Compared: iPhone SE (2020) versus iPhone SE (2016)

With a new iPhone 8-inspired design, the 2020 iPhone SE boasts many improvements over the 2016 original. For anyone on the old model who is considering upgrading, here is everything Apple packed into its new budget handset.

When Apple dropped the iPhone SE in 2016 it featured a design very similar to the other iPhone 5-era devices. Metal body, chamfered flat edges, and a four-inch display. Now, the iPhone SE has grown up. It featuers an iPhone 8-inspired design with aluminum rounded edges and an upgraded 4.7-inch display.

The new iPhone SE display versus the original

The new display isn't just larger. Apple upgraded it in several other aspects as well, making it a big step forward in quality from the previous design.

The upgraded display of the 2020 iPhone SE

This new Retina display still retains the same 326PPI, but otherwise is all new. It has a 1400:1 contrast ratio up from 800:1 on the older model, and 625 nits of brightness up from 500 nits.

The 2020 iPhone SE has support for True Tone and the P3 wide color gamut, and the original (obviously) does not. Haptic Touch is here this time around as well which allows you to preview links, open contextual menus, and more.

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A huge step forward in cameras

There are massive differences in image quality between the two cameras, as you may suspect.

The new iPhone SE (2020) camera

The updated iPhone SE is using a new imaging sensor with better six-element lenses up from five, and a wider f/1.8 aperture up from f/2.2. It features Smart HDR that can enable or disable automatically, shoot stereo audio for video and has integrated video stabilization.

The 2016 iPhone SE could record slo-mo video at 1080p at 120 fps and at 720 at 240 fps. The updated model can now shoot slo-mo at 240 fps at 1080p as well.

iPhone SE (2020) supports Portrait mode

Another big difference is support for portrait mode, even though iPhone SE only has one rear lens. The camera also has enhanced dynamic range when shooting video up to 30 frames per second and it can record 4K at 60 frames per second.

The front-facing camera was upgraded as well. It has gone from a 1.2MP camera to a 7MP camera. It can record 1080p video (up from 720p), has a wider f/2.2 aperture, wide color capture, image and video stabilization, and portrait mode with depth control.

A new iPhone SE

Other changes for the iPhone SE (2020) include IP67 water resistance, Qi wireless charging thanks to the new glass back, higher storage capacities, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5, and Dual-SIM support.

Both devices do still have the Home button with Touch ID. The 2016 version has a physical button whereas the 2020 model went to the solid-state with Haptic feedback providing the clicking sensation. This is notable because the physical button mechanism is much more prone to failure than the solid-state one. Apple-designed this phone to last and changes like that are important.

Part of that long lifespan is the processor inside. It is the new A13 Bionic processor which runs circles around the A9 found in the 2016. This is the same chip Apple uses in the iPhone 11 Pro line which makes it all the more likely to be support for many years.

The new 2020 iPhone SE is much more powerful than the 2016

	iPhone SE	iPhone SE(2020)
Display	4-inch,326 PPI,500 nits,800:1 contrast ratio	4.7-inch,326 PPI.625 nits,1400:1 contrast ratio,True Tone,P3 wide color gamut support
Processor	A9	A13 Bionic
Authentication	Touch ID	Touch ID
Storage	16GB,64GB,128GB	64GB,128GB,256GB
Headphone Jack	Yes	No
Water Resistance	No	IP67
Wi-Fi	802.11ac	802.11ax Wi-Fi 6
Bluetooth	4.2	5
Dual SIM	No	Yes
Haptic Touch	No	Yes
Front-Facing Camera	1.2MP,720P video	7MP,1080P video
Rear-Facing Camera	12MP,five-element lens,f/2.2,5X digital zoom,True Tone Flash,HDR,4K @30FPS,Slo-mo @240FPS at 720P	12MP,new imaging sensor,six-element lens,f/1.8,5X digital zoom,True Tone Flash with Slow Sync,Smart HDR,4K @60FPS,Slo-mo @240 at 1080P,Portrait mode
Qi wireless charging	No	Yes

Deals on the iPhone SE

Apple's latest iPhone SE is already on sale with special incentives from leading retailers.

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8 Comments

Hank2.0 151 comments · 5 Years

About 4 years ago

appleinsider said, "When Apple dropped the iPhone SE in 2016 it featured a design very similar to the other iPhone 5-era devices. Metal body, chamfered flat edges, and a four-inch display. Now, the iPhone SE has grown up. It featuers (sic) an iPhone 8-inspired design with aluminum rounded edges and an upgraded 4.7-inch display."
Ahhhhh, so the new iPhone 12 is a RETRO model?

mattinoz 2473 comments · 9 Years

Comparison misses the fact the primary feature of the SE was lost in the redesign.
it didn’t grow up it ballooned.

cecil4444 34 comments · 22 Years

mattinoz said:

Comparison misses the fact the primary feature of the SE was lost in the redesign.
it didn’t grow up it ballooned.

Exactly right. Best feature of the 2016 SE was its size — perfect for one-handed use, at a time when the newest phones lost that benefit. Sadly they only got bigger and bigger since then. Not everyone wants a jumbo phone.

am8449 392 comments · 15 Years

cecil4444 said:

mattinoz said:

Comparison misses the fact the primary feature of the SE was lost in the redesign.
it didn’t grow up it ballooned.

Exactly right. Best feature of the 2016 SE was its size — perfect for one-handed use, at a time when the newest phones lost that benefit. Sadly they only got bigger and bigger since then. Not everyone wants a jumbo phone.

While I agree the SE is no longer the one-handed wonder it used to be, I think the 2016 size is no longer that useful in terms of today's web content and UI design.

Even back in 2018 when I was still wedded to my beloved SE, surfing the web was like reading a bulletin board through a telescope—an unending loop of zooming in and out of the same web page to read very small type and look at images. Not only that, but apps were so short on space that interface elements became smooshed together. An app might have a row of buttons on the top and bottom of the screen (with the "Back" button already encroaching on the center title), and then only have enough space in the center of the screen for a scant two or three lines of text. Additionally, trying to read ebooks on the SE was a marathon for your thumbs because you'd have to scroll every two sentences.

Do I miss the diminutive size of the 2016 SE? Definitely. It felt great in the hand, and easy to pocket. But for my own uses, the resulting small screen was nearing the limit of its usability.

From my in-person experience of holding the new SE, it still feels great in the hand (which are probably smaller than average). But is it pocketable? Well, that depends on how big your pants are.

OskarHasNewUsername 1 comment · 4 Years

Years back I could choose from iPhone SE and iPhone 6S. To me SE was better: camera was finely integrated (didn't protruded up), smaller phone was easy to hold and easy to pick-up. 6S was worse in that. Now new iPhone SE has exactly those qualities which I disliked then and I still don't like them now.