Apple iPhone SE (2016)

Should You buy the iPhone SE?

If you want a compact, high end phone, the answer is a resounding yes - this is almost certainly the phone for you. There are very few alternatives that fulfil these criteria - of all the phones released in the last 12 months, only the Sony Xperia Z5 Compact springs to mind

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Design

If you've ever handled the iPhone 5s, you'll feel right at home; the form and shape is virtually identical to Apple's flagship phone from 2013. There are a couple of small differences - in keeping with the colour options available for the 6s, there is a rose gold version available, and the edges are matte instead of polished.

Processing Power and Performance

Whilst the iPhone SE might look like the 5s, the internal hardware is much more up to date. With the same 64-bit A9 processor and M9 motion co-processor as the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, Apple claims the iPhone SE is twice as fast as the iPhone 5s when considering raw performance, and three times as fast for graphics.

The iPhone SE matches the capabilities of the 6s in other ways too. With a new NFC chip inside and the Touch ID fingerprint scanner, the iPhone SE also supports Apple Pay for making mobile payments. With the addition of 802.11ac Wi-Fi, the iPhone SE is capable of download speeds of up to 433Mbps. Wi-Fi calling (the ability to make calls using Wi-Fi instead of through the mobile network) is also supported if your network allows it. At present, we expect this to be supported by Vodafone and EE in the UK.

Battery Life

Compared to the iPhone 5s, the battery life on the SE has improved - the figures Apple has released suggest an improvement of roughly 30%. For most people this means that the battery will keep you going for a full day, but you'll still probably want to charge the phone overnight.

Display

This is one area where there hasn't been any significant improvement from the 5s. The screen resolution is 1136x640, with a respectable density of 326 pixels per square inch. Unlike the 6s and 6s Plus, there is no 3D Touch technology.

Camera

Like much of the internal hardware, the camera is the same as that on the iPhone 6s - the 12 megapixel shooter is one of the very best available on a mobile phone. Live photos (where the iPhone stores 1.5 seconds of video and audio both before and after you take your photo) is also present here. You can also record video in 4K, offering roughly four times the resolution of 'Full HD', which means you'll be able to capture far more detail.

Storage Options

The SE is only available in two sizes: 16GB and 64GB. Users looking to shoot lots of photos or video, or store music and films on their phone would be well advised to go for the larger version.

What the critics say (scores are out of 100)

100	IT PRO | Adam Shepherd ... it's one of the smallest premium smartphones still on the market. Read full review
100	Expert Reviews | Nathan Spendelow ...we've got a metal handset with the latest processor and a top-notch camera. In fact, the only thing that the mini phone doesn't have, which the larger iPhone 6S does, is 3D Touch, and that's something you can easily live without. For anyone that didn't want to upgrade to the larger iPhone 6S or iPhone 6S Plus but still hanker after a powerful 4in phone, the iPhone SE is an amazing choice and nothing else comes close to it at this screen size. Read full review
100	Alphr | Thomas McMullan It's small, but as powerful as anyone could need it to be; the battery life exceeds even Apple's plus-sized handsets; and the screen, camera and all-round quality should be enough to seduce almost anyone who's in the market for a smaller phone. (...) The iPhone SE is a tiny phone with the heart of a giant. Read full review
100	S21 The Apple iPhone SE gives you the power of the latest iPhone 6s in the compact and stylish body of the iPhone 5s! It's a winning combination, and the fact that this is the most affordable iPhone for years makes it a top buy. Read full review
100	Recombu | Alex Todd Sure, the Apple iPhone SE looks out of place, but that's more indicative of how comfortable we've grown to bigger handsets, even if their size has impacted on ease of use for many users. A four inch screened device as powerful as this is a rare thing in 2016 and despite any fanfare at launch, it's still an unquestionably important phone for Apple. Read full review
100	V3 | Carly Page The iPhone SE may be small, but it's proved to be one of Apple's most powerful handsets. The 4in screen will be too big a down-size for many, but those in the market for a pint-sized, affordable smartphone will struggle to find anything better. Read full review
100	Stuff | Elissa Loi The iPhone SE doesn't feel small, it feels compact. And there's a massive difference between those two concepts. Given that most phone makers are saving their best specs for their biggest phones, the fact that Apple has crammed all that tech into such a small package is a feat in itself. Read full review
90	Macworld | Susie Ochs The iPhone SE is powerful, speedy, and a worthy addition to the low end of the lineup. Read full review
90	The Inquirer | Carly Page The iPhone SE is by no means perfect with its 16GB storage option and poor front-facing camera, and it'll no doubt be too small for some, but it's undoubtedly the best 'mid-range' smartphone on the market today. Read full review
90	NotebookCheck | Florian Wimmer The iPhone SE (which is short for Special Edition) goes back to the roots and revives the hardly used 4-inch form factor... If you do not like Apple, the iPhone SE will not convince you, but all other users will once again get a nice and powerful device with a compact and light case. Read full review
90	Mobile Choice | Sunetra Chakravarti The iPhone SE is a masterstroke from Apple to go into the upper mid-range handset market which is quite direction-less and get a new generation of users to convert... It is an amazing phone which packs all that's important and worthy in the predecessors into a smaller albeit retro style while still maintaining its premium looks, all at a price-point that will wow many users. Read full review
90	news.com.au | Rod Chester The iPhone SE is not the phone for everyone. But it is a powerful 4-inch phone with a great rear camera and for some iPhone users that is exactly what they want. Read full review
90	The Verge | Walt Mossberg ... I can strongly recommend the iPhone SE to fans of smaller iPhones who are looking for greater power and better features. Read full review
89	Engadget | Chris Velcazo Regardless of Apple's reasons for making this thing, the iPhone SE is a lovely smartphone for iOS newcomers and small-handed users alike. Read full review
87	The Verge | Lauren Goode It's actually a much-improved, well-designed, small phone with great battery life. It's not the answer for people who have adjusted to larger phones. For people who like a small phone - and by the way, there's nothing wrong with liking small phones - or for people who have been holding onto their 4s or 5s phones, the iPhone SE will feel like a kickass little upgrade. Read full review
85	ZDNet | Cliff Joseph There's nothing innovative or ground-breaking about the iPhone SE: to all intents and purposes, it's simply a smaller version of the current iPhone 6s. It provides comparable performance and a broadly similar range of features wrapped up in a more compact 4-inch design with a price cut. Read full review
85	pocketnow | Juan Carlos Bagnell This isn't a crown jewel phone. Outside of the Apple ecosystem, this phone is priced high enough to face tremendous competition from "nice" mid rangers and "cheap" flagships, but we still recommend it as a solid offering depending on what an individual consumer's needs might be. If nothing else we can hope this encourages even more of a race towards building powerful, "flagship" performance into mid-tier devices. Read full review
85	CNET UK | Scott Stein While the rest of us wait for the iPhone 7 later this year, the iPhone SE is a great choice for small phone fans looking for an 'iPhone 6S Mini.' Read full review
85	Pocket-lint | Stuart Miles The iPhone SE is a great smartphone that brings plenty of power in a small package. It's designed to appeal to those who aren't fussed by today's typically large flagship phones. Read full review
81	MobileTechTalk | Craig Bradshaw It has a good camera with the capability of grabbing some great stills and very good video footage as you've seen above... It's not perfect, and yes, it's ageing, but it's also the cheapest way to get a 2016 iPhone, with most the bells and whistles. Could this just be the best bang for the buck iOS device available as the market sits currently? If you're after a smaller form factor, then yes, we think it just might be. Read full review
80	Gadgets Now | Debashis Sarkar The SE is just a matter of choice for people who prefer to use small screen and Apple doesn't want them to use old hardware to run new apps. Read full review
80	PC Mag The Apple iPhone SE is the best choice if you're looking for a small, but powerful smartphone. Read full review
80	TechRadar | Gareth Beavis Ultimately, Apple's given consumers a great choice here and actually for a half-decent price. The iPhone SE is a brilliant phone for those that want something smaller in their pocket and don't care about tired design - and I suspect there will be quite a few of those buyers out there. Read full review
80	Know Your Mobile | RIchard Goodwin If you're good with how much the iPhone SE costs, arguably its only unappealing trait, then you're looking at a very attractive handset that is, for the time being, completely unparalleled in the mobile space. This is the best 4in smartphone on the planet now - bar none - hence the premium price tag. Read full review
80	Phone Scoop | Eric M. Zeman The SE's design is appealing, the materials and manufacturing top-notch, and key behaviors, like voice quality, battery life, and data speeds, all hit the mark. Read full review
80	Digital Trends | Malarie Gokey Apple's iPhone SE is the best 4-inch smartphone you can buy, period.... It fills a gaping hole in the market, serving people who want a smaller phone that they can actually hold and carry comfortably. Read full review
80	T3 | Dan Grabham The iPhone SE certainly isn't a ground-breaker, but it is a solid attempt at building a 4-inch smartphone that doesn't compromise on features (and after all, who really, really needs 3D Touch?). Read full review
80	Tom's Guide | Mark Spoonauer The iPhone SE has a premium design, and the combination of the fast A9 processor and robust 12-megapixel camera makes this device stand out among midrange handsets. However, I do wish the front camera were sharper, and that you didn't have to give up 3D Touch capability. Read full review
80	AnandTech | Brandon Chester It's really not difficult to come to a conclusion on the iPhone SE. It's clearly the best 4-inch smartphone on the market, and you can ignore all of the specs when making that assessment because it achieves that by virtue of being the only offering at this size. Read full review
80	What Hi-Fi? The SE is a good value powerful phone for those who need a small screen, but its pricier sibling does better with audio and video. Read full review
80	International Business Times | Alistair Charlton My problem isn't with the iPhone itself, but with how quickly and drastically our perception of a smartphone has changed. A 4.5in screen with the same design would be perfect for me and I really hope Apple does this for its next Special Edition... Back to today's SE, and the conclusion is simple: This isn't a lesser smartphone, it's simply the range-topping competition in a different size. Read full review
80	Mashable | Christina Warren The iPhone SE is the most powerful 4-inch smartphone ever. It's powerful, has a great camera, is affordable and it easily fits in one hand. I still prefer larger displays - and I don't see myself going back to the classic design - but this is a great device, especially at its price. Read full review
80	TechnoBuffalo | Brandon Russell The iPhone SE isn't overly exciting, nor does it introduce any grand ideas. But just because we're not shouting in elation doesn't mean Apple's handset isn't. At this size, the iPhone SE is tough to beat, and that's the point of Apple's master plan, even if it upsets its legions of adoring fans. It may be small but the iPhone SE packs a serious punch for just its price. Read full review
80	SlashGear | Chris Davies For those reasons, it's the smartphone to have if you're not wowed by phablet-scale screens, not to mention a good reason - finally! - to retire that aging iPhone 5s. Just don't be surprised if the iPhone 7 leaves you looking enviously at those more comfortable with bigger displays. Read full review
80	Trusted Reviews | Evan Kypreos It may not be the most exciting phone Apple has ever released, but the iPhone SE will be a godsend for those who want a high-quality phone that isn't massive. Read full review
80	The Guardian | Samuel Gibbs It is much more pocketable, easier to grip and costs less, but it still isn't a "budget" iPhone and is still relatively expensive compared to competing smartphones from other manufacturers. Read full review
80	NDTV Gadgets | Kunal Dua The underwhelming front camera aside, the iPhone SE is the complete package, and the overall experience is everything you'd expect from an Apple product. In most ways that we use our iPhone everyday, the iPhone SE is just as good as the iPhone 6s, provided you can live with a smaller screen - and that's something that will ultimately boil down to personal preference. Read full review
80	The Telegraph | Rhiannon Williams The iPhone SE will effectively divide people into two camps: those who are committed to the smaller form and those who could never imagine using a handset that small again. Where the iPhone 5s was a good phone, this is a great phone - complete with the advanced features which have made the 6 and 6s cycles so popular, at a price which will appeal to a wider demographic than ever before. Read full review
80	Digital Spy | Luke Johnson While the SE might have new iPhone 6S-echoing skills, the fact that it's wrapped in a body that's all too familiar and shrouded in a bygone display will disappoint digital show-offs. That said, it's a handset your mum's going to absolutely love (rose gold, trust us) and, importantly, be able to use for the next five years without much fuss (or many phone calls to help sort it out). Read full review
80	Ars Technica | Andrew Cunningham [The iPhone] SE is a great option for people who just don't want to deal with something bigger. The flagships are likely to remain larger, and they're likely to get new features faster ... but the SE at least makes it so that people who prefer small phones don't need to time travel back to 2013 to get a decent one. Read full review
70	AndroidPit | Eric Ferrari-Herrmann The iPhone SE has impressed me to the point that I would recommend you consider buying it. Read full review
70	Brighthand | Brighthand Staff The single biggest advantage that the iPhone SE delivers is lower cost … both in terms of the total cost of design and assembly for Apple and in terms of delivering a high-performance phone with a low cost per GB of storage. Read full review
70	Gizmodo UK | Alex Cranz The iPhone SE isn't an awful phone. If you've been staring off into the distance singing "someday my tiny phone will come" then you can stop. This is it. The best phone under 4 inches currently available. Read full review

Compare Apple iPhone SE (2016) specs side-by-side with other phones COMPARE SPECS

Dimensions & Form	Form factor: Touchscreen bar Dimensions 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm (4.87 x 2.31 x 0.3 in) Weight: 113 g (3.99 oz)
Screen	Size: 4 inches diagonal Resolution: 1136 x 640 pixels Screen Density: 326 ppi Screen-to-Body Ratio: 60.8 % Display Type: LED-backlit IPS LCD
Runs
Performance	Chipset: Apple A9 CPU: Dual-core 1.84 GHz Twister GPU: PowerVR GT7600 (six-core graphics) RAM: 2GB
Camera	Main Camera: 12 megapixels with 2 LED flash, f/2.2 aperture ,1080p video at 30 or 60fps, 4K video recording at 30fps Secondary Camera: FaceTime HD camera: 1.2 megapixels with 720p video recording
Storage	Built-in Storage: 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB Expandable Storage: Not Available
Battery & Charging	Capacity: 1624 mAh Removable Battery: No Wireless Charging: No Quick Charge: None
SIM standard	Dual SIM: Micro SIM + Nano SIM Compare SIM Only deals
Water & Dust Resistance	Not Available
Fingerprint Reader	Front
References & More info	Official website GSMArena specs page