Detailed review and testing of the Apple iPhone SE. The main camera of a mobile device is usually located on its rear panel and can be combined with one or more additional cameras

Information about the make, model, and alternative names of a particular device, if any.

Design

Information about the dimensions and weight of the device, presented in different units of measurement. Used materials, suggested colors, certificates.

SIM card

The SIM card is used in mobile devices to store data that certifies the authenticity of mobile service subscribers.

Mobile networks

A mobile network is a radio system that allows multiple mobile devices to communicate with each other.

Mobile technologies and data rates

Communication between devices in mobile networks is carried out through technologies that provide different data transfer rates.

Operating system

The operating system is the system software that manages and coordinates the operation of the hardware components in the device.

SoC (System on a Chip)

System on a chip (SoC) includes all the most important hardware components of a mobile device in one chip.

Built-in memory

Each mobile device has a built-in (non-removable) memory with a fixed amount.

Screen

The screen of a mobile device is characterized by its technology, resolution, pixel density, diagonal length, color depth, etc.

Sensors

Different sensors perform different quantitative measurements and convert physical indicators into signals that are recognized by the mobile device.

rear camera

The main camera of a mobile device is usually located on its rear panel and can be combined with one or more additional cameras.

Front-camera

Smartphones have one or more front cameras of various designs - a pop-up camera, a PTZ camera, a cutout or hole in the display, a camera under the display.

Audio

Information about the type of speakers and audio technologies supported by the device.

Radio

The radio of the mobile device is a built-in FM receiver.

Location determination

Information about navigation and location technologies supported by the device.

WiFi

Wi-Fi is a technology that provides wireless communication for short distance data transmission between different devices.

Bluetooth

Bluetooth is a standard for secure wireless data transfer between different types of devices over short distances.

USB

USB (Universal Serial Bus) is an industry standard that allows different electronic devices to communicate.

Headphone jack

This is an audio connector, which is also called an audio jack. The most widely used standard in mobile devices is the 3.5mm headphone jack.

Connecting devices

Information about other important connection technologies supported by the device.

Browser

A web browser is a software application for accessing and viewing information on the Internet.

Video file formats/codecs

Mobile devices support various video file formats and codecs, which store and encode/decode digital video data, respectively.

Battery

Mobile device batteries differ from each other in their capacity and technology. They provide the electrical charge they need to function.

Specific Absorption Rate (SAR)

SAR levels refer to the amount of electromagnetic radiation absorbed by the human body while using a mobile device.

additional characteristics

Some devices have characteristics that do not fit into the above categories, but it is important to point them out.

Many people love iPhones, but in domestic spaces, fans of these products cannot even imagine what an explosion in the gadget market occurs after the release of a new model of mobile phones. True, this concerned mainly the fourth series, then the passions gradually began to subside (which cannot be said about sales abroad). In this case, too, the presentation did not cause a storm of emotions in the news environment: at the presentation Apple iPhone SE gathered about three hundred people, while the event took just an hour. Of course, users will be interested in what is special about the new iPhone.

well forgotten old

There have been jokes in the user environment about the complex work of Apple designers for a long time. Indeed, the company has always been conservative in terms of the design of its devices, while technical improvement has been fairly even. But there were changes. First, the Apple iPhone 5 stretched out in length, trying to retain all the design features of previous generations. Then the Apple iPhone 6 smartphone completely broke the tradition of diagonal and side faces. As soon as they become rounded, most conservative consumers became indignant.

And so, without inventing anything new, the manufacturer again decided to return not only smooth edges, but also the diagonal. The decision is controversial: on the one hand, it was possible to jump on the nostalgic feelings of Yabloko, on the other hand, those who had already begun to get used to the rounded frame came into indignation.

What's new in specs

It is important to understand that the novelty is not a flagship, and certainly not a new generation. Offered by the company apple iphone se is a device that users who lack the design of the Apple iPhone 4s will want. At the same time, the characteristics were adopted from the current sixth model. The same A9 or M9 processor, the same 12-megapixel camera module, the same Touch ID, the claimed battery life, but everything is about the same. As for memory, two versions are available to users: with 16 and 64 gigabytes.

Thus, the series is designed for mass consumption, although few people could have dreamed of such characteristics just a few years ago. Even the camera shoots 4K video, and only some flagships can cope with this difficult indicator. So you can be sure that the device will be wanted by everyone who lacked new features in the same design and with the same familiar diagonal. Indeed, despite the marketing, the good old competitors in the form of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S are still going around the hands of inexperienced users.

Apple developers did not come up with a new design for the iPhone 5 SE. Instead, they re-used the exterior of the fifth model, outfitting it with new internals. This is a strange step that could be observed for the first time.

One way to interpret this is to suggest that Apple is taking the easy way out and is simply reworking an existing design to produce a cheap smartphone. Another possible explanation is that they are reviving the iconic design of the iPhone 5/5s in an attempt to cater to a group of users who not only want a budget phone but also prefer a smaller form factor. After all, a third of Apple users are still using older 4-inch smartphones.

What immediately attracts attention?

According to reviews of the iPhone 5 SE, the most important feature of the device is the rethinking of the specifications. The iPhone SE features the 4-inch Retina display introduced in the iPhone 5s with a first-generation touch sensor. The device has an identical body, but inside it is equipped with the new Apple A9 chip with 2 GB of RAM, a 12-megapixel main camera and a slightly larger battery.

The functionality limitations of Apple devices haven't changed in years, so they shouldn't surprise anyone - you can't have expandable storage, fast or wireless charging, FM radio, replaceable batteries, and more. The new 3D Touch technology is also missing for obvious reasons, although you can still use Live Photos. Reviews about the iPhone 5 SE usually do not attribute the above to the disadvantages of the device.

Apple iPhone SE review

As you'd expect, the iPhone 5 SE comes in a fairly compact box filled with a Lightning cable, an A/C 1A plug, and a well-packed pair of headphones.

The dimensions of the device are 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm, which is fully consistent with the size of the iPhone 5s. The gadget weighs 113 grams. Compared to the new 4.7-inch iPhone 6s, the SE model is 1.5cm shorter and 1cm narrower.

Design and build quality

Keeping the old design means having a first generation Touch ID and an older FaceTime camera (1.2 MP). In addition, there is an issue with bezels that make the phone look dated by today's standards. This is repeatedly mentioned by the reviews of the owners of the iPhone 5 SE.

There's one more thing worth mentioning: the iPhone 6 comes with a water-resistant design that allows it to avoid damage when submerged in water for up to 40 minutes. In contrast, the iPhone SE in such a situation will instantly "die", which is confirmed by many online videos.

The front of the iPhone 5 SE is covered in ion-strengthened glass (that's the usual version of Gorilla Glass protection) with an oleophobic coating to read fingerprints. The body frame is metal, as is most of the backside.

The front of the SE is mostly occupied by a 4-inch Retina display. On top, you can find a headphone slot, a FaceTime camera, and a couple of sensors. At the bottom is the Home/Touch ID button with a steel ring. The retractable nano-SIM slot is located on the right. On the left side are the volume keys.

At the top of the iPhone 5 SE is the power/lock key, also made of metal. The audio jack, speaker grille, main microphone (also behind the grille) and charger port are on the bottom.

The back side of the SE is familiar to all fans of this brand of smartphones. As in past models, there is a 12-megapixel camera, a dual LED flash with a second microphone and, of course, the Apple logo. The camera functionality is the same as on the iPhone 6, with the ability to record 4K video. This is happily noted by many reviews of iPhone 5 SE users.

Screen

There are many opinions that have been expressed by users about the old 4-inch Retina display. Skeptics will incessantly mention the super-small screen, large bezels, low resolution, while the opposite camp of consumers praise the multitude of colors and clarity in sunlight, as well as high brightness. Thus, customer reviews of the iPhone 5 SE regarding the screen vary greatly.

The display of the device uses a 4-inch IPS panel measuring 640 x 1136 pixels, offering a density of 326ppi - classic Retina specifications. The resulting contrast of 1:804 is not that remarkable, mainly due to the low black levels. By comparison, the 4.7" screen on the iPhone 6s has the same 326ppi, but a less bright screen with higher contrast.

When it comes to color rendering, the iPhone 5 SE scores well with an average DeltaE of 2.3, which means the screen is almost fully calibrated. The maximum deviation - 5.2 - is in whites that look a bit bluish, but it's not noticeable without an external breakpoint.

Battery life

The battery inside the iPhone 5 SE is slightly larger than previous models at 1,624 mAh. Apple's iOS 9 platform introduced a low power mode that you'll be prompted to turn on when the battery drops below 20%.

According to reviews of the iPhone 5 SE, the battery performs very well in all tests: it can handle about 12 hours of 3G calls, 13 hours of web browsing, or 14 hours of video playback on a single charge.

Connection

iPhone 5 SE comes with a lot of wireless features. The smartphone supports fast LTE signal (up to 150 Mbps) with wide band coverage. Regular 2G and 3G connections are also reliably covered by the many supported network bands.

The device supports all existing Wi-Fi a/b/g /n/ac standards. AirPlay is the only way to accurately display your screen content on your HDTV, but you need to have an Apple TV set-top box to do this.

Some apps will let you cast screen content through Chromecast or Smart HDTV, but compatibility may vary. Optional local connectivity includes Bluetooth 4.2 LE. There is also support for NFC, but its functionality is limited to Apple Pay only.

The iPhone 5 SE uses the proprietary Lightning connector for wired data transfer and charging. The device does not have USB On-the-go or USB host support, but you can pair a Bluetooth keyboard with your phone if you need such a peripheral.

To transfer just about any content, you'll depend on syncing your smartphone with Apple's iTunes software on your computer. Reviews about the iPhone 5 SE 32 also differ in this part. A nice feature is that the device can connect wirelessly via Wi-Fi. The downside is that the paradigm of syncing content between computer and phone is pretty old - the same as the first iPod. It requires you to first add your content to your iTunes library.

Apple iOS 9.3

The controversial iPhone 5 SE runs preloaded with iOS 9.3, although a firmware update to 9.3.1 is already available. The new phone does not have 3D Touch hardware, so some core features are missing from the OS. However, this functionality is still nothing more than a publicity stunt without any real value to the user. Reviews about the characteristics of the iPhone 5 SE do not indicate this circumstance as a drawback.

Apple iOS 9.3 introduced a new night view and an enhanced note-taking app, while iOS 9 only introduced a new news app and support for public transport timetables with maps. Mail and Messages got an update and there's a new system font. The Siri assistant has become more extensible, and the Spotlight Search service has expanded its range.

Screen interface

As usual, all applications are on the desktop, you can group them into folders. The now familiar docking station is present, which can accept up to four shortcuts. System icons, color scheme and transparency - everything looks the same as in iOS 8. The photo of the iPhone 5 SE, reviews of which are discussed in this article, allows you to verify the above.

The lock screen hasn't changed either - it has a camera shortcut and shows all your notifications.

The Control Center, which is pulled out from the bottom of the screen, retains the same layout of toggles, shortcuts, and media controls. Notification Center launches from the top and has the same tabs as before - "Today" and "Notifications". There are no new widgets or notification options in this version.

New task manager

Spotlight search has been improved since iOS 9. You can access it by scrolling down from anywhere on your desktop or go to the leftmost window. According to reviews of the iPhone 5 SE 32 GB, this service has been upgraded even more and can now perform simple calculations and conversions. It also supports sports score search and weather forecast information. And finally, you get shortcuts to make a call or send a message to any of the contact results in Spotlight search.

Voice assistant

Siri has also been improved. In addition to all the cool stuff the smart assistant could do, it can now view your photos and videos based on dates, locations, and album names. It supports custom reminders from requests you've made in Safari, Mail, Notes, and Messages, and has also received support for public transport navigation.

IOS 9 brings new active help available system-wide, more or less dependent on Apple on Google Now. DND mode has been available on iOS for a long time, but now there is a new feature provided by iOS 9.3 called Night Shift. It changes the display temperature at night to reduce eye strain. Reviews about the iPhone 5 SE mark this as a positive feature of the device.

Hardware power

The iPhone SE has an outdated look, but its hardware has been updated. It is equipped with the latest Apple A9 chipset, which is equipped with a 1.84GHz dual-core Twister processor, PowerVR GT7600 six-core graphics, and 2GB RAM. According to user feedback, the A9, combined with the lower resolution (than the iPhone 6), makes the device very powerful. Separately, it is worth noting the graphics performance. SE uses a six-core PowerVR GT7600 GPU, which allows you to run even high-capacity games on the screen.

Telephony and messaging

The Phone app hasn't changed much - it doesn't support smart dialing, but offers integration from social networks. The blacklist is also available for those who need this feature. FaceTime is naturally available for all compatible iOS devices, allowing the user to make free voice and video calls to any other device that supports the service.

Apple also offers Wi-Fi calling on this device. If both subscribers support this service and it is turned on, the call will not be made via the cellular network, but the connection will be made via the Internet. This improves sound quality and also saves money.

The same goes for iMessage - after enabling it, the user can send free text and multimedia content, including voice messages, to any other Apple gadget.

To many, the iPhone SE will feel very familiar. The phone received the chassis of the 5s model and became the 3rd generation of Apple smartphones, which used the same design. However, with external similarity inside, the model has undergone major modernization. The processor frequency has increased to 1.85 GHz, the amount of RAM has doubled, the camera resolution has increased to 12 megapixels.

Design

Even without photos, the design of the SE 32GB smartphone is easy to imagine. In fact, it has not changed since 2012. Perhaps only the HTC One M7 can say something like that.

Aesthetically, the chassis style of the iPhone 5, 5s, and SE is still one of the best choices for smartphones. Flat edges, bevelled edges, round volume buttons and antenna inserts all look elegant and are considered by many to be better than the 6th model with its built-in plastic antenna lines, oblong buttons and camera bump. On the other hand, the phone's ergonomics have definitely improved. While the SE's flat surfaces and bevelled edges give the device an elegant design, the rectangular shape doesn't fit well with the human hand.

Externally, almost nothing has changed in the iPhone SE 32GB smartphone. The dimensions remained the same, and the weight increased by only 1 g. Only 2 differences can be found. Firstly, the logos have disappeared from the rear panel, and secondly, the shiny chamfer along the edge has been replaced by a matte finish that matches the rest of the chassis. In addition, there is a new color option - rose gold.

Such conservatism has its advantages and disadvantages, which often turn out to be sides of the same coin. For example, by not trying to make a relatively inexpensive model thinner, it left more space for the battery and got rid of the camera protrusion. The old design features large bezels on the left and right sides of the screen, and the black space between the white bezel and the actual display is significantly thicker than on newer models.

The iPhone SE 32GB Gold has become part of the general trend of not changing designs until the market is ready for it. In many respects, the change in design means the presence of significant shortcomings that required new solutions. Good design is durable and requires only small changes to accommodate new features and constantly reduce the thickness of the device.

Performance

As expected, the specifications of the iPhone SE 32GB match those of the 6s. Compared to the 5s model, the improvement was significant, roughly doubling the performance of its predecessor, with the phone gaining 2038 points in the 3DMark Sling Shot Extreme Unlimited test.

The NAND memory also performs as well as the iPhone 6. Random reads are faster (27 vs. 23.33 MB/s) and writes are almost on par (2.21 vs. 2.22 MB/s). Sequential reads are slightly worse (378.36 and 404.39 MB/s), but writes are at the same speed (165.33 and 165.55 MB/s). Minor differences can be attributed to the test variance and we can confidently say that the performance of the SE memory corresponds to the 6s model.

iPhone SE 32GB battery review

With a test of web surfing over a Wi-Fi connection, the smartphone copes very well. When Apple announced that the SE had more web-based offline capability than the 6s and 6s Plus, some were surprised, when in fact this is a natural result. The SE is equipped with a much smaller, lower resolution LCD than other models, greatly reducing its overall power consumption. The increase in battery capacity compared to the 5s model also contributed to the battery life. According to Apple, the iPhone SE 32GB smartphone can last up to 2 hours longer than the 6th model, and users confirm this. Web surfing on a Wi-Fi connection can last up to 9 hours and 16 minutes.

LTE connection lasts 3 hours longer than the 6s, and is a couple of hours behind the previous test.

4-inch in the GFXBench test always showed poor results. Here, the SE has the fastest battery life at just 1.46 hours. The phone is certainly better than the 5s, even though it scores half an hour less in this test, as the iPhone SE shows a 6x improvement by the end of the test. productivity growth thanks to more temperature control processor A7.

Charge time

Like the iPhone 6s Plus, the SE comes with a 5-watt charger. Such low power for a large model would be problematic, but for a small capacity battery it is quite enough. The SE charge time from 0 to 100% is 1 hour 40 minutes.

Screen

The display provides the biggest advantage of the model, but not because of its characteristics. The iPhone SE 32GB replaced the 5th model with the same 4-inch, 1136 x 640 IPS screen. While it's impossible to confirm that the panel is the same, it can be seen that they are fairly similar.

Apple rates the brightness of its displays at 500 nits. SE at peak brightness reaches 598 nits. That's more than the iPhone 6 and 6s, which have higher specs.

The black level at maximum brightness is quite high (0.69 nits). This is partly due to the screen's bright backlight, but in the end, even with high peak brightness, the contrast falls far behind other phones, and even compared to the 5s, it's pretty low. It's important to note that Apple rarely uses 800:1 contrast ratio displays, but when you put the phone side by side with modern IPS displays from smartphones like the iPhone 6 and LG G4, black looks like dark gray.

The screen of the phone very accurately reproduces shades of gray. As usual, there is a blue shift, but it is small, and the average color temperature is below 7000K. The gamma is quite straight, and there are no grayscales at the end with DeltaE > 3, which is usually what is required. With an average DeltaE = 1.87, there is nothing to be desired.

The color reproduction of the iPhone SE 32GB is highly accurate. For many DeltaE drips< 1, т. е. ошибка незаметна, даже если эталонный цвет положить рядом. В крайнем случае достигается насыщенность с DeltaE = 2, что весьма впечатляет. В среднем DeltaE = 1,24, и здесь улучшать практически нечего.

Given that color blend accuracy is only a function of saturation accuracy and gray scale accuracy, it's no surprise that the iPhone SE performs well here. There are no errors with DeltaE > 3 and, in general, most of them are in the range between 1 and 2.

In general, the IPS display of the iPhone SE 32GB is praised. 1136 x 640 isn't the highest resolution on the market, but Apple does deliver best-in-class color accuracy, and 326 dpi is high enough to not require additional anti-aliasing.

Camera

Like the iPhone 6, the SE has a 12MP 1/3" sensor and an f/2.2 lens. The A9 chipset includes the same ISP, so photos should theoretically be identical. This is a huge improvement over the 5s, which used Apple's first 1/3" 8MP sensor. Upgrading to a higher resolution sensor has enabled UHD video recording, while the new ISP provides 1080p 120fps slow-motion video and Live Photos support. The photo and video results for the SE and iPhone 6 are the same.

Image quality

According to reviews, the iPhone SE 32GB allows you to get good photos. They are noticeably sharper than shots taken on the 5s, due to a combination of higher sensor resolution and improved image processing. As expected, due to the same camera and ISP, the image quality is essentially the same as the 6s and definitely the best in sub-$400 phones.

Night shots are identical to those of the 6s. But the price of the iPhone SE 32GB is $250 lower. The quality of daytime photos is not bad, but in low light it falls short of the 6s Plus due to the smaller sensor and the lack of image stabilization. Obviously, the quality of the camera has been sacrificed for a lower cost. But the SE has the best image sensor in its price range.

iPhone SE 32GB: 4-inch design review

The Android world has long abandoned 4” smartphones. While Apple was still using 3.5”, competitor phones were moving to 4”, 4.3”, 4.5”, etc. Nowadays, the standard Android flagship phone has a display size of more than 5 inches, and 4, A 5" screen is considered tiny. Of course, there are other factors related to the size of the device, such as whether there are physical or on-screen buttons and how big the bezel is, but the diagonal of the screen still defines the borders of the window on the web and in all applications.

When going from 5” to 4”, the smartphone really does feel small. After a period of getting used to, you can enjoy the possibility of using the phone with one hand. The 4-inch screen is much easier to use with one hand, without fear of dropping your smartphone and without shifting your hand to get to the upper left area of ​​the display.

On the other hand, the 4” screen feels quite cramped, even after getting used to its small size. With the default settings, the density of information is absolutely laughable, and it's almost impossible to use the phone without setting the minimum font. Therefore, users who, due to poor eyesight, need larger letters, the iPhone SE should be immediately excluded if you do not want to constantly scroll. Even after the changes, the display cannot accommodate everything you need. There is one line less labels on the home screen, fewer emails are shown in the Mail app, no avatars in the messaging app. Similar abbreviations are repeated in other Apple and third-party applications. Programs like the control center only fit half of an entire iPhone 6s page.

All of these changes are just a function of the display size, and while they seem obvious, it's hard to see to what extent they change the experience of using the phone.

Last of the Mohicans

By far, the iPhone SE 32GB specs are the best of any 4-inch smartphone, and you can ignore all the specs as it's the only offering of its size. The Android makers have given up on making small phones, and most of them haven't released a high-end model of this size for several years. By 2012, the emphasis was on 4.5" and larger, and in late 2011, Samsung introduced the 5.3" Galaxy Note. The idea for a compact Android phone is something like the Xperia Z5 with a 4.6” screen, slightly smaller than the iPhone 6s display. Further downsizing means moving to cheap smartphones like the Moto E, but that's a completely different part of the market.

Advantages and disadvantages

Compared to today's smallest high-end Android phones, it's easy to see that the iPhone SE 32GB specs put it in the top spot. The Apple A9 is still one of the fastest chips out there, and it goes without saying that the Snapdragon 810 in the Compact is no match. According to reviews, the camera is also unmatched in phones of this class. It's not up to par with the flagships, but using the 6th model sensor allows you to get really beautiful photos and the best 4K video you can get on a phone.

The iPhone SE 32GB Black's 4-inch IPS display is perfectly calibrated and has enough resolution to avoid anti-aliasing, though it's clearly not as sharp as on many Android smartphones. According to user reviews, the main drawback of the screen is the low contrast and high black levels, which is noticeable in use, when compared with more modern phones or any AMOLED panel. The screen is probably one of the weak points of the SE, although it's a good IPS display overall.

Conclusion

The fact that the design of the phone has not changed since the iPhone 5s, according to the owners, is not its drawback. The construction is solid and there is no reason to randomly modify the product in every generation. The SE was a necessary update to Apple's 4-inch model, given that more than 2 years have passed since its introduction. The fact that the user gets the same camera performance and display calibration as the 6s model is quite attractive considering the device costs $250 less. Battery life is better or worse than the 6s depending on the situation, but it's definitely improved over the 5s. Faster LTE and much faster Wi-Fi are also welcome changes, as is Apple Pay. It was difficult for a manufacturer to include anything else without cutting its margins, and that would raise questions as to why the 6s is so much more expensive.

Some owners who use the SE on a daily basis say they intend to switch to models such as the Nexus 5X and iPhone 6s, since the small display does not suit them very well. But the fact that Apple sells 32 million 4” devices a year speaks to the high demand for a small phone with high specs. Moreover, after the announcement of the 8th model, the price of the iPhone SE 32GB dropped to $349.

Like many Apple announcements over the past few years, the announcement of the iPhone SE was expected and unexpected at the same time. Expected - in terms of the general idea: everyone was ready for Apple to release a cheaper smartphone with a small display diagonal. The surprise was that the body of the novelty turned out to be exactly identical to the iPhone 5s, and the hardware characteristics, on the contrary, were inherited from the iPhone 6s, Apple's current flagship.

Let's take a look at the characteristics of the novelty.

Specifications for Apple iPhone SE

• SoC Apple A9 1.8 GHz (2 64-bit cores, architecture based on ARMv8-A)
• Apple A9 GPU
• Apple M9 motion co-processor including barometer, accelerometer, gyroscope and compass
• RAM 2 GB
• Flash memory 16 / 64 GB
• No memory card support
• Operating system iOS 9.3
• Touch display IPS, 4″, 1135×640 (324 ppi), capacitive, multi-touch
• Cameras: front (1.2 MP, 720p video) and rear (12 MP, 4K video shooting)
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz; MIMO support)
• Cellular: UMTS/HSPA/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz); GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), LTE Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41
• Bluetooth 4.2 A2DPLE
• Touch ID fingerprint reader
• NFC (Apple Pay only)
• 3.5mm stereo headset jack, Lightning dock connector
• Lithium polymer battery 1624 mAh, non-removable
• GPS / A-GPS, Glonass
• Dimensions 123.8×58.6×7.6 mm
• Weight 113 g (our measurement)

For clarity, let's compare the characteristics of the novelty with the iPhone 6s, iPhone 5s (since it is he who is being replaced by the novelty), as well as with the Sony Xperia Z5 Compact - this is perhaps the main iPhone competitor SE at the moment.

*according to the manufacturer
**our measurement

The table clearly shows that, with the exception of the screen, dimensions and battery capacity, the characteristics of the iPhone 6s and iPhone SE are identical. But there is no option with 128 GB of internal memory, which, of course, is a minus (especially considering the possibility of shooting in 4K). In turn, the dimensions and screen make the new product related to the iPhone 5s, but all other parameters have become much more advanced. Even the battery capacity has increased, although the case is the same.

As for the comparison with the Android competitor, everything is not so simple here. In almost all characteristics, Apple devices lag behind, but, as we have repeatedly seen, this may not be directly reflected in real performance and other user qualities. So let's get straight to testing.

Packaging and equipment

The packaging of the iPhone SE is much closer to the iPhone 6s than the iPhone 5s. This is evidenced by the general light color scheme, and the picture on the smartphone screen.

The packaging of Apple smartphones has not contained any surprises for a long time. The novelty is no exception. Here are the EarPods, enclosed in a beautiful box, flyers, charger (5 V 1 A), Lightning cable, stickers and a key to remove the SIM card cradle.

Design

Now let's look at the design of the iPhone SE itself. The first emotion when you take it out of the box: my God, how small and, at the same time, plump!

In fact, the dimensions of the novelty exactly match the iPhone 5s. Down to the millimeter. However, in the two and a half years that have passed since the release of the iPhone 5s, we have already become accustomed to a smaller thickness and, of course, to a significantly larger screen. No wonder the same Sony model Compact has a diagonal of 4.6 inches. And the Chinese have already stopped producing smartphones less. So four inches looks like a frank atavism.

But this is exactly the case when the opinion of technologists does not coincide with the opinion of many ordinary users, among whom the iPhone 5s is still popular. And while for some of them this is due solely to financial reasons, others simply prefer compact models. The iPhone SE is focused on them.

In fact, there are only three design differences from the iPhone 5s. The first is the new color Rose Gold. We have seen this color in all the latest Apple mobile innovations, but now it is also available on a compact smartphone. The girls will surely be delighted. Not only is it beautiful in itself, it also emphasizes that you don’t have some old iPhone 5s, but the most novelty. At the same time, three other color options (golden, dark gray and silver) are also available.

The second design element that has undergone changes compared to the iPhone 5s is the branded apple. Now it is not pressed into the surface metal, but is made of glossy metal as an independent unit, inserted into the case and slightly recessed - like the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. It looks elegant, but, in fact, it is such a trifle that you can hardly pick it out with your eyes, unless you specifically look.

Finally, the last detail that helps not to confuse the iPhone SE with the iPhone 5s is the letters SE right under the word iPhone on the back of the device. However, obviously, this does not affect the perception of design in any way. Otherwise, the smartphones are absolutely identical: the material, the location and shape of the buttons, connectors - everything is exactly like the iPhone 5s. As a plus, we note that although the camera is much better here, it does not protrude at all over the body (as is implemented in all iPhones with a six in the name).

An interesting question is what version of the Touch ID fingerprint scanner is installed in the smartphone. As we remember, iPhone 6s/6s Plus debuted a new version of the scanner, which works faster and more accurately. The owners of these models know that it is enough just to touch your finger quickly and immediately pull it back so that the smartphone has time to recognize the owner. Since Apple doesn't release details about the version of Touch ID on the iPhone SE, we tested it with a simple comparison by pressing the Home button on the iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone SE at the same time. The result is unequivocal: the fingerprint scanner in the iPhone SE is slower. That is, apparently, here it is the same as in the iPhone 5s.

In general, the design of the iPhone SE can be called a time-tested classic (although it looks somewhat archaic against the background of modern devices, even in the middle segment). Two cosmetic changes - a new color and a different logo - do not affect the overall impression. From the point of view of appearance, we have just an iPhone 5s. No more, no less, no better, no worse.

Screen

The screen parameters of the iPhone SE do not differ from those of the iPhone 5s: 4-inch diagonal, IPS-matrix with a resolution of 1136 × 640. By modern standards, it’s very small: both the diagonal and the resolution (less than 720p is hard to find even in the mid-budget segment).

It is also important that the iPhone SE screen does not support 3D Touch technology.

However, technical specifications and the presence or absence of additional technologies are just the tip of the iceberg. Alexey Kudryavtsev, editor of the Projectors and TV section, conducted a holistic examination of the quality of the iPhone SE screen.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are better than the screen of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens (on the left is the Nexus 7, on the right is the Apple iPhone SE, then they can be distinguished by size):

The screen on the Apple iPhone SE is a little darker (brightness in photos is 104 versus 110 for the Nexus 7). The ghosting of reflected objects in the Apple iPhone SE screen is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the screen layers (more specifically, between the outer glass and the LCD matrix surface) (OGS type screen - One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of borders (glass/air type) with very different refractive indices, such screens look better in conditions of strong external illumination, but their repair in case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed. On the outer surface of the screen there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (effective, but still no better than the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much more easily, and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass.

With manual brightness control and with a white field displayed in full screen, the maximum brightness value was about 610 cd/m², the minimum was 6 cd/m². The maximum brightness is very high, and given the excellent anti-reflective properties, readability even on a sunny day outdoors will be ensured. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. In the presence of automatic brightness control by light sensor (located to the left of the front speaker). In automatic mode, when the ambient light conditions change, the screen brightness both increases and decreases. The operation of this function depends on the position of the brightness adjustment slider - the user can try to set the desired brightness level for the current conditions, but what the brightness will be in other conditions and simply when changing and returning the ambient light level, we cannot predict. If nothing is touched, then in complete darkness, the automatic brightness adjustment function reduces the brightness to 6 cd / m² (too dark), in an office lit by artificial light (about 400 lux), the brightness rises to 100-140 cd / m² (normal), in in a very bright environment (corresponding to a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or a little more) is set to 500 cd/m² (sufficient). We were more satisfied with the version obtained after several attempts to correct the brightness in various conditions, while for the three conditions indicated above we received 8, 115 and 600 cd / m². It turns out that the auto-brightness function works more or less adequately, and there is some possibility to adjust the nature of the brightness change to the user's requirements, although there are not obvious features in its work. At any brightness level, there is no significant backlight modulation, so there is no screen flicker (or rather, at minimum brightness, there are very narrow peaks with a frequency of 50 Hz, but flickering still could not be noticed even with great effort).

This smartphone uses an IPS type matrix. Micrographs show a typical IPS subpixel structure:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

The screen has good viewing angles without significant color shift even at large deviations of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen and without inverting shades. For comparison, here are photographs in which the same images are displayed on the screens of the Apple iPhone SE and Nexus 7, while the brightness of the screens is initially set to about 200 cd / m² (on a white field in full screen, on the Apple iPhone SE this corresponds to a value of 60% brightness at using third-party programs), and the color balance on the camera is forcibly switched to 6500 K. A white field is perpendicular to the screens:

Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field. And a test picture:

The color balance differs slightly, the color saturation is normal. Now at an angle of about 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen:

It can be seen that the colors did not change much on both screens and the contrast remained at a high level. And the white box:

The brightness at an angle at the screens decreased (at least 5 times, based on the difference in shutter speed), but in the case of the Apple iPhone SE, the brightness drop is slightly less. The black field, when deviated diagonally, is lightened weakly and acquires a light red-violet hue. The photos below demonstrate this (the brightness of the white areas in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the screens is approximately the same!):

And from another angle:

When viewed perpendicularly, the uniformity of the black field is good:

Contrast (approximately in the center of the screen) is normal - about 760:1. The response time for the black-white-black transition is 20ms (11ms on + 9ms off). The transition between 25% and 75% grayscale (according to the numerical value of the color) and back takes a total of 25 ms. The gamma curve constructed from 32 points with an equal interval according to the numerical value of the shade of gray did not reveal a blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The exponent of the approximate power function is 1.93, which is lower than the standard value of 2.2, so the image is slightly brightened. In this case, the real gamma curve deviates little from the power dependence:

The color gamut is almost equal to sRGB:

Apparently, the matrix filters mix the components to each other to a moderate extent. The spectra confirm this:

As a result, visually the colors have a natural saturation. The balance of shades on the gray scale is good, since the color temperature is slightly higher than the standard 6500 K, and the deviation from the black body spectrum (ΔE) is less than 10, which is considered an acceptable indicator for a consumer device. At the same time, the color temperature and ΔE change little from shade to shade - this has a positive effect on the visual assessment of color balance. (The darkest areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance does not matter much there, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

As in, the iPhone SE has a function night shift, which makes the picture warmer at night (how much warmer the user specifies). The graphs above show the values ​​obtained at the middle position of the parameter slider Color temperature(by the way, correctly - “color temperature”), when shifted all the way to warmer and to colder(graphs are signed in the appropriate way). Yes, the color temperature is lowered, which is required. For a description of why such a correction might be useful, see the referenced iPad Pro 9.7 article. In any case, when entertaining with a mobile device at night, it is better to reduce the screen brightness to a minimum, but still comfortable level, and only then, to calm your own paranoia, turn the screen yellow with the setting night shift.

Let's summarize. The screen has a very high maximum brightness and has excellent anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable level. It is permissible to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works more or less adequately. The advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, the absence of an air gap in the layers of the screen and flicker, high black stability to deviation of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen plane, good black field uniformity, as well as sRGB color gamut and good color balance. There are no significant shortcomings. At the moment, this is perhaps the best display among smartphones with a small screen.

Performance and heating

The iPhone SE runs on the same Apple A9 SoC as the iPhone 6s. And this means that there is also an Apple M9 coprocessor, which provides support for the voice unlock function (by the “Hey Siri!” command).

It is important that the CPU frequency in the iPhone SE is not reduced. We outlined the details about the SoC in the article about the iPhone 6s, so we will not repeat ourselves and immediately proceed to testing. In addition to the main hero of testing, we included the iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone 5s in the table, since our main tasks are to understand whether there are any performance differences between the iPhone SE compared to other smartphones on the Apple A9, and also how much faster the novelty is than iPhone 5s. As for the comparison with Android competitors, as we found out earlier, the Apple A9 is still the leader, so there is simply no point in such a comparison in the case of the iPhone SE.

Let's start with browser tests: SunSpider 1.0.2, Octane Benchmark, Kraken Benchmark and JetStream. Everywhere we used the Safari browser.

The result is predictable: we see the approximate parity of the iPhone SE and iPhone 6s Plus, as well as a huge superiority (three to four times) over the iPhone 5s. We emphasize that different versions of operating systems and browsers could give some error, so the small difference between the two smartphones on the Apple A9 should not be embarrassing.

Now let's see how the iPhone SE performs in Geekbench 3 and AnTuTu 6 - multi-platform benchmarks. Alas, we don't have results for the iPhone 5s, because at the time we tested it, AnTuTu did not support iOS at all, and Geekbench was available in the previous version. Therefore, you will have to be content with the results of the latest smartphones.

Here is a more strange result: the slight, but still present, superiority of the iPhone SE over the iPhone 6s Plus in Geekbench, and, on the contrary, the lag in AnTuTu, attracts attention.

The last group of benchmarks is dedicated to testing GPU performance. We used 3DMark, GFXBench Metal (in the case of the iPhone 5s, results from a simple GFXBench) and Basemark Metal.

Recall that Offscreen tests are a display of a 1080p image on the screen, regardless of the actual screen resolution. And Onscreen tests are the output of a picture in the resolution that corresponds to the screen resolution of the device. That is, Offscreen tests are indicative in terms of the abstract performance of the SoC, and Onscreen tests are indicative of the comfort of playing on a specific device.

As we can see, even the most resource-intensive 3D scenes do not cause any difficulties for the iPhone SE. Here, of course, it's not only the SoC, but also the low screen resolution. Hence the difference with the iPhone 6s Plus in Onscreen modes. Curiously, in Offscreen mode, the larger model slightly outperforms the compact newcomer. But the user doesn't care. The main thing for him is that any games on the iPhone SE will just fly.

Next test: 3DMark. Here we are interested in the Sling Shot Extreme and Ice Storm Unlimited subtests.

The significant superiority of the iPhone 6s Plus over the iPhone SE in the most difficult Sling Shot Extreme test looks rather strange. It would be logical to assume that the GPU of the cheaper iPhone is running at a reduced frequency. And this looks like a logical decision, since at a significantly lower screen resolution, the load on the GPU becomes lower.

Finally - Basemark Metal.

And here is a similar picture, reinforcing us in the above assumption. But despite the slight loss of the iPhone 6s in points, the iPhone SE showed a significantly higher number of frames per second during the test - from 38 to 45, while the iPhone 6s Plus barely jumped over the border of 30 fps. Therefore, even a game of this level will not be a problem for the iPhone SE.

One more point should be noted: during the testing process in Basemark Metal, the iPhone SE got very hot. Below is a thermal image of the back surface obtained after two consecutive runs (approximately 10 minutes of operation) of the Basemark Metal test:

It can be seen that the heating is localized in the upper right part of the device, which apparently corresponds to the location of the SoC chip. According to the heat chamber, the maximum heating was 44 degrees (at an ambient temperature of 24 degrees), this is already very noticeable.

The iPhone 6s Plus has significantly less heat in the same test (more precisely, it is localized in one place, so the smartphone can be comfortably held in hands). Therefore, although the performance of the iPhone SE is more than enough for any games, and will be enough for another two years, it may not be entirely comfortable to play really resource-intensive applications due to high heat.

cameras

The main camera of the iPhone SE in terms of parameters is fully consistent with the camera of the iPhone 6s. We decided to check if the photo capabilities of the iPhone SE are really on par with the current Apple flagship! The examination was carried out by Anton Solovyov.

Like the iPhone 6s, the iPhone SE can shoot 4K video. Moreover, the quality of daytime shooting is very good. With night shooting, things are, of course, worse, but still it's not entirely terrible.

Here is a freeze-frame from the first video shot during the day (a screenshot in its original resolution is available by clicking). And you can even see the number of a passing car in it, not to mention the details in the background!

As a minus, we note the lack of optical stabilization (it is still only in the iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 6s Plus), as well as the fact that the front camera of the iPhone SE has a resolution of only 1.2 megapixels and corresponds in quality to the similar camera of the iPhone 5s.

Offline work

Although the iPhone SE has a more capacious battery than the iPhone 5s, it is still inferior to the iPhone 6s and, especially, the 6s Plus.

However, since the screen resolution of the iPhone SE is lower and the screen area is smaller, the battery life iPhone work The SE is roughly identical to the iPhone 6s. That is, with fairly active everyday use, the device will have to be recharged every day, with medium-active use, there is a chance that by the end of the day there will still be some charge left.

findings

The iPhone SE is arguably Apple's most boring smartphone, in both a good and a bad way. There is no innovation here - neither in terms of design, nor in terms of capabilities and hardware platform. In addition, there is nothing new here at all: it is just a hybrid of previously released devices - the iPhone 5s and iPhone 6s. From the first they took the design, screen, fingerprint sensor and front camera, from the second - SoC, RAM, communication capabilities and the main camera. Well, they added a new color - Rose Gold.

However, for those who do not buy innovation, but a device for everyday use, the iPhone SE may be the best choice, predictable in a good way. In the sense that when buying this smartphone, you know exactly what you will get in the end. There are no pitfalls, no surprises. The overheating of the device in the most difficult 3D tests upset us a little, but, in fairness, we note that these tests would not work normally on the iPhone 5s. So if you don’t want to overheat, don’t load the iPhone SE with games of this level (although they don’t exist yet, benchmark developers are ahead of game developers).

And the main question that you need to answer yourself before buying - are you ready to use a smartphone with a small (by today's standards) screen? Some will say: definitely not - let him be at least a super-flagship inside. Obviously, the iPhone SE is not suitable for these users. And someone will say: yes, I have always dreamed of a compact flagship! That's it for such people iPhone SE is made. Considering that the price of the iPhone SE is 37,990 rubles for a 16-gigabyte version, while the iPhone 6s with the same amount of memory will cost 19,000 more (a difference of one and a half times!), such an offer seems really attractive. For comparison, the official Sony store sells the Xperia Z5 Compact for the same 37,990 rubles, despite the fact that its performance is lower, the screen is worse (see our testing), the design is less attractive (the case is noticeably thicker, plastic is used as a material, not metal). So lovers of compact smartphones, and everyone who, in principle, is not against a small screen, should pay close attention to the iPhone SE.

In conclusion, we suggest watching our video review of the Apple iPhone SE smartphone: