Apple iPhone SE
Apple iPhone SE Review
Introduction
The iPhone SE is a perfect fit for a time-saver review, it seems, as Apple didn't come up with a new design or new internals. Instead, the innards come from an iPhone 6s, while the design is a direct copy of the iPhone 5s. While on paper this sounds like a great combination, it's not exactly breaking news, is it?One way to interpret this move is to conclude Apple is taking the easy road and is merely recycling an existing chassis design to produce a lower-cost iPhone without hurting margins. Another possible interpretation is that they are reviving the iconic iPhone 5/5s design in an attempt to cater to a group of users who not only want a cheaper iPhone but would also prefer the smaller form factor.
Let's not forget that a third of Apple users are still using older 4-inch smartphones.
Key specifications
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4.0"640 x 1136 pixels -
12MP 2160p -
1.84GHz Apple A9 -
2GB RAM 16/64GB -
1624mAhLi-Po
Design and build quality
The Apple's iPhone SE design is on the catwalk for a third time in a row, and there are no surprises here. After the dawn of the glass iPhones, the new metal chassis introduced by the iPhone 5 quickly became a fan-favorite. It was in fact so popular that in the aftermath of the iPhone 6 premiere the new exterior was considered as a disappointment because of the departure from the old looks.Sure, Apple could have shrunk the iPhone 6 chassis for the iPhone SE instead, but we suspect they've intentionally decided to keep the iconic chassis. Plus, nobody can't argue it was easier for development and production - faster, and, of course, cheaper.
Display
The display uses a 4" IPS panel of 640 x 1136 pixels, which is 326ppi density - the very definition of a Retina display.The iPhone SE rendition of blacks is brighter than we would prefer, but on the other end of the spectrum, the 600 nits worth of brightness level is quite appreciable. The resulting contrast of 1:804 is not as noteworthy mainly due to the poor black levels.
Battery life
The battery inside the iPhone SE is slightly bigger than the one inside the iPhone 5s. The iPhone 5s has a 1,560mAh battery, whereas a 1,624mAh unit powers the iPhone Special Edition.The iPhone SE posted very balanced score across all of our tests - it can do about 12 hours of 3G calls, 13 hours of web browsing, or 14 hours of video playback on a single charge.
Audio
We also put the loudspeaker performance of the new iPhone SE to testing. The audio quality is uninspiring - worse than the iPhone 6s - and the sound is queiter. The speaker loudness is almost the same as on the iPhone 5s. This means you should keep a close eye on your phone in noisy environments, or missing calls is a real possibility.As for the audio quality through the 3.5mm audio jack, the Apple iPhone SE takes after the iPhone 6s, sharing its less-than-stellar stereo quality with an active external amplifier.
All the other readings were great though and with the volume levels sitting comfortably above average it’s a solid performance.
Photo camera
The iPhone SE utilizes the same 12MP imager we saw on the iPhone 6s generation with F/2.2 aperture and dual-tone flash. The front camera, unfortunately, is the same as on the iPhone 5s - a 1.2MP shooter. The powerful chipset and the 12MP sensor also allows the iPhone SE to capture 4K video recording.First we wanted to address the elephant in the room - are the iPhone SE photos the same as the iPhone 6s samples? Yes, they are. The photos taken with the iPhone 6s weren't that impressive, and so are the iPhone SE images.
The resolved detail is good, but it's not dramatically better than what the iPhone 5s and 6 offered, and not on par with the current crop of flagships. The post-processing is rather heavy-handed - as noticeable in the sharpening halos and the prominent noise.
Software
Apple iPhone SE runs on the iOS 9.3 out of the box, though there is already a 9.3.1 bug-squashing firmware update. The new phone lacks 3D Touch hardware, so some of the major features are missing from the OS.The latest Apple iOS 9.3 brings the new Night Shift mode and an enhanced Notes app while it was iOS 9 that introduced the new News app, and public transit support for Maps. Mail and Messages got a refresh, and there's a new system font. Meanwhile, Siri got smarter while Spotlight Search expanded its reach.
Siri got smarter, too. In addition to all the cool stuff the intelligent assistant could do before, it can now search through your photos and videos based on dates, locations and the album names.
We can certainly say that iOS 9 feels adequate on the 4" display, but once you've experienced it on the larger models, it's hard to go back.
Benchmark performance
The iPhone SE may come with dated looks, but its hardware is up to date. It is powered by the latest Apple A9 chipset, which packs a dual-core 1.84 GHz Twister processor, PowerVR GT7600 six-core graphics, and 2GB RAM. And we believe the A9, coupled with the lower (than iPhone 6) resolution screen would be a monster.The Apple A9 has the power to handle everything you can get on your phone today and is future-proof for years to come with some huge power reserves under the hood.
Wrap-up
There is no conspiracy behind the iPhone SE - it's what the fans wished for, and what the critics love to hate. It's always been this way with Apple - polarized opinions versus massive sales.The iPhone SE is an iPhone like any other iPhone. It has top-notch hardware, all the latest camera capabilities, and runs on the latest iOS with everything but the 3D Touch gestures. The only thing that puts us off is the old selfie camera.
Apple iPhone SE | |
Pros | Cons |
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