{"id":12204,"date":"2022-05-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-05-03T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=12204"},"modified":"2022-05-11T11:08:55","modified_gmt":"2022-05-11T09:08:55","slug":"iphone-se-apple-on-a-budget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/2022\/05\/04\/iphone-se-apple-on-a-budget\/","title":{"rendered":"iPhone SE: Apple on a budget"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

At \u00a3419, it\u2019s half the price of Apple\u2019s flagship phone, but is it only half as good? Daniel Bennett <\/span>tests it out<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

\"\"
The iPhone SE<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

How clever does a smartphone really need to be? A look at my Screen Time app tells me that 85 per cent phone usage is spent either watching YouTube, listening to music, or scrolling through Twitter. <\/span>Clearly, I\u2019ve wasted my money on a top-of-the-range phone \u2013a 20-something-core processor is a bit over the top for binge-watching Binging <\/em>With <\/em>Babish.<\/em><\/p>\n\n

So, I skipped the new iPhone 13 to spend a month with the latest iteration of the iPhone SE instead \u2013 a handset that\u2019s less than half the price of the newest, smartest iPhone available \u2013 to find out whether it\u2019s time for a rethink when it comes to how much I spend on my phone.<\/p>\n\n

WHAT ARE THE UPSIDES?<\/span><\/h5>\n\n

A quick read of the spec sheet tells you this isn\u2019t just old tech repackaged at a reduced price. Apple equips the iPhone SE with the same chipset, the A15 Bionic Chip, that it uses in its latest, most powerful phones.<\/p>\n\n

This means there\u2019s absolutely nothing wrong with how the phone performs. Apps load in an instant, the touchscreen never hangs and there hasn\u2019t been a website or a game that has caused the phone to stutter. Plus, it\u2019s technically powerful enough to handle editing photos and even 4K video.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

It\u2019s a similar story for the camera, which punches way above its weight, thanks to the chipset inside.<\/span> The A15 has what Apple calls a Neural Engine, which is there to help your iPhone understand the world around it. In terms of photography, this means that, in theory, your phone\u2019s camera can tell the difference between the blue in the sky, and the blue in something like a road sign, and then tune one or the other independently depending on which \u2018photographic style\u2019 you\u2019ve chosen. There are four styles to choose from: Rich Contrast, Vibrant, Warm and Cool. You might, for example, want to capture a photo with a warmer looking sky, but that doesn\u2019t mean you want every single blue in the image to become more saturated \u2013 this is what the Neural Engine figures out. Similarly, Apple says the same tech improves the way your camera captures skin tones too. In practice, it\u2019s hard to fault.<\/p>\n\n

The camera also pulls off Apple\u2019s newest software trick: point the lens at a document, poster or sign, and the camera will give you the option to copy the words off the live view and paste the text into a note, document or email. It\u2019ll even recognise when a line of text is actually a web link, and invite you to click it to head to the address.<\/p>\n\n

On top of a powerful CPU, you\u2019re also buying into Apple\u2019s OS, which is clean, simple and easy-to-use.<\/span> It also comes with powerful privacy tools that can help keep nosy apps at arm\u2019s length. Plus, the phone offers wireless charging and waterproofing, which you don\u2019t often find in similarly priced Android devices.<\/p>\n\n

WHAT\u2019S MISSING?<\/span><\/h5>\n\n

If you\u2019re downgrading, the first thing you\u2019ll notice is the display. Compared to the edge-to-edge screens we\u2019ve become used to, the black bars at the top and bottom that frame the display feel like a step back in time. On its own the screen is bright and crisp, but put it next to an OLED display you\u2019d find on a flagship phone and the iPhone SE\u2019s LCD is notably less vibrant.<\/p>\n\n

\"\"
The iPhone SE\u2019s design with thumbprint sensor and black borders feels a touch outdated<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

Ultimately, it\u2019s the size of the screen (4.7\u201d) more than the picture itself that would potentially put me off the device long-term: it\u2019s just a touch too small for long stints on YouTube or a video game.<\/p>\n\n

The storage on the base model, 64GB, is a little on the shallow side. The battery life also falls a little short of what you\u2019d hope for, occasionally needing a recharge before the day was out.<\/p>\n\n

As a point-and-shoot camera, we like the iPhone SE, though it\u2019s worth noting you\u2019ll be missing out on a few features. There\u2019s no zoom or wide-angle lens, and there\u2019s no dedicated night-mode, which means photos taken in low light can come out blurry and lacking definition.<\/p>\n\n

<\/div>
\n

VERDICT <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

For the tech-obsessed, the iPhone SE might not be tempting enough for a downgrade. The iPhone 13 Mini is probably a better option, if you\u2019re hoping to save some money and aren\u2019t willing to sacrifice that much screen space. For rest of us, this SE is a great option. In fact, I think there are two groups who Apple might have in mind with this phone: our parents and our kids.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The display, though small, is perfectly good for my mum or my nieces, who don\u2019t (yet) spend hours on their phones. The iPhone SE is easy to use, will look after their privacy and will be good enough to take and send all the pictures they take, without breaking the bank. Most of the tech that\u2019s been omitted to make the phone affordable is superficial, while core components are powerful and, to a degree, future-proof. Ultimately, at half the price, it doesn\u2019t feel like you\u2019re getting half the phone.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

IMAGeS: APPLE X3<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At \u00a3419, it\u2019s half the price of Apple\u2019s flagship phone, but is it only half as good? 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