Apple has something to offer that often gets pulverised and criticised in the tech Twitter bubble. We are talking about the iPhone SE, which is a phone that’s meant to be enjoyed for years without making any compromises in performance or durability. This phone is not about design. It’s not about the size of the phone but the size of the fight it can offer.
Not everyone can afford the latest tech every few months or even years. Money is saved every month to buy a new phone, hoping it would last four or five years. Most of us dream, while buying a new phone, that the battery will last a few years. We expect the screen not to cave in. We wish that software updates come through continuously. We pray that security and privacy are not compromised.
Let’s not fool ourselves: Most phones don’t get to see the second year. Imagine buying a Rs 20,000 phone that plays up within a year and gives in within a year and a half. By the time we are into the fifth year, we are usually into the third or the fourth phone (depending on luck). That’s not what technology should be about.
Apple knows this segment well. It focusses on people who cherish familiarity and longevity over everything else. It’s about getting the highest value from a modestly priced product. It’s about enjoying a device for years without having to worry about updates, privacy or battery. That’s exactly the idea behind the new iPhone SE, the third iteration of the phone. Go beyond Twitter talking heads and there is a sizeable crowd who have nothing against chunky bezels, Touch ID or AMOLED screen.
What really matters is uncompromised app support. There are users who are absolutely fine with Touch ID and are more than happy to have a single camera system on the rear and in the front as long as these can blow the socks off expensive phones. The question is whether one should take a leap to the iPhone 13 or settle for something as affordable as the iPhone 11 or simply buy the new iPhone SE? It all comes down to what you want from your phone.
No compromise on power
Perhaps the least important thing for you is design, which is the same here as that on the iPhone SE from 2020. There is the physical home button, bezels, et al. But what you do care about is a more shatter-resistant glass, which you get on the new iPhone SE, plus a range of colours. The first iPhone SE appeared in 2016, which was based on the iPhone 5s, and then again in 2020, the design of which was based on the iPhone 8. Instead of waiting two more years, Apple decided to launch another SE.
Close-up shots come through clearly with the perfect bokeh
The question is why is Apple keeping the design philosophy of the iPhone 8 alive? It’s about choices. You can already walk into an Apple store and get the iPhone 12 or 13, the Mini or the Max. There are enough choices already available when it comes to state-of-the-art design, minus a physical button. Did you know that you can still buy an iPod Touch? Yup, that equivalent of an MP3 player. There are people who like to have a device only to listen to music exclusively. And there are those who still like the Touch ID of the iPhone 8.
The more important tech philosophy lies inside the phone. While buying a packet of mushroom, I don’t want to be forced to make a dash for the expiry date. It should last a few days before I enjoy it in a bowl of soup. Similarly, when you buy a phone and pay a premium, it should last the five-six years we have come to expect from Apple. What keeps a phone fresh is not a new screen because, face it, we will still be browsing social media, hailing an Uber, ordering on Zomato and sending messages, which can well be handled by a phone from last year or the year before or the year before that.
The different hues of red have been perfectly captured by the wide lens
Buying a phone in 2022 should mean that it remains nimble even in 2025, handles every new game or application that’s going to come out, offers enough battery power and comes with regular security updates. All these boxes are checked on the new iPhone SE.
The third generation iPhone SE is powered by the same A15 Bionic system on chip that is on the latest iPhone 13 series. There are no compromises, it has the same power. It’s fast, blazing fast, enough to sustain a phone for at least four years. Remember the original iPhone SE from 2016? It came with iOS 9 and has regularly been updated; it received iOS 15 last year. The new phone comes with iOS 15 and we can expect iOS 21 to run on it in 2027. There is enough RAM to hold all the browser demands for years.
And it’s not just about the processor. Consider 5G. Chances are that parts of India are going to see 5G by the end of the year. Instead of throwing in two or three 5G bands, there are tonnes of them, ensuring you will not have to update for years. Whether you live in the city or remote areas, 5G band options on this phone won’t let you down.
What’s important to you
Since it’s about choices, you need to be aware of what you get on the phone. If you are looking for inky blacks or the huge screen of the iPhone 13 Pro Max, then this is clearly not your phone.
It’s a 4.7-inch LCD True Tone display with IPS technology. Meaning? Excellent colour reproduction, good contrast, good viewing angles and it’s small enough for your finger to reach any part of the screen. Everyday tasks get done instantaneously but the screen size is something you need to be aware of. Apple has done all the colour calibration required to make the display shine even if it is not AMOLED. Unless you compare the display on the SE with, say, that on the iPhone 13 Mini side by side, it will be hard to fault the SE.
Even under uneven lighting indoors, colours are perfectly captured
For someone buying the SE, something like battery life will be more important. In the five days we have had with the phone, battery performance has been very kind, offering easily a day worth of usage. The A15 Bionic chip not only is a great performer, it also optimises battery performance. You should be getting two-odd hours more out of this phone over the 2020 version.
It’s also important to point out the phone’s ability to bring out the best on Apple Arcade, the gaming platform on which you enjoy hundreds of games at a fixed monthly price — no advertisements, no in-app purchases. Current personal favourites are Monument Valley 2 and Wylde Flowers, both of which have worked flawlessly.
A slice of life captured without any shutter lags
The camera also shines. The latest generation computational photography makes your snaps rock. Though the phone has a single 12MP wide camera (f/1.8) on the back, there is no shutter lag and all the powerful algorithms are supported. Be it dynamic range or skin tones, you won’t be disappointed. I know people who are simply happy to click now and then but nothing to the degree of a shutterbug, yet they won’t find room to complain, be it with bright outdoor shots or darker indoor snaps. There is also the option of photographic styles that allow extra contrast and vibrance. Optical image stablisation, Deep Fusion, smart HDR 4, portrait mode, auto-focus… all the tech chops are there. Even Live Text finds support, which basically allows you to take a photograph of anything with text and translate into editable matter. It can even record 4K video at 60fps. The only feature I would have liked on the phone is Night Mode.
Should you buy it?
There will be reviews that will mention how retro the design is or how other phones have a macro camera and talk about AMOLED, fast-charging and what not. What most companies won’t tell you is what kind of security update you will receive in a year’s time or four years later. We are still getting phones that run Android 11 out of the box. Not here. If there is an iOS update, rest assured your phone will get it with all the other iPhones in the market. Value is an important element to consider while buying a phone. Over here value lies with upgrades, privacy policy, longevity and hardware quality. Forget the tech bubble. You don’t live in it and what you need to care about is whether the iPhone SE will see you through a few years. A big yes. For users who need camera chops and a whole lot of display, there is always the more expensive iPhone 13 series. This is the phone with the most powerful chip in any phone right now (same as the iPhone 13 series). It has something other iPhones don’t — the home button. And there’s something most Android phones don’t offer — unbeatable price to power performance.
At a glance
The physical home button is very much present on the new iPhone SE
Device: iPhone SE (2022)
Price: Rs 43,900
High notes
• Fastest chip on any smartphone
• Has enough headroom to see you through four-five years
• Excellent battery life
• Good camera system
• Presence of the home screen button
• Wireless charging supported
Muffled notes
• Ultra-wide camera would have been helpful