iPhone SE: Choices
A small phone that packs a punch
Last summer I wrote about the difficulties I was having switching to a larger phone. (Spoiler alert) I had figured if I was going to go big I should dive in head first and went for the iPhone 6 Plus when it released, regretted the decision, switched to the 6 and then even went back to the 5s before settling in on the 6 Plus (6s Plus now) actually being correct, just needing Apple Watch the alleviate some of the pain points.
I’m not going to dive deep into that dilemma again here now but it is necessary reading for full understanding of this review, if you haven’t already had the chance. It is basically the story of what size of phone is appropriate for me. In short, the decision on what size of phone to carry is largely personal and depends on what other devices you plan on having with you. I.E. if you have a smaller sized iPad you may be happier with a smaller phone. Whereas if you have no iPad at all, a larger phone might be right for you. Apple Watch too plays a large role in my ability to accept a larger phone. If you don’t have an Apple Watch this might be a pain point for you like it was me, before Apple Watch.
With the release of the surprisingly powerful iPhone SE, Apple has brought my old dilemma to a lot more people. The form factor of the iPhone SE is what I called back last summer, the perfect phone size. It is just the perfect size and weight to balance usability with pocketablity. Having tried the SE, again I came to the the same conclusion that I did before. This is the best phone size for being an actual phone. All other technical factors set aside the SE is the least cumbersome and most delightful iPhone to tote around day in and day out.
With technical factors calculated in iPhone SE holds its own. Too often smaller phones in the market have been hampered by specs that do not compete with their larger brothers. This is not the case with the SE. In every meaningful category it matches spec for spec with iPhone 6s. Camera? The same. Processor? The same. Apple Pay? Yep. Battery life? The SE is actually quite a bit better. The SE packs all the awesomeness of iPhone 6s into its own smaller case. Well, most of the awesomeness.
It is missing a few things. The front facing camera is not as good but I believe that is a nicety, not a necessity as I probably use mine on average 0.7 times per year. Depending on your uses this may or may not be a big deal. Something that was a large difference for me however is the screen. It has the same screen as iPhone 5 and 5s. This is by no means a bad screen but the contrast ratio is not as good as the 6s. This may not bother some (my wife could barely tell the difference) but it does bother me. Colors seem less bright, accurate and vivid.
Another downside to the screen is the lack of 3D Touch. This feature has been somewhat debatable as far as it’s usefulness goes. For me, it was sorely missed and I can’t imagine using another iPhone without it. I use it several times a day and it has become a main function of iOS. It is not without its issues however and those that have not used 3D Touch much or are coming from a phone that does not have it (iPhone 6 or less, any Android) can’t miss something they never had. Hopefully Apple defines and expands the use of 3D Touch in iOS 10 but as of now it is now necessarily a “must have” feature for most people.
One thing that I did not expect to find from trying out iPhone SE was something more about the form factor. Having been using an iPhone 6s Plus for a few months now I was surprised how happy my hands were to be using a phone that was so much lighter. I noticed that when I switched back to pick up my 6s Plus my fingers immediately started complaining and sending me aches and pains. Even now writing this review, I have switched back to the 6s Plus full time and my hands have still not gotten used to it.
In all, iPhone SE is not just a good phone but it is a great phone, probably the best. It is however, mostly a phone. As for me personally I do a little more than take calls and send messages from my iPhone and I miss how immersive a larger iPhone can be. The largeness of the screen comes at a cost, which I hate and hate passionately any time I am not actually using it. The choice of what phone to use has not come easily for me and I have changed my mind several times. I believe it comes back to what you really want to be accomplishing on your phone. Your screen size should accommodate what you want to use your phone for and how you live your life. The best thing about iPhone SE is that if this is the size that works best for you, now you can buy a phone with very few compromises and a lot of upside.
Bonus: Upgrade Cycle for iPhone SE
A quick side note, if you are considering purchasing an SE likely the best time to purchase is now. It is very likely that Apple will update iPhone 6s and 6s Plus sometime around September but it is very unlikely that iPhone SE will get updated at that time. We’re likely not going to see it updated for 18+ months. But as with everything like this, that’s just my guess.