The iPhone SE 2020 is amongst the best budget phones by Apple and is still amongst the best-selling phones on the market. Users eagerly wait for Apple to release the iPhone SE 3, which might arrive in two months. There are rumors that iPhone SE 3 may come with the latest A15 Bionic chip and 5G connectivity features and still be cheaper than other iPhones.
However, if you want to buy iPhone but have a low-budget iPhone SE is still a decent choice for you. You can get Apple’s A13 Bionic processor for less than $400. And iPhone SE also offers fast performance and camera capabilities at such a price tag.
The iPhone SE has luxury features like metal-and-glass design, wireless charging, and water resistance that you won’t find on certain Android phones in this price range. Touch ID for unlocking the device (which can come in handy when we’re still wearing face masks) and other classic features are also included.
I simply wish Apple had reduced the phone’s bezels and included a night mode for the camera. The $699 iPhone 13 mini, which has a larger 5.4-inch display and 5G, is a fantastic choice if you’re willing to spend a little extra.
Regardless, you can’t dispute that the iPhone SE 2020 is still one of the best phones money can buy.
Price and release date for the iPhone SE 2020
The iPhone SE costs $399/£419, the same price as when it was first released in April 2020. The $399 model comes with 64GB of storage, but you can upgrade to a 128GB model for $449/£469 or a 256GB model for $549/£569.
When you trade-in your old phone for the iPhone SE, you might save up to $120, bringing the total price down to $279. You can also look at the top iPhone SE offers to see if you can save any more money.
All of the major carriers, such as AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon, and minor carriers, such as Xfinity Mobile and Visible, offer the iPhone SE.
Review of the iPhone SE 2020: Colors and design
With one exception, I like the design of the iPhone SE. On the bright side, it’s a well-built phone with the same durable glass-and-aluminum body as the iPhone 8. The iPhone SE comes in three colors: black, white, and (Product)Red. I appreciate how the aluminum band matches the color of the device’s back iphone se case.
I tested out the black model, which looks and feels sleek but picked up smudges despite the oleophobic coating. If you want to hide fingerprints, white is generally the best choice.
Another advantage of the iPhone SE is its overall compactness when compared to the iPhone 11 Pro Max or the forthcoming iPhone 12 Pro Max. It’s the difference between noticing a phone in your front pocket and it bulging out. I also didn’t have any discomfort while gaming for more than 30 minutes at a period, which is something I can’t claim with my iPhone 11 Pro Max apple iphone se.
The iPhone SE is 5.45 x 2.65 x 0.29 inches and weighs 5.22 ounces, making it smaller and narrower but about the same weight as the Google Pixel 4a. The Pixel 3a boasts a 5.81-inch edge-to-edge display with a hole punch cutout, which is substantially larger. The iPhone SE 2020, unlike Google’s affordable phone, is water-resistant to IP67 standards. That means it can be immersed for up to 30 minutes in 1 meter of water. You shouldn’t have to worry about spilled coffee or soda with this phone se price.
Unfortunately, the iPhone SE’s bezels around the screen appear large and archaic for a 2020 smartphone. I tried and failed to zoom in on videos. I wish Apple had crammed a larger display into the same-sized casing.
Another issue is that, for some reason, Haptic Touch does not operate on the iPhone SE’s lock screen. You can’t long-press on alerts on the lock screen to expand them, unlike on other iPhones.
Touch ID on the iPhone SE 2020
Even though Apple has been offering Face ID on all of its newest phones for the previous couple of years, the new iPhone SE 2020 unlocks via a Touch ID sensor beneath the display. This sensor can also be used to authorize App Store downloads, Apple Pay, and password entry iphone se 2.
The Touch ID/home button combination worked as expected, and you can pick how much haptic feedback you want when you press down. Right now, the Touch ID button has a critical — and unexpected — benefit, as many people are required to wear face masks in public. Without removing your mask, you can still simply unlock your iPhone SE. Masks prevent Face ID from working iphone se release date.
Review of the iPhone SE 2020: Display
Although a 4.7-inch screen on a current phone may appear antique, people looking for one of the best little phones will not be disappointed by this panel.
On the iPhone SE 2020’s Retina Display, I enjoyed watching the Wonder Woman 1984 trailer on YouTube. As she dodged bullets with her silver bracelet, the superhero’s glittering red, blue, and gold outfit popped. In a Tiger King scene, the iPhone SE’s screen also performed a superb job showing smaller details: I could see individual whiskers on the majestic animal’s face iphone se (2nd generation).
Expect an image that isn’t in full HD. The display resolution of the iPhone SE is only 1334 x 750 pixels. Although we want to see a 1080p display, the trade-off isn’t too bad.
The iPhone SE’s screen is brilliant, with a brightness rating of 625 nits and a score of 653 nits in our testing. It’s somewhat less bright than the Pixel 4a’s 681 nits.
I had no trouble seeing the screen when surfing the web or snapping photos outside. The panel also supports True Tone, which allows it to adapt the screen’s color temperature based on the ambient lighting.
According to our tests, the iPhone SE’s display reproduces 111.2 percent of the sRGB color spectrum, just edging out the Pixel 4a’s OLED panel’s 105.8 percent. The iPhone SE also has realistic colors, with a Delta-E score of 0.2; a perfect score is zero. The screen on the Pixel 4a received a score of 0.29.
Review of the iPhone SE 2020: Cameras
In many cases, the camera on the iPhone SE 2020 is so good that it’s difficult to mention the difference between it and the iPhone 11. The only exception is Night mode, which is not available on the iPhone SE.
The iPhone SE has a single 12-megapixel back camera and a 7-megapixel front camera, just like the iPhone 8. The iPhone 12 Pro models don’t include an ultra-wide-angle lens like the iPhone 11 or a telephoto lens with an optical zoom like the iPhone 11 models. The A13 Bionic chip in the iPhone SE, on the other hand, improves the camera performance in various ways iphone se size.
For example, on the iPhone SE, you can snap portraits with both the rear and front cameras, with Portrait Lighting effects and the ability to manipulate depth of field. Smart HDR is also useful for bringing out the highlights in faces on the iPhone SE.
The degree of detail in this iPhone SE photo of a man-made pond pleasantly surprised me. The water drips in the distant waterfall can be seen, and the foliage around the rock formations pops. The iPhone SE also did a fantastic job catching the blue-green water and the black-and-white and orange-and-white fish in the pond.
In this photo of pale pink cherry blossom blooms, the iPhone SE held its own against the Pixel 3a. The image on the iPhone SE is warmer and brighter, but the image on the Pixel 3a is more detailed and has more contrast.
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With this portrait, I also make a homage to the iPhone SE. My skin tone appears to be more natural, and the bokeh effect appears to be rather believable. The Pixel manages to sever a portion of the right side of the head. When taking portraits with the iPhone SE, there is one little disadvantage: you must get much closer to your subject than with the iPhone 11 Pro because the iPhone SE lacks a telephoto lens. (You’ll be within 6 feet of each other, which isn’t ideal for social distance.)
The iPhone SE came out on top in this photo of an Aperol Spritz cocktail. Overall, the image appears to be brighter and more appealing. I enjoy how the background is blurred with the iPhone SE. The iPhone’s only flaw is that the tile appears to be more yellow than white; the Pixel 3a got that right iphone se price.
The iPhone SE’s only camera flaw is the lack of a Night Mode. The Pixel 3a can render the trees in the foreground, the automobile in the street, and the house in the distance in this photo taken outside at night. In the iPhone SE’s photo, you can barely make out anything. I’m not sure if the iPhone SE could get a Night mode with a software update, but it would be fantastic if Apple did.
The iPhone SE is capable of recording 4K video at up to 60 frames per second on the video front, with increased dynamic range if the frame rate is reduced to 30 frames per second. This reveals more details in the shadows and improves the highlights.
Performance of the iPhone SE 2020
While Android manufacturers include inferior processors in their cheap phones, the iPhone SE has the same A13 Bionic chip as the iPhone eleven and iPhone 11 Pro. As a result, you can expect the same quick and responsive performance.
For example, when playing Sayonara Wild Hearts and staying on the track in Super Impossible Road, the iPhone SE gave silky smooth gaming. The iPhone SE’s lower-resolution display made the graphics less sharp, but the general action was just as quick and exciting. It was also lag-free when loading apps and switching between them.
The iPhone SE scrolls slower than phones with a 90Hz or 120Hz refresh rate, but I wouldn’t expect that on a phone that costs less than $400 apple iphone se 2020.
Battery life and charging on the iPhone SE 2020
The iPhone SE has a lower battery life rating than the iPhone 11, so don’t expect it to last as long. For example, Apple claims that the iPhone SE can play video for 13 hours against 17 hours on the iPhone eleven how big is the iphone se.
On the Battery Test, which involves continuous web surfing over 4G LTE, the iPhone SE 2020 averaged 9 hours and 18 minutes. The battery life on the iPhone 11 (11:16), iPhone 11 Pro (10:24), and iPhone 11 Pro Max is significantly longer (11:54). The iPhone SE, on the other hand, outpaced the Pixel 4a, which finished at 8:55. On the Battery Test, which involves continuous web surfing over 4G LTE, the iPhone SE 2020 averaged 9 hours and 18 minutes. The battery life on the iPhone 11 (11:16), iPhone 11 Pro (10:24), and iPhone 11 Pro Max is significantly longer (11:54). The iPhone SE, on the other hand, outpaced the Pixel 4a, which finished at 8:55 iphone se camera.
Because the iPhone SE has a lower battery, I noticed less staying power than my iPhone 11 Pro Max in my anecdotal testing. For example, at 8 p.m., I had 20% battery life left after unplugging the iPhone SE at 7 a.m. and using it for web browsing, playing games, taking photos, and other activities throughout the day. That’s not awful, but my iPhone 11 Pro Max was still nearing 40% battery life iphone se 1st generation.
Unfortunately, the iPhone SE comes with Apple’s regular 5-watt Lightning charger. (On the plus side? With the iPhone 12 releases last autumn, Apple stopped including chargers.) According to our study, you should anticipate reaching only 29 percent power in 30 minutes. You’ll have to spend extra for an 18W charger from Apple if you want to charge this phone to 50% capacity in 30 minutes. The power brick costs $29, while the USB C to Lightning cable costs $19 iphone se specs.
The iPhone SE is compatible with 7.5W wireless charging and the Qi standard if you wish to go wireless. Take a look at all of the best wireless chargers for this phone.
Google Pixel 4a vs. iPhone SE
The Google Pixel 4a, released after the iPhone SE, is a great alternative to Apple’s phone. It would cost $50 less than the iPhone SE at $349. For that money, you get a larger 5.8-inch OLED display, significantly reduced bezels, and a Night camera mode, which the iPhone SE does not have. The Pixel 4a also has twice the storage of the iPhone, with 128GB vs. 64GB.
The Snapdragon 730 chipset in the Pixel 4a, on the other hand, is slower than Apple’s A13 Bionic chip. In addition, the iPhone SE is water-resistant and supports wireless charging. So it’s a matter of preference between iOS and Android iphone se vs iphone 12 mini.
Conclusion on the iPhone SE 2020
The iPhone SE 2020 is one of the most affordable iPhones on the market and one of the greatest budget phones available. It’s the closest thing you’ll find under $400 that’s future-proof, with the fastest performance, excellent cameras, wireless charging, and a luxury design that outclasses inexpensive Android smartphones.
Yes, I wish iPhone SE’s bezels were smaller, and Apple included Night Mode for the camera — and there’s no 5G connectivity — but it’s difficult to gripe too much at this price. Although a 5G-capable iPhone SE 3 may be on the way, it is unlikely to appear before 2022 iphone se wireless charging.
The iPhone XR, which costs $499, is a tempting alternative to the iPhone SE. You get a larger display and battery for that money but a slower CPU and less powerful cameras. However, if you want a smaller phone, this model will not disappoint. Overall, the iPhone SE is one of the best affordable phones available when did the iphone se come out.