The iPhone SE: Worth It?

As I unboxed the iPhone SE, I couldn't help but notice that it looks just like the nearly four-year-old iPhone 5. While this might seem like a bad thing, the metal and glass build has held up remarkably well over the years. The chamfered edges feel good in my hand, providing a solid grip unlike the slippery feeling of the 6 and 6s. Similarly, the glass and metal back looks nicer than the plastic antenna lines on newer iPhones. One feature that does stand out is the lack of a camera hump, which not only looks cleaner but also keeps it from rocking when laid flat on a table. The classic design fits in just fine in 2016.

However, there's one aspect that feels decidedly out of place today: the four-inch screen. This is absolutely a preference thing, and as someone who's been using bigger phones for the last few years, it takes some getting used to going back to a smaller phone. There are advantages, though - being able to easily use the SE with one hand is a big plus, especially if you're coming from a 5s or 5c. However, I feel like you've got to be committed to wanting a small phone. The keyboard, for instance, is downright tiny, and you end up doing a lot more scrolling because there's just less on screen compared to most phones out there.

The display itself is fine but nothing special these days - it's unchanged from the 5s making it sharp enough, but it's not in the same league as Samsung's latest AMOLED displays. Having a solid option for a four-inch phone is nice, but I think for most people, something closer to a five-inch screen is the ideal phone size. While it might look like an iPhone 5 on the outside, the SE is all up-to-date on the inside, rocking the same Apple A9 as the iPhone 6s paired with two gigabytes of memory.

On paper, that's not exactly a powerhouse compared to newer phones or even the iPhone 5s. However, in real-world use, it's one of the fastest phones out there. The A9 is no slouch, and when paired with the small screen, it absolutely flies - this might be a small phone, but there's nothing small about its performance.

The SE also works well for gaming, although the display size does mean you've got less room to work with. When it comes to benchmarks, it's basically identical to the iPhone 6S, with one notable exception: on the graphics side, the lower resolution screen gives it a slight edge. While iOS 9.3 is essentially the same as it is on the iPhone 5 and 5s, there are some subtle improvements in terms of performance.

Battery life is also surprisingly solid, thanks to that smaller screen - it's actually better than the 6S and should last you through a full day of use. If you prefer a smaller phone, the iPhone SE is one of the best options out there, and as a budget iPhone, you're not giving up that much.

One notable downside to the lower price of the SE is the front-facing camera - the 720p video from the SE isn't too impressive, with only 1.2 megapixels. This can't hold up with newer iPhones or even some of the best Android phones out there. The Retina Flash does work reasonably well, though.

Despite this, the price of the iPhone SE is a big selling point. At $400, it's significantly cheaper than the $650 6s - when you consider that works out to about $13 a month, it's a pretty strong sell. You'll only find 16 gigabytes of storage on the base model, but upgrading it will run you an extra $100 to make the jump to 64 gigs.

Upgrading is probably a smart move unless you heavily rely on cloud services.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enHey guys this is Austin. Is the iPhone SEworth it? The unboxing experience is justlike any other iPhone. Pop open the box andyou’ll find the SE itself along with theApple EarPods, Lightning cable for chargingand syncing along with the five watt poweradapter. First thing’s first: this looksjust like the nearly four year old iPhone5. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, themetaI and glass build has held up well overthe last few years. While I can’t exactlycongratulate Apple on recycling an old designthere’s not a lot I would change today.The chamfered edges feel good in the hand,I feel like I’ve got a solid grip unlikethe 6 and 6s which have always felt a littleslippery. The same goes for the glass andmetal back, it’s just a nicer look thanthe plastic antenna lines on the newer iPhone.The SE also lacks a camera hump which notonly looks cleaner but keeps it from rockingwhen laid flat on a table. It’s a classicdesign that fits in just fine in 2016. Onething that does feel out of place these daysthough is a four inch screen. This is absolutelya preference thing but as someone who’sbeen using bigger phones for the last fewyears it takes some getting used to to goback to a smaller phone. There are advantageslike being able to easily use the SE withone hand and if you’re coming from a 5sor 5c this’ll be an easy upgrade but I feellike you’ve got to be committed to wantinga small phone. The keyboard is downright tinythough and you end up doing a lot more scrolling,there’s just less on screen compared tomost phones out there. It’s especially noticeablewhen it comes to video, paired with the mediocrespeaker it can’t touch the experience ofusing a higher end phone. The display itselfis fine but nothing special these days, it’sunchanged from the 5s making it sharp enoughbut it’s not in the same league as Samsung’slatest AMOLED displays. Don’t get me wrong,having a solid option for a four inch phoneis nice but I think for most people somethingcloser to a five inch screen is the idealphone size. While it might look like an iPhone5 on the outside it’s all up to date onthe inside, it’s rocking the same AppleA9 as the iPhone 6s paired with two gigabytesof memory. On paper it’s nothing crazy comparedto newer phones or even the iPhone 5s butin real world use it’s one of the fastestphones out there. The A9 is no slouch andwhen paired with the small screen it absolutelyflies, this might be a small phone but there’snothing small about the performance. Zing!It works well for gaming too although thedisplay size does mean you’ve got less roomto work with. When it comes to benchmarksit’s basically identical to the iPhone 6S,the biggest difference is in the graphicsside where the lower resolution screen givesit a slight edge. While iOS 9.3 is essentiallythe same as it is on the iPhone 5 and 5s thereare some new features for the SE. One of thebiggest upgrades is the addition of ApplePay. While it’s still not everywhere it’sbecome a legitimately useful feature for meover the last year or so. It’s also rockingupgraded LTE and Wi-Fi which is a small butappreciated change. You’re not getting aperfect replacement for the 6s however, whileyou’ll find the TouchID fingerprint sensoron board it’s the older version which isa bit slower than what you’ll find on thenewest phones. There’s also no 3D Touchon the SE. This is a somewhat useful featureon the 6s that gives you a pressure sensitivedisplay to let you pull up shortcuts in apps,preview content before opening it and mostuseful for me turn the keyboard into a smalltrackpad with a cursor. Only some apps takeadvantage of this though so it’s not a hugeloss and others like Live Photos just replacethe 3D Touch with a long press. What is sharedwith the latest iPhones is the 12 megapixelcamera. You’re working with a slightly smalleraperture but you’d be hard pressed to tellthe difference, it’s a rock solid performerthat you can trust to get good results inmost conditions. It does lack the opticalimage stabilization of the 6s Plus but it’snot a huge problem, while the Galaxy S7 camerais a step up over the iPhone right now there’sreally not much to complain about with theSE. The same holds true for video, you canrecord up to 4K and not only does it looknice but Apple does a good job tuning thedigital stabilization, something that’slacking in most other smartphones that shoot4K. It also has solid slow motion optionswith 1080p video at 120 frames and 720 at240 FPS, I prefer the cleaner look of the1080p video but it’s all usable. One thingthat definitely wasn’t upgraded is the frontfacing camera. The 720p video from the SEis not too impressive. With 1.2 megapixelsit’s fine but it really can’t hold upwith newer iPhones much less the best Androidphones. You will find the Retina Flash thatmeasures the light and flashes the screenwhich actually does work reasonably well butthis is one of the clearest downsides to thelower price of the SE. And that price is abig selling point. At $400 it’s significantlycheaper than the $650 6s, when you considerthat that works out to about $13 a month it’sa pretty strong sell. You’re only goingto find 16 gigabytes of storage on the basemodel however, to upgrade it’ll run youan extra $100 to make the jump to 64 gigswhich is probably a smart move unless youheavily rely on cloud services. Battery lifeis also surprisingly solid, thanks to thatsmaller screen it’s actually a bit betterthan the 6s and should last you through afull day of use. If you prefer a smaller phonethe iPhone SE is one of the best options outthere and as a budget iPhone you’re notgiving up that much although you do need tobe committed to a smaller size. So what doyou guys think about the iPhone SE? Let meknow in the comments below and if you enjoyedthis video and you want to see more like thisdefinitely be sure to subscribe to the channel.Anyway guys thank you so much for watchingand I will catch you in the next one.