iPhone SE review: Apple’s $399 iPhone live up to the hype – CNET
There are a lot of options, think about Apple’s new $399 iPhone SE. One is that it is a more affordable option than the iPhone 11 ($699 at Apple) with amazing similar camera specifications what it is. Or that it is the 2020-continuation of the original SE 2016, the it is also. Or, with a 4.7-inch, the it is the smallest and cheapest iPhone you can buy currently. Or (and this is my favorite to think about it), that it’s an iPhone 8 with the brain and the power of the iPhone 11. In fact, the second generation of the iPhone-SE, all of these things and that’s why I’m in love with you.
The new iPhone-SE has defined the classic design of the iPhone for its first 10 years. The design of the body and the camera lenses are all the same as in 2017, the iPhone 8. But Apple’s carried out, a clever brain transplant, to replace the almost 3 year old processor with the A13 Bionic-processor in the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro-Max. This goes far beyond a simple spec-bump of the majorly improved things such as the cameras and battery life. The new processor not only runs faster, but it is likely to future proof the phone by years of iOS “updates”.
But $399 (£419, AU$749), the iPhone comes with compromises that Apple chose wisely. The SE only has a single rear camera, it does not have to ID the Face and it has the camera features like night mode, Slofies and Deep Fusion processing is missing. The selfie-camera is OK, but not as amazing as the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max.
If you sold the whole at a glance, the iPhone-SE provides the most value for your dollar of any cell phone Apple. It is an attractive price, fantastic battery life, great rear camera, A13 processor, water charge resistance and support for wireless. The SE is not only a wonderful iPhone, but one of the best budget phones that you can buy currently.
stack it
How to
- Affordable price
- Long battery life so far
- Great rear camera
- iPhone 11 Pro-level performance
not
- Old iPhone design
- Selfie camera-medium
iPhone-SE (2020) specifications compared to the iPhone 8, iPhone-SE (2016), iPhone 11
|
iPhone-SE (2020) | iPhone 8 | iPhone-SE (2016) | iPhone 11 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Display Size, Resolution | 4.7-inch Retina HD; 1,334×750 pixels | 4.7-inch Retina HD; 1,334×750 pixels | 4 inches; 1,136×640 pixels | 6.1-inch LCD-liquid retina; 1,792×828 Pixel |
The Pixel Density | 326ppi | 326ppi | 326ppi | 326ppi |
Dimensions (Inches) | 5.45 x 2.65 x 0.29 in | 5.45×2.65×0.29 in | 4.87×2.31×0.3 in | 5.94×2.98×0.33 in |
Dimensions (Mm) | 138.4 x 67.3 x 7.3 mm | 138.4×67.3×7.3 mm | 123x58x7.6 mm | 150.9×75.7×8.3 mm |
Weight (In Ounces, Grams) | 5.22 oz; 148g | 5.22 oz. / 148 g | 3.99 oz; 113 g | 6.84 oz; 194g |
Mobile software | iOS-13 | iOS 11 (the update to iOS 13) | iOS 9.3 | iOS-13 |
Camera | 12-megapixel | 12-megapixel | 12-megapixel | 12 megapixels (wide), 12 megapixel (ultra wide) |
Front-facing camera | 7-megapixel | 7-megapixel | 1.2 megapixel | 12-megapixel |
Video capture | 4K | 4K | 4K | 4K |
Processor | Apple A13 Bionic | Apple A11 Bionic | Apple A9 | Apple A13 Bionic |
Storage | 64GB, 128GB, 256GB | 64GB, 256GB | 16GB, 64GB | 64GB, 128GB, 256GB |
RAM | Not be published | 2GB | Not be published | Not be published |
Expandable Memory | No | None | No | No |
Battery | Not be published | Not be published | Not be published | Not be published |
Fingerprint sensor | Home Button | Home Button | Home Button | No |
Connection | Flash | Flash | Flash | Flash |
Headphone Jack | No | No | Yes | No |
Features | Waterproof (IP67); dual-SIM capability (nano-SIM and e-SIM), Wi-Fi charging | Waterproof (IP67), wireless charging | Apple Pay; Haptic Touch | Waterproof (IP68); dual-SIM capability (nano-SIM and e-SIM), Wi-Fi charging |
Price off-contract (USD) | $399 (64GB), $449 (128 GB), $549 (256 GB) | $699 (64GB), $849 (256 GB) | $399 (16 GB); $499 (64GB) | $699 (64GB), $749 (128GB), $849 (256 GB) |
Price (GBP) | £419 (64GB), £469 (128 GB), £569 (256 GB) | £699 (64GB), £849 (256 GB) | £359 (16GB), £439 (64GB) | £729 (64GB), £779 (128 GB), £879 (256 GB) |
Price (AUD) | AU$749 (64GB), AU$829 (128 GB), AU-999, US DOLLAR (256 GB) | AU$1,079 (64GB), AU$1,329 (256 GB) | AU$679 (16GB); AU$829 (64GB) | AU$1,199 (64GB), AU$1,279 (128 GB), AU$1,449 (256GB) |
The iPhone SE iPhone 8 design
Physically, the SE is a iPhone 8. The front and back are made of glass, the chassis and the sides are made of aluminum. The only physical difference between the iPhone and the iPhone 8 is that the Apple logo is now centered on the back of the current generation of iPhones.
The new phone Apple is old school, forehead and chin bezel above and below the screen. This makes the SE look, well, old. This is one of the few things I’m not too excited about. It is not ugly, it is simply out of date. And that his appeal to some people, but not me.

Welcome back, large bezels.
John Kim/CNET
after the Face ID for the last couple of years, it is setting up a strange and familiar feeling and Touch ID. It is like going back to a automatic transmission, a gear shift. But in the real car with a gear shift, an Explosion can.
I forgot how much I it the home button got missing and how it interactions, and navigation bats are less picky than side and holds. I tap and hold to pay for purchases instead of getting my phone fishing face ID verification. A quick double-tap shows the recently used apps. Although Face-ID has its own advantages, the home button is still as satito use sfying as it was back in the day.
For a small phone lovers, the iPhone-SE 4.7-inch LCD display is not as small as the original SE’s 4-inch screen. But it is still smaller than most phones now, and it is enough to be portable and convenient for most people.
the screen on the SE is similar to the iPhone 11, in particular in terms of quality and resolution. Text looks sharp, colors are accurate, and it is in bright, Sunny conditions.
The iPhone-SE IP67 for dust and water resistance.
Patrick Holland/CNET
The iPhone-SE IP67, which means it can resist immersed for 30 minutes at a depth of 1 meter (about 3 feet). I was not able to test this claim, when I submerge it in one liter of water for 30 minutes and everything worked well. This level of water-proof and dust-proof is not something you would normally to cell phones under $ 400, so it is particularly noteworthy that the iPhone has it.
The SE comes in three colors: black, white, and red. The iPhone 8, had his own red version as well, but it had white binding, and not hell, when the iPhone SE looks striking in red with black edging.
The iPhone-SE, the battery life is longer than the iPhone 8
says the Apple website that the iPhone-SE battery lasts about the same as the iPhone 8, but my Tests showed that it took much longer. I played looped a video-on-airplane mode at 50% brightness, and the iPhone, SE lasted 15 hours, 45 minutes. This is hours longer than what the iPhone 8 and the iPhone-SE lasted in the same test, when they were new. Anecdotally, it by a day and a half without a problem, and a few times it went on for two days without recharging.


In the early battery tests, the iPhone-SE easily, the iPhone 8 and the original 2016 iPhone survived-SE.
Patrick Holland/CNET
I should note that I have to upgrade a further battery testing (including streaming video tests), so check back, if I’m going to the results.
The iPhone SE has wireless charging which is another feature not found on most budget phones. There is also support for fast charging, the battery fills to 50% in 30 minutes. But the iPhone-SE is not a charger with the required 18-watt, and instead use the slower 5 a includes-watt. Again, this is probably to keep the cost of the device low.
a
iPhone-SE A13 Bionic processor performance
The longevity of Apple’s iOS-support for “older devices” is a quiet but significant force of attraction of owning an iPhone. The iPhone 8 and A11 processor are now two-and-a-half years old and is probably no more iOS software updates a few years before the iPhone-SE and newer A13 Bionic processor.
In performance tests, the iPhone-SE was consistently better than the iPhone 8, and (no surprise), the original iPhone-SE. It achieved similar results to what we have on the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max.
In real life this meant that the app starts, were peppy, play games like Sky: children of the light, and Doomsday Vault were a breeze. Photos was easy and I could even graphics-heavy AR-apps like Wondershare scope, which turns my bedroom into an exercise field for the spirits.
Geekbench V 5.0 single core
Apple-iPhone-SE (2020)
Apple iPhone 11
Apple-iPhone-8
Apple-iPhone-SE (2116)
note:
Longer bars mean better performance
Geekbench v. 5.0 multicore
Apple-iPhone-SE (2020)
Apple iPhone 11
Apple-iPhone-8
Apple-iPhone-SE (2016)
note:
Longer bars mean better performance
3DMark Slingshot Unlimited
Apple-iPhone-SE (2020)
Apple iPhone 11
Apple-iPhone-8
Apple-iPhone-SE (2016)
note:
Longer bars mean better performance
3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited
Apple-iPhone-SE (2020)
Apple iPhone 11
Apple-iPhone-8
Apple-iPhone-SE (2016)
note:
Longer bars mean better performance
a
iPhone-SE cameras have a Portrait mode, Smart-HDR
The rear camera on the SE has the same specs as the iPhone 8, but when combined with the A13 chip and iOS 13 it transforms the camera into something that can compete with the best phone cameras, and even going toe to toe with the main rear camera on the iPhone 11. It has a number of functions, including Smart-HDR for photos, short films and Portrait mode-these are the impressive features and the first time for a $399 iPhone.


The iPhone-SE a single rear camera that has SmartHDR and Portrait mode for photos.
John Kim/CNET
The rear camera on the SE has a 28mm f1.8 lens, while the iPhone 11 rear has two cameras: a main wide-angle camera with a 26 mm f1.8 lens and a uw-camera with a 13mm f/2.4 lens. I do enjoy the ultrawide-angle on the iPhone 11, but I didn ‘ T you miss during my time with the iPhone-SE.
comparing the photos with each phone, it is hard to distinguish between them, unless you bring them on a larger screen, and even then the differences are more subtle.
In a good light, photos of each are similar in terms of image quality. Look at the pictures below of a tree that I have in my backyard. Can you the difference say? You see my point. The most obvious difference is that the iPhone SE photo is framed tighter than the iPhone 11.
Here are a few other photos from the iPhone-SE.


The iPhone-SE is great, accurate colors.
Patrick Holland/CNET


Smart HDR is impressive, you keep the sky from blowing and the shadows, the noise is relatively free of image.
Patrick Holland/CNET


In this photo on wooden slats, the amount of Details and texture of the iPhone-SE.
Patrick Holland/CNET


A beautiful snapshot of my Breakfast under medium lighting.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Both phones have get the portrait mode and excellent results. Can capture 11, high format photos of both people and Pets. The iPhone-SE, as the iPhone XR< - span section="inline-annotation|leads"> ($599 at Apple), can only people. It is not until you are very carefully at the photos below, you can see that the iPhone 11 in portrait captured mode, the a bit more detail and less noise.
In the picture below of my shoulder, you will notice the quality of the falloff from in focus to out of focus areas looks more natural on the iPhone 11 as on the iPhone-SE.
Below are photos of my bike are to be a coach in the indoor range, at medium lighting. The obvious difference here is the framing is tighter on the iPhone-SE. But the iPhone 11 captures more Details, you can see on the outlet. And if you look at the bottom right side of the coach, you will find the iPhone-SE suffers from noise in the shadows. This is not to say, there is a big difference between the photos. For the inner-and medium-light photos, the 11 a thin rim.
for video, both phones are similar. The iPhone-SE 11 4K 60fps video, but only the 11 takes advantage of the expanded dynamic range, the resolution and frame rate you can shoot. The SE has extended dynamic range for video, but only up to 4K 30fps. Take a look at my iPhone SE video review to see samples of videos with the iPhone-SE.
The only place where there is a big difference between the two phones are selfie cameras. The iPhone 11 has a wider front-facing camera, and shooting with the 4K and slow-mo videos is in the location. The iPhone-SE only 1080p video and no Slofies. Both have the Portrait mode for selfies, but the photos from the iPhone 11 show more detail in my skin.
Latest iPhone models and prices, in comparison
Model and storage | US price, | UK price | Australia Price |
---|---|---|---|
iPhone-SE 64GB | $399 | £419 | AU$749 |
iPhone-SE with 128 GB | $449 | £469 | AU$829 |
iPhone-SE 256 GB | $549 | £569 | AU$999 |
iPhone XR 64GB | $599 | £629 | AU$1,049 |
iPhone XR 128GB | $649 | £679 | AU$1,129 |
iPhone 11 64GB | $699 | £729 | AU$1,199 |
iPhone 11 128GB | $749 | £779 | AU$1,279 |
iPhone 11 with 256GB | $849 | £879 | AU$1,449 |
iPhone 11 Pro 64GB | $999 | £1,049 | AU$1,749 |
iPhone 11 Pro 256GB | $1,149 | £1,199 | AU$1,999 |
iPhone 11 Pro, 512 GB | $1,349 | £1,399 | AU$2,349 |
iPhone 11 Pro Max 64GB | $1,099 | £1,149 | AU$1,899 |
iPhone 11 Pro-Max. 256GB | $1,249 | £1,299 | AU$2,149 |
iPhone 11 Pro Max 512GB | $1,449 | £1,1499 | AU $2,499 |


From left to right: iPhone-SE (2016), iPhone 8, iPhone-SE (2020).
Patrick Holland/CNET
Released on Thu, 23 Apr 2020 01:00:50 +0000