New iPhone SE review – Apple’s cheapest mobile is best value EVER at £419
APPLE has released its smallest, cheapest smartphone in years: the new iPhone SE, at just £419.
After using this downsized mobile for just shy of a week, it’s clearly best-value iPhone of all time.
Update: The new iPhone SE is available to buy online from April 24, 2020.
New iPhone SE – what is it?
Apple’s first iPhone SE came out in 2016, and was an immediate hit.
The budget-friendly mobile had a dinky 4-inch screen and was loved for it – but Apple discontinued the product two years ago.
Now Apple has re-launched the handset with a brand new look and seriously impressive hardware.
It borrows the iPhone 8’s familiar and curvaceous design, as well as innards from more modern mobiles.
For instance, you get the same A13 Bionic chip that powers Apple’s latest iPhone 11 Pro, which retails at £1,049.
And it can shoot 4K video, charge wirelessly, and is water-resistant enough to survive a dunking.
New iPhone SE design – a familiar friend
Apple has borrowed the classic iPhone 8 look, which means it looks a little dated compared to the newer iPhone 11.
But the iPhone 8 had a popular design and is instantly familiar.
It’s also a perfect copy so your old iPhone 8 cases will fit the new iPhone SE.
Importantly, you get a 4.7-inch screen – which will be a selling point for some, and a major put-off to others.
The iPhone’s screen size has ballooned in recent years: the iPhone 11 series had 5.8-inch, 6.1-inch and 6.5-inch displays.
But Apple has flogged more than 500million 4.7-inch iPhones to date, which is nothing to sniff at.
This screen once seemed enormous, but is far from it today. As a regular iPhone 11 Pro Max user, it feels miniature in the hand.
In fact, it’s just too small for me now. I wouldn’t go back to using a 4.7-incher as my main handset.
That said, there are likely millions of people who are desperate for this exact screen size.
I’m a geeky power-user so the iPhone SE isn’t aimed at me. Instead, it’s aimed at a general public that no longer wants to break the bank with exorbitant handset pricing.
And it’s also designed for anyone who has experienced a giant phone constantly trying to wrestle itself out of their hands.
You’ll probably already know which camp you sit in.
And if you’re a tech enthusiast, there are bigger and more expensive iPhone models still out there.
This new iPhone SE is water-resistant and will handle a one-metre dip for up to 30 minutes. Though as always, we wouldn’t recommend intentionally dunking your handset.
And like all models since the iPhone 7, the new iPhone SE has no headphone jack – so you’ll need an adapter, Lightning-connector cans, or a pair of wireless buds.
New iPhone SE spec, features and performance revealed
While Apple has opted for an older and cheaper design, few such corners have been cut with performance.
For a start, you get the blisteringly fast A13 Bionic chip – the same processor that powers Apple’s top models.
It’s arguably the quickest mobile chip on the market and gives this lightweight iPhone SE buttery smooth performance.
Apple boasts that it’s 2.4 times faster than the original model – and 40% nippier than the iPhone 8.
Anecdotally, I had no trouble running heavy apps and visually demanding games.
Another nice bonus is that you get 64GB of storage as standard, which is more than enough for most users.
However, you can pay to boost storage to 128GB or 256GB if you’re a file-hoarder.
The display is sharp and bright, but it’s not OLED like the iPhone 11 Pro – so the colours and contrast aren’t as top-notch.
Still, its small size means the pixel density is high.
There’s no Face ID facial unlocking on the new iPhone SE, but you do get a Touch ID-enabled Home button.
It’s tried-and-testing technology and will be familiar to many Apple fans. It’s a neat way to quickly unlock your handset or make purchases online.
Battery life is fine, being roughly similar to the iPhone 8.
Officially, you get 13 hours of video playback and 40 hours of audio – though your mileage will vary.
Unofficially, the iPhone SE easily lasts a day, which is by far the most important battery life fact you need to know.
Finally, every iPhone SE purchase comes with a free year of Apple TV+.
There’s not a huge amount on the decent Netflix rival yet, but it saves you £60 – so what’s not to like?
New iPhone SE camera test
The iPhone SE camera is pretty good, for the price.
It’s fitted with a fairly standard 12-megapixel wide-angle shooter.
But Apple does plenty of computational trickery in the background to produce photos far better than the single lens should allow for.
For instance, you can get Apple’s wildly popular Portrait Mode effect.
This blurs the background while keeping the subject in sharp focus – largely thanks to software wizardry.
Auto-focus is also pretty quick (three times faster than the original iPhone SE, Apple says) and there’s support for slow-mo video capture.
You can shoot 4K footage at up to 60 frames per second, with cinematic stabilisation tech to keep the video smooth.
There’s no Night Mode, but low-light photography is pretty good. It won’t match the iPhone 11, however.
Overall, it’s a very respectable camera given the £419 price tag.
Note: Images on The Sun are compressed below their full resolution, so image quality may not be representative.
New iPhone SE review verdict – should I buy one?
The new iPhone SE is spectacularly good value for money.
You’re getting a top-end processor, a popular and tested design, and a software-enhanced camera for relative pittance.
The next-cheapest iPhone takes you over the £700 mark, so the new iPhone SE will attract many buyers on price alone.
And they won’t be disappointed: you’re getting a lot of iPhone for £419.
This iPhone SE isn’t for me – it’s too small and lacks the powerful camera system I want, need and love.
But for casual users who might normally buy a cheap Android phone, or just scrape to the cheapest “flagship” iPhone, this is a fantastic option.
You get Apple’s latest iOS 13 operating system and likely many years of support. Cheap Android phones typically get one or two years of updates, by contrast.
It’s also a shrewd move from Apple: it’s better to have people using a cheaper iPhone than no iPhone at all.
Watch out, Android…
The Sun says: This is the best-value iPhone in years – a budget-friendly mobile that doesn’t skimp on performance. ★★★★★
The new iPhone SE is available to pre-order, and will start shipping on April 24. It comes in Black, White and Product(RED) colour options.
In other news, check out our guide on the best cheap iPhone to buy.
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Find out how to play YouTube music in the background on iPhone and Android.
And here’s an easy guide on how to record your iPhone screen without using any apps.
What do you think of Apple’s new iPhone SE? Let us know in the comments!
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