iPhone SE: How does Apple's new, smaller iPhone compare?
The newest iPhone in town is being called "the most powerful 4-inch phone ever created," in the glowing words of Apple CEO Tim Cook. It was unveiled Monday at the company's latest product launch event and arrives in stores March 31. The smaller, pocket-friendly model is meant to provide an alternative to the larger, 4.7-inch iPhone 6s and super-sized 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus.
So, how does the phone measure up? The iPhone SE starts at a price of $399, which makes it a more affordable alternative to the $649 retail price of the iPhone 6s or the $749 iPhone 6s Plus. Like its recent predecessors, the SE comes in four colors -- silver, gold, space grey, and rose gold.
It boasts a 12 megapixel camera, just like its bigger siblings, as one of its main selling points. It's designed to capture sharper images than the cameras on the old, similarly sized iPhones. Users can edit 4K video on the phone, and can take Live Photos, which are animated images.
The iPhone SE offers a choice of either 16 GB or 64 GB capacity, while the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus also have a 128 GB option.
What makes the phone so fast and powerful is the fact that it comes with the A9 chip, the same advanced chip that powers the larger iPhone 6s. It also has an M9 motion coprocessor that makes for an improved compass, accelerometer, and gyroscope (perfect for those fitness apps left over from the New Year's resolutions you made back in January). This processor also enables a more accessible Siri that will respond with the user just saying "Hey Siri," without even having to pick up the phone.
It also comes with a Touch ID fingerprint sensor and high-resolution Retina display. However, unlike the larger phones, the iPhone SE does not offer the pressure-sensitive 3D Touch feature.
After the phone's announcement, Apple fans took to social media to share a range of opinions about the more compact but still powerful iPhone -- not all of them enthusiastic about the latest offering.
The iPhone SE was smart to retain the body design of the 5S mainly for accessory and case support.
— Nicholas Singh (@NickSingh4) March 21, 2016
I ordered myself the Iphone 6s plus before and Apple announced an hour later about the Iphone SE. Why does Apple always do this to me?
— Leah (@LeahGhost) March 21, 2016
"iPhone SE has Touch ID!!1!" yes something my Android Samsung Note 4 has had for 2 years already.
— Gerry (@Scizor) March 21, 2016
The IPhone SE is so irrelivant. It does the same stuff as an iPhone 6 S, it is WAY smaller, it is like coming out with a redesigned IPhone 4
— Jake Schminky (@Pandaman1_PRO) March 21, 2016