Apple has officially announced the iPhone SE, and the Cupertino company dubs the device as the “most powerful 4-inch smartphone.” Packed with the very capable Apple A9 processor, the SE is basically a more compact iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, which may be just what consumers want.
Now that the iPhone SE is finally official, it’s only customary to compare the new iPhone with other flagship smartphones. Without further ado, let’s start the comparison.
Looking at the comparison table above, it’s evident that the iPhone SE is a much more powerful smartphone over its “closest predecessor,” the iPhone 5s. Not only does the SE have the very same Apple A9 processor powering the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, it also shares the same camera as the latter two devices.
Unfortunately, some of the iPhone SE’s key specifications – such as the battery capacity and amount of RAM – have not been revealed yet, which is typical of Apple. Regardless, it’s probably safe to assume that the iPhone SE is a smaller alternative to the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, which is quite an attractive package; even more so with its US$399 (about RM1,610) starting price.
In comparison to other flagship devices that have been unveiled in the past few months, the iPhone SE is definitely not “up to par” in terms of hardware. While Apple did not reveal the exact battery capacity and RAM size of the iPhone SE, there’s a very good chance these two specifications will be outmatched by the other Android devices in the table below.
That being said, the hardware side of things only matter so much. After all, iPhones have always been favoured by many people for the smartphones’ great software optimisation and excellent camera performance, although battery life still continue to be a struggle with the smaller iPhone 6 and 6s; it remains to be seen if the iPhone SE will suffer the same issue as well.
The iPhone SE seems to be made with one thing in mind: to fill the need for a compact smartphone that doesn’t sacrifice performance, which is almost always the case with smaller smartphones. If what Apple says is true (that there’s a demand for more compact devices), the iPhone SE may just be a winner.
Perhaps one of the best selling points of the iPhone SE is its rather affordable price tag – especially for an iPhone – of US$399, which makes the SE the ideal smartphone for those who want to try out an iPhone for the first time. All things considered, it will be interesting to see how consumers will respond to the newer, smaller (and powerful) iPhone.
