Review: Apple’s iPhone SE Is the Perfect Smaller Smartphone

It looks like an iPhone 5s but performs like an iPhone 6s

The good: Great battery life; fast performance; good camera; new features like Live Photos and Apple Pay at a cheaper price

The bad: Still expensive compared to some Android phones; 16GB of storage for the entry level model

Who should buy: People who prefer smaller phones (yes, those exist)

As mobile devices have become a more important part of our daily lives, they’ve grown in physical size too. Most popular smartphones come with screens that measure around five inches diagonally, now. Some companies, like Google and Samsung, have gone even bigger.

Apple is betting that not everyone wants (or needs) a big phone.With itsiPhone SE, Apple is reviving a more compact four-inch form factor that hasn’t been widely available since 2013.

Although the SE might look like an iPhone 5s, it’s certainly not built like one. The SE runs on the same A9 processor that powers the iPhone 6s and includes a 12-megapixel camera with support for Live Photos along with some other enhancements. It’s also priced much lower than Apple’s larger phones at $399 without a carrier subsidy or payment plan. (The iPhone 6 starts at $549, while the 6s has a base price of $649.)

Using the iPhone SE has made me remember how well-built Apple’s four-inch models are. The iPhone SE’s smaller design and boxy shape makes it easier to grasp without using a case, while the iPhone 6 and 6s sometimes feel slippery because of their rounded edges.

The biggest visual difference between the iPhone SE and iPhone 5s is its rose gold color option, but Apple has made some other more subtle tweaks too. The SE’s chamfered edges now have a matte look compared to the shiner aesthetic on the 5s, and the back of the phone has a stainless steel Apple logo. The SE doesn’t feel like a cheaper iPhone. It feels like a premium device, that just happens to be smaller in size.

Apple calls the iPhone SE “the most powerful 4-inch phone,” a seemingly accurate claim since four-inch phones are increasingly hard to find. But since the SE runs on the same processor as Apple’s latest flagship, it can also keep up with larger more expensive smartphones. For example, the iPhone SE was able to load games like Dead Trigger 2 and launch its camera just as quickly as Samsung’s Galaxy S7, even faster in some cases.

It’s really the SE’s battery life that impressed me the most. After a full day’s worth of use, which included a mix of browsing the Web, checking Facebook, streaming Netflix, playing graphics-intensive mobile games, and occasionally turning on Bluetooth to pair accessories, the phone still had about 50% battery left.

Apple has also packed the SE with some other goodies from the iPhone 6s, including its 12-megapixel camera, the ability to shoot Live Photos, and a Retina flash for the front-facing camera. Photos taken on the iPhone SE looked vibrant and were slightly more colorful than those taken on the iPhone 6’s 8-megapixel camera and Galaxy S7’s 12-megapixel camera in some cases.

All three phones captured what essentially looks like the same image, but if you look closely at the photos below you’ll notice the one taken on the SE shows bolder colors in certain spots. For example, the green rooftop in the distance is more pronounced in the SE’s photo than those taken on the two other phones.

iPhone SE

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iPhone 6

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Galaxy S7

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The iPhone SE isn’t great at capturing images in low-light conditions without the flash turned on. However, it does seem like the color accuracy has improved compared to the iPhone 6, since you’ll notice the cat’s fur looks more white.

iPhone SE

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iPhone 6

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Galaxy S7

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The SE’s front camera is much better at taking photos in dim areas. The SE has a 1.2-megapixel camera like the iPhone 6, but comes with Apple’s Retina Flash technology, which prompts the screen to function as a camera flash in dark situations. The front camera has a lower-resolution than more expensive flagships like iPhone 6s and Galaxy S7 (both have 5-megapixel front cameras), so expect to see a little more noise than you might with Apple’s pricier phone.

That said, the SE is leaps ahead of the iPhone 6 when it comes to taking low-light photos with the front camera. Take a look at the difference below:

iPhone SE

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iPhone 6

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Plus, the SE supports Live Photos, which captures the moments just before and after the photo was taken to create cute clips like this:

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To be clear, the iPhone SE isn’t really meant to compete with high-end smartphones like the Galaxy S7 and iPhone 6s. Apple is positioning the SE as a way to make the iPhone experience more accessible to those who prefer smaller phones and may be shopping on a tighter budget, and it succeeds at that. I only decided to test the SE against the Galaxy S7 in a few cases because certain hardware aspects are similar to what you might get in a more expensive phone, like its processor and camera. At the same time, I wanted to demonstrate some of the differences between the SE and iPhone 6’s older hardware.

The iPhone SE is a Apple’s most affordable iPhone, with the 16GB model selling for $399 unlocked. The downside, however, is that you can’t upgrade the amount of storage in the iPhone like you can with some inexpensive Android phones. That means if you want more than 16GB, you have to pay $499 instead of $399. The cheaper OnePlus X, for example, also comes with 16GB of space but supports expandable storage up to 128GB. Other low-cost phones, like Motorola’s Moto G, allow you to upgrade storage as well.

There are tradeoffs to be considered whether you choose the iPhone SE or a low-cost Android phone. At $249, the OnePlus X is a little more than half of the price of the 16GB iPhone SE, and offers some impressive features (a clean Android experience, expandable storage, high-resolution front and main cameras, and a sharp 1080p screen). But it lacks certain other special features found on the SE, like a fingerprint sensor, NFC support for mobile payments, and 4K video recording. Plus, its 5-inch screen is likely too large for those who are truly looking for a phone that’s physically similar to the iPhone 5s.

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Professional chemist explains why iPhone battery life may never reach 2-3 days

As Apple has continued to make the iPhone thinner and thinner with each passing generation, many users have voiced the opinion that they’d much rather have a thicker device with a bigger battery than a device on the verge of becoming impossibly thin. While Apple has undoubtedly increased the iPhone’s battery life over time, those advancements typically accompany a new form factor that allows for a bigger battery.

When Apple maintains the same form factor across generations, the leaps in battery life are more subtle. For instance, the battery life for video playback, Wi-Fi usage, audio playback, and 3G Internet usage on the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s are exactly the same.

With the leap from the iPhone 6 to the iPhone 6s, Apple did make a number of more noticeable battery life improvements, but many users still find themselves having to juice up more frequently then they would like.

With this as a backdrop, one has to wonder if people complaining about iPhone battery life is just a fact of life or if battery technology will ever advance to such an extent that complaints about battery life seem like a relic from a bygone era. Might we see a time in the near future where iPhone battery life is measured in days and not hours?

Tackling this issue, Dee Strand, the Chief Scientific Office at Wildcat Discovery Technologies, recently sat down for a Reddit AMA where she asked readers to ask her anything (anything at all!) about lithium ion battery technology.

Of course, it didn’t take long for someone to ask a question about the iPhone.

The posed question reads: “All I want to really know is when do you think my iPhone will be able to go a good 2-3 days of actually heavy daily use days before needing to be charged.”

Strand responded:

I love this question. First of all, I am not addressing any particular cell phone company or model – all answers are general trends. The answer may be never – as the definition of “heavy daily use” means many things. With every improvement in the battery, the cell phone company wants to add more features (and so do you – consumer demand drives more features). Bigger screen, brighter display, more apps, touch screen features, etc. All those great features are designed to work such that your phone can (hopefully) last a day with recharge overnight. The batteries will continue to get better, but the phone will continue to to [sic] get even better. Your current cell phone battery can last several days if you don’t use many of the features. On the other hand, if you really do have “heavy use,” it would be difficult for any phone to guarantee several days of charge.

It’s an interesting and rather astute answer. In fact, we’ve already seen it play out before on previous iPhone models. Battery technology isn’t stagnant, but it does move forward at a relatively measured pace. Over the years, as battery technology has improved, Apple has adorned the iPhone with more and more battery-draining features, from LTE support to the Retina Display originally introduced on the iPhone.

Looking forward, it stands to reason that any leaps in battery technology may be completely offset by crazy new technologies Apple incorporates into future iPhone models. If Apple strongly believes that 10-12 hours of usage is reasonable before needing to recharge, it’s a safe bet that Apple will focus more on the user experience than on squeezing out 2-3 days worth of battery life.

It’s important to note that multi-day battery life isn’t some far-fetched notion. Indeed, if battery life was the deciding factor in smartphone ownership, the Motorola Droid Turbo 2 would be the most popular device on the market.

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iPhone users plagued by Safari bug after updating to iOS 9.3

iPhone owners are reporting a mysterious bug in Safari after updating to Apple’s latest iOS 9.3 release. Some are finding that the browser freezes and crashes when they tap links on a webpage, and must be force-closed.

The issue is primarily affecting iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus owners, according to 9to5Mac — but has been experienced on older iPhones and some iPads, too. It is only appearing under the latest iOS 9.3 update that was rolled out last week.

Although the problem occurs mostly in Safari, it can also happen when opening links in other apps, including Messages, Mail, and Notes. Instead of taking users to a webpage, the app freezes and crashes, and must be force-closed from the app switcher.

In some instances, tapping the link does nothing at all, whereas tapping and holding causes the crash. The video below demonstrates the issue.

Apple is yet to respond to this problem, which hundreds of users have reported on its official Support Communities forum, and on social networks. Some say disabling JavaScript helps in Safari, but the problem persists in other apps, and there is no workaround just yet.

Apple has already had to rollout a second iOS 9.3 update after the original starting bricking older iPads, leaving users unable to activate them. Here’s to hoping there’s another fix for this issue soon.

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iPhone SE Review: Smaller Gets Smarter With Better Battery Life to Boot

Apple’s powerful new 4-inch iPhone has the size and battery performance that many have been waiting for

Most smartphones now come in two sizes—big and huge. Apple’s new iPhone SE is the first one made for everybody whose thumbs lack the wingspan of eagles.

The phone, which goes on sale Thursday, packs Apple’s best phone processor and camera into a width of just 2.3 inches. And it does it with significantly better battery life and Apple’s lowest-ever starting price, $399.

After years of the “phablet,” the small phone is back with a vengeance.

This is about more than fads—it’s about physiology. The iPhone SE is an acknowledgment that picking a smartphone should be like choosing shoes. Style and function are parts of the equation: You might not be caught dead without heels, but their fit and comfort matter. When you consider your phone, it matters how you’ll hold it, and where you’ll stash it.

The first time I held the iPhone SE, whose screen measures 4 inches diagonally, it felt comically tiny to my fingers and eyes, which are now accustomed to much more. I wouldn’t want to use it as my everyday phone, but as many as 20% of Americans would prefer a 4-inch phone. Apple says it sold 30 million older, slower (and cheaper) models at that size last year. Yet remarkably, no other major manufacturer offers a high-end phone at this size in the U.S.

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The iPhone SE, left, lasted two hours longer than the 6s, right, in a Wall Street Journal battery test. The compromise is the screen: The SE’s screen is smaller with fewer pixels, and it lacks the 3D Touch function.PHOTO: EMILY PRAPUOLENIS/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

The iPhone SE is a win for ergonomic choice, but Apple doesn’t score any points for originality. The new phone is nearly indistinguishable from the three-year-old iPhone 5s, which is a hair thicker and less pleasantly rounded than Apple’s more recent designs. (The SE even fits in most existing 5s cases.) The SE will come in Apple’s newer rose-gold hue, but it lacks design improvements you’ll find in Apple’s competitors, such as waterproofing and expandable storage.

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It’s almost as though Apple is transplanting new brains into old iPhone 5s bodies. (Apple isn’t literally doing that, though the concept does seem like it could be a big boon for the environment.)

On most important functions, the iPhone SE doesn’t disappoint. Its A9 processor, exactly the same one that’s in the iPhone 6s, zips through apps and the most graphically challenging mobile games. (By a test called GeekBench, it’s about 70% faster than the 5s.)

The 12-megapixel rear camera is capable of Apple’s Live Photos video trick, and performs admirably in most settings—though, like the iPhone 6s, it’s now bested in low-light shooting by Samsung’s new Galaxy S7. The iPhone SE even includes Apple Pay, so you can leave your wallet at home at least some of the time.

The standout news is battery life. Unlike many other recent Apple products, the iPhone SE’s is a significant improvement over its predecessors’. In my lab stress test, which cycles through websites with uniform screen brightness, the SE lasted 10 hours—more than two hours longer than both the iPhone 6s and iPhone 5s, and nearly three hours longer than the Galaxy S7.

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The iPhone SE, top, is a bit thicker than the iPhone 6s, bottom. With its 4-inch screen, the SE is the same size as the old 5s. But it is much faster, and its battery life is longer. PHOTO: EMILY PRAPUOLENIS/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

The compromise you must accept for that performance is the SE’s screen, which is not only smaller but also packs in fewer pixels and noticeably less contrast than the iPhone 6s. It also isn’t pressure sensitive, so it can’t do Apple’s 3D Touch trick of popping up menus with a hard press of your finger.

Some people will be drawn to the SE for its price. At $399 without a contract—$250 less than its larger sibling—the iPhone SE might appeal to parents, corporations or people on a budget who are considering their first iPhone. But keep this in mind about the real cost: The 16 gigabytes of storage at that price is hardly sufficient to take advantage of all the latest apps and photo capabilities, let alone cover you for years into the future. If you want this phone, pay the Apple tax and get the 64GB version for $499.

The biggest reason you’d want this phone is because it’s a better size for your hand. So, in the absence of a shoe-measurement contraption for hands, how do you know the right size?

After consulting ergonomists and physical therapists, I can report there is some science to it. You must weigh three factors, all of them trade-offs:

What you can see. When it comes to productivity, bigger is better. The phablet trend was essentially chasing the ergonomic reality that we get more done—and even remember more of what we read—on larger screens. Larger phones also have larger virtual keyboards, and the largest phablets boast beefier batteries. The 25% difference in screen area between the iPhone 6s and iPhone SE could have an impact on your work.

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The iPhone SE is available in Apple’s newer rose-gold finish. PHOTO: EMILY PRAPUOLENIS/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

What your thumbs can reach. Most of us use thumbs to operate smartphones, but they vary considerably in reach. You can do a quick test in a store: Go to the drawing mode in the iPhone’s Notes app (or pull up a free Web drawing app such as Awwapp.com). Hold the phone with one hand and swoop your thumb like a windshield wiper. The arc that you draw defines what your thumb can comfortably reach. (You can also see how your thumbs measure up on different screen sizes in our online Journal Hand-o-Meter.)

What you can comfortably hold. The more your hands have to stretch, the more uncomfortable it becomes to grasp a phone—and the more likely you are to drop it. As a test, try holding your hand like you’re making the shape of a gun, and then gripping the phone between your index finger and thumb. If the iPhone SE fits more snugly in the knuckle closest to your palm, it’s likely a better match. (The outer knuckle works too, but it’s a less secure grip.) And don’t forget where you’re going to store your phone: People who insist on stuffing phones into tight jeans might want a smaller size; people who keep them in bags may not care.

I’m happy to see the iPhone SE, partly because I think that the world needs a small phone. A selection of them, truthfully. This is a mini, yet mighty, start.

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New iPhone gains Apple new fans in China

Immediately after Apple unveiled its new iPhone SE this week, Beijing resident Li Sheng went online to check out the new phone as a possible replacement for his Huawei Ascend Mate 7.

Li describes himself as frugal and practical. "I never even looked at Apple's phones — the iPhone 6 or 6s," he said. "But the moment I saw the price of the iPhone SE and the phone, I wanted to buy one."

Li is exactly the kind of consumer whom Apple hopes to attract to its new iPhone lineup.

Until now, Apple has competed in China's massive smartphone market only with its high-end iPhones. The iPhone has become a status symbol, helping to make the country a top market for the U.S. tech giant. The iPhone SE is seen as a way for the company to expand in emerging nations and to target more price-sensitive consumers. In China, the lower end of the market has been dominated by less expensive Android-based smartphones sold by South Korea's Samsungand China's Xiaomi, Huawei, and Meizu.

The smaller 4 inch iPhone SE will be available in four colors in China at a price of RMB 3,288 (US $505) for a 16GB model and RMB 4,088 ($630) for a 64GB phone. Preorders can be taken on Thursday for the release date of March 31.

Chinese social media have been abuzz with the iPhone SE. Self-proclaimed Meizu smartphone owner "Xumoubudujue" writes, "I'm going to save more money to buy this one."

Social media user MR_Call said, "The SE has the same functions as the 6S but it's even cheaper than the 5C when it first launched. It's the best for value and within the reach of ordinary Chinese."

The previous iPhone 5C version was also seen by analysts as an attempt by Apple to accommodate more budget-conscious consumers, particularly in China. However, the price between the iPhone 5C and the more technologically advanced iPhone 5S wasn't great enough for the phone to attract a big following.

For the iPhone SE, unofficial vendors in Shanghai have already started making calls to route the phones to mainland China via Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, and the U.S. One vendor who declined to be named, told CNBC he expected stable sales and said Chinese brands would likely have "to lower their prices as well as improve their technology and user experience" to compete. He said the price for a smuggled iPhone SE would be about $50 cheaper than the official China price at RMB 2,888 ($444). The iPhone SE will be sold at $399 in many other markets.

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  Here's the new iPhone SE and iPad Pro
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  Why a third-party hack won't hurt Apple

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Die-hard Apple fans though said they were not moved by the iPhone SE and instead are focused on the much anticipated launch of the iPhone 7 later this year.

Yet, at $505, the iPhone SE will be about $300 cheaper than the 6S in China, potentially hurting margins for the pricier models.

IPhone user Lamelaar posted, "My favorite look has come back. My 6S will be retired."

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The iPhone might be getting an AMOLED screen as soon as next year

Apple is expected to equip some of its future iPhone generations with AMOLED screens, and while the company is far from confirming such rumors, more and more reports provide indirect evidence that the AMOLED iPhone is near. The main suppliers that will deliver AMOLED panels to iPhone are expected to be Samsung and LG, and a new report indicates that Korean AMOLED panel makers are going to dominate global supply for the years to come.

Market research firm UBI Research said on Wednesday in a note to investors seenby Business Korea that South Korean AMOLED display manufacturers will make some 270 million units this year, or 95% of global shipments.

Samsung and LG are expected to rake in a record $14.22 billion this year, or 96% of international sales, with momentum remaining strong through 2020 – by then their market share might drop to 70% as other companies will also mass-produce such components.

Currently, it’s Samsung that’s the largest consumer of AMOLED displays, and the company is going to sell at least 47 million Galaxy-branded devices equipped with AMOLED panels in 2016. The Galaxy S7 series has the best smartphone display on the market, according to an expert, which happens to be an AMOLED display.

Apple, meanwhile, is rumored to use AMOLED screens next year, Business Koreanotes, for what would likely be a version of the iPhone 7s series. Samsung and/or LG are seen as the main beneficiaries of such an iPhone design decision.

The Korean site says that both companies have increased their investment in AMOLED panel production lines since the beginning of this year, in preparation for a potential demand growth.

In fact, in a different report, Reuters adds that LG Display on Thursday announced it will build a new production plant that will manufacture organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panels for its lighting business.

The news site does not mention the iPhone or Apple, but LG Display did say that it plans to begin production with the new plant in the first half of 2017. In other words, LG might be preparing to make AMOLED screens for either the 2017 iPhone 7s or 2018 iPhone 8.

Reuters quotes UBI Research as well, which said that OLED light market will grow from $135 million this year to $1.6 billion in 2020.

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Almost every iPhone on the planet is encrypted; almost no Android phones are

Android fragmentation isn’t just annoying for users, it’s also bad for their security. If you want proof of this, then look no further than the following statistic: Roughly 95% of all iPhones are encrypted right now while only 2% of Android phones can say the same. The reason for this is simple: Google did not start mandating full-disk encryption on flagship devices until Android 6.0 Marshmallow, which still has a painfully low share of the Android smartphone market. As a result, the vast majority of Android devices in the world lack this crucial security protocol.

Here’s a graphic that shows how many Android phones and iPhones are encrypted:

That is obviously not good.

Google has pledged for years to improve Android’s fragmentation issues but so far it’s made little concrete progress in getting device manufacturers and carriers to get their devices upgraded in a timely fashion. Some recently discovered code in the first Android N developer preview suggests that Google has started to separate its mobile operating system into two pieces: The core OS and the user interface that OEMs modify to add their own apps and features.

Splitting these two components could theoretically allow Google to quickly push out important updates to the core OS while also letting OEMs push out changes to their own apps and overlays without worrying about how they will affect the platform’s overall functionality. We’ll have to wait and see whether this change leads to a massive increase in the percentage of encrypted Android phones, however.

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It's A Myth: Closing Apps Will Not Save Your iPhone Battery Life

That'll teach you to leave home without an iPhone charger. 

The Washington Post reports that an Apple exec has confirmed that there's no truth to the theory that closing open apps on your iPhone will prolong battery life. In fact, going in to shut down apps further drains the battery, since apps have to be reloaded later.

The revelation came in an email exchange between Apple Senior Vice President Craig Federighi and a customer named Caleb. Federighi confirmed that apps don't affect iPhone battery life when they're not active — they freeze when not in use. That differs from many Android phones, like the Samsung Galaxy, which do benefit from shutting down running apps. 

As the Post notes, disabling location services or the Background App Refresh feature can help you avoid battery depletion. 

Beyond that, the best solution may be to simply bite the bullet and start traveling with a charger. We'd never dream of asking you to stop using your camera as a mirror or reconsider cyber-tracking your Uber driver's every move.
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