.2.2 so I could jailbreak them.
Now I'll probably put them back where they were for the past year. The screens are entirely too small for my 55 year old eyes.
Now I'll probably put them back where they were for the past year. The screens are entirely too small for my 55 year old eyes.
What is it like?
A great experience.
I can listen to music, get route instructions via Google Maps, use ApplePay, take photos, send emails… do my banking…
And a few extras? It fits in my jeans' back pockets. It has a fingerprint reader for security. And a headphone jack.
Oh, and it feels great in my hand. No case. No skins… just a small very nicely designed device that doesn't slip out of my hand faster than a bar of soap.
A financial investment that I don't agonise over because OMG! I might drop it! It might get a scratch! It might get a smudge! Oh the humanity! Just look at the agony aunt threads here on MR about people driven insane with care for their monster phones.
The SE is not exactly ancient technology… Perhaps if you had asked "What is it like using an iPhone 2G in 2019?" it might be better.
Thanks for asking though.
Well said! Often it seems proponents of phablets think they'll have to throw away their massive slabs and be forced to use these miniscule (in their eyes) ancient devices.
Absolutely. Not one of MacRumours' finest efforts.
I wear mine around my Neck: Like Soap on a Rope!!
The SE used to have a brilliant battery life but iOS 11 kinda killed that, iOS 12 was marginally worse again and iOS 13 seems to be another big dive.
They have to make you buy a new phone somehow!
I'm eagerly waiting for SE2 news, cant wait to get my hands on it.
Heh, I'm gonna use my SE as long as possible. I doubt there will be another 4 inch iPhone unfortunately so unsure what I'll do. I miss when phone upgrades didn't feel like downgrades to me.
I went from a SE i'd had for a few years to a XS which I hated for the 8 months I used it, now I picked up a brand new SE this summer and couldnt be happier. Costco had a bunch of them for about 2 days before they sold out.
The SE is perfect for me, make it waterproof so I can't wreck it again and I'd be happy if I used it for 10 years.
THe new phones do nothing of value that the SE can't. The battery life is just fine, I stream podcasts via bluetooth for about 4 hours a day and other general usage and I normally have 65% battery left by 10pm.
If apple don't make a phone the same physical size or smaller than the SE this will be my last iphone. The palm phone mk2 which i've heard rumours about could be a likely replacement. They just need to improve the battery life and it'll be great. Even smaller than the SE which is a bonus in my eyes.
New phones are a joke, apple have managed to fool consumers into thinking they provide value relative to their cost, they simply do not. I just picked up a pixelbook go which was half the price of a new iphone and it is 10x the machine. I simply do need need or want a phone costing thousands of dollars. For me a phone simply doesnt provide value to me to justify that cost. I only got the XS as I could write it off as a business expense, but it isn't worth anywhere near what I paid. If it wasnt for podcasts and qwerty texting I could easily live with a flip phone.
in 2019 and 2020 the SE is still the best phone apple have made. I wouldnt use a larger iphone again even if you gave it me for free.
The SE is perfect for me, make it waterproof so I can't wreck it again and I'd be happy if I used it for 10 years.
THe new phones do nothing of value that the SE can't. The battery life is just fine, I stream podcasts via bluetooth for about 4 hours a day and other general usage and I normally have 65% battery left by 10pm.
If apple don't make a phone the same physical size or smaller than the SE this will be my last iphone. The palm phone mk2 which i've heard rumours about could be a likely replacement. They just need to improve the battery life and it'll be great. Even smaller than the SE which is a bonus in my eyes.
New phones are a joke, apple have managed to fool consumers into thinking they provide value relative to their cost, they simply do not. I just picked up a pixelbook go which was half the price of a new iphone and it is 10x the machine. I simply do need need or want a phone costing thousands of dollars. For me a phone simply doesnt provide value to me to justify that cost. I only got the XS as I could write it off as a business expense, but it isn't worth anywhere near what I paid. If it wasnt for podcasts and qwerty texting I could easily live with a flip phone.
in 2019 and 2020 the SE is still the best phone apple have made. I wouldnt use a larger iphone again even if you gave it me for free.
Eh, it was just a change in their practice of dropping the price of the previous year’s iPhone by $100. Instead of just selling the old model outright, they slapped (mostly) iPhone 5 parts in a plastic enclosure and called it a day. I wouldn’t really call it a “budget” iPhone either, since it retailed for $150 more than the iPhone SE when it shipped and $200 more than when it was discontinued.
I personally loved the 5C
I actually think there's room in the lineup for something like that again...
More fun, more colorful, more value oriented, etc
I also loved how it felt in hand. Plastic can be a superb material for hand feel and grip.
The "fun" is missing in a lot of what Apple does anymore. Everything seems to need to be an ultra thin steel/glass/aluminum monolith meant to compliment the "discerning Tesla or BMW owner" and their imagined palate.
I actually think there's room in the lineup for something like that again...
More fun, more colorful, more value oriented, etc
I also loved how it felt in hand. Plastic can be a superb material for hand feel and grip.
The "fun" is missing in a lot of what Apple does anymore. Everything seems to need to be an ultra thin steel/glass/aluminum monolith meant to compliment the "discerning Tesla or BMW owner" and their imagined palate.
Weren't the iPhone XR and 11 Apple's "fun" and "colorful" phones? They were also lower priced relative to the pro phones.
A pretty minimal effort at it for me..
Materials could and should be a part of the diversification mix.