I'm debating purchasing the AT&T Prepaid iPhone SE because its only 149.99 currently. I'm using an iPhone 6S and I have always wanted to give the smaller iPhone 5 body style a try again because it was a phone I loved. My only fear is it being too small after using a 6S now for almost 2 years.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPhone SE (2016) I buy the new iPhone every year...and I just bought an iPhone SE instead
- Thread starter wborisenok
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If your vision is fine, and you don't have huge fingers, you'll likely adjust to the smaller size within a week (especially if you have used the smaller sized iPhones in the past and were happy using those). In my case, I had been using the 4.7" iPhones for 3 years, and it took me about 4 days before it felt completely natural to use the smaller size. I had my reasons for going with a 7 instead, but size was not the problem (size was what I liked).
Thanks for sharing.. I had an iPhone 5 and 5S and I think those were the best feeling iPhones in my hand. Once I went to the 6 an 6S it always had that awkward feel and slipperiness to it. My only fear is that I was so used to the larger screen that the SE's screen just wouldn't be enough real estate for my new real world usage. Decisions, decisions....
OK, thought I'd give my two cents.
I returned my SE. Great phone. But battery life wasn't up to my expectations, and after using the iPhone 8+ camera, it was hard to go to the SE's.
I returned my SE. Great phone. But battery life wasn't up to my expectations, and after using the iPhone 8+ camera, it was hard to go to the SE's.
The SE camera definitely is dated compared to the 7 and later, especially is regards to low light performance. If the camera was better, I would probably keep it for another year.
I know, that's why in my prior post I had the "As a geek and nerd, iPhone SE won't cut it."
Not everyone is a geek and nerd like me
I'm a geek and a nerd and I love the SE (although I also have the 8+ and 7 as well).
likewise. It is also shocking to me how few of people know about the SE. Almost everyone who sees my phone thinks it is the 5/5S, and when I tell them it is the SE they look at me like I have 5 heads.
I have two SEs, a 64GB and a 128. I bought the 128GB to replace my 128GB 6S+ that is starting to have random battery drainage problems. I mostly use that for BT music in the car these days so that's what I will use the SE for.
I also have a S8+ and a Note 8 although over the past few months, I'm using my S7 Edge as my daily.
Yup, whenever I use my SE, friends/family ask why am I still using the 5/5s. When I tell them it's the iPhone SE they say they never heard of it.
That's part of the benefits particularly when travelling overseas. It's not as much of a thief magnet and even if it was, it's relatively cheap to replace.
[doublepost=1507745784][/doublepost]
Lol, I just tell them I like the size. I don't even bother explaining it's not a 5s.
I think it was because the SE was more of a silent release in the sense it was part of an Ipad/Mac March event. There was virtually no hype for it outside of forums.
I agree with everything you said. When I said the 6S felt fragile, I should have stated that it felt fragile because in my hands and was worried I was going to drop it. It's just so thin.....
[doublepost=1507758397][/doublepost]
IMO opinion after using the 6S and recently bought the SE. Typing will take a little while to get used to. For the Internet you may have to zoom more than on the 6S. But the compromise is worth it in my opinion. It's like there is nothing in your pockets.
I did something similar. Picked up a 128gb SE at the apple store for $450. while it is cheaper than the 7/8 it didn't feel worth it to me. I ended up returning it and finding a used SE 128gb on eBay for $200 and it feels like a much better deal.
Nice. I'd buy a 128GB SE for $200 in a heartbeat (even if it wasn't in the greatest condition, as long as it functioned fine and didn't have any major damage). That's a great price. Though I'm happy enough with my 7, I'm still monitoring Swappa for SE's, I guess I should watch Ebay, too.
Yea it was definitely a good price. I wanted space grey and this one is silver but I had to jump on it with the price. It has some wear on the edges and back so I think thats why it didn't sell for higher.
I've been following the used prices for a few weeks now. 128GB models were going for 340-400 but they have been creeping down towards $300. The issue is that the 128gb model is newer so fewer of them on the market.
Well I guess I should post a follow up to my post of a few days ago.
My iPhone SE arrived yesterday and I’ve been busy setting up the and playing around with it.
First impressions are positive! I prefer the iOS operating system over Android as I find it quite intuitive. That being said, BB10 OS still kicks iOS hard. I do not seem to have any issues with iOS 11 and it is very snappy.
The phone itself is of excellent build quality. Zero complaints here.
Coming from a 5.5” screen, it is taking a while to become acclimatized to the smaller 4” screen. Typing will take some getting used to. My thumbs feel a little cramped at times. But I love how the little SE just slips into the pockets of my trousers and jeans!
I don’t really notice the difference in the screen’s lower pixel count, but I have not watched too many videos yet. That being said, I do notice the missing second speaker that is present on my DTEK60 when I did watch a video - but no complaints with the sound quality. It’s just not as vivid.
I’ve made a few phone calls and the difference in call quality is noticeable. While perfectly acceptable, the SE is audibly behind the DTEK60 and not in the same league with BlackBerry Passport, which is my gold standard.
I have not used the camera in anger yet, but I know I will be perfectly happy with it as we all know Apple’s cameras are outstanding and, besides, I am a crap photographer.
The fingerprint scanner/Touch ID is not as fast as the one found on my DTEK60, but I am still coming to grips on it being on the front and having to use a little pressure to activate it. Not a big deal in my mind.
I must admit I do appreciate how Apple integrates it’s registration process. It’s so easy to add a new device to ones account and to seamlessly transfer content over from another device.
I paid about $400 CDN taxes-in ($320 USD) for a lightly used unlocked 128gb SE from an eBay store that sells refurbished smartphones. In fact it is so lightly used there was barely a smudge on the device and Apple Care is good until the end of August 2018 so I can still buy extended care if I wish. I saved about $275 CDN compared with buying a new unit from the Apple Store. Score for me!
To sum this all up, I think I will very much like my SE and am pleased with my purchase. It’s a terrific phone that more than meets my needs and should serve me well through several iOS updates. I might even sell my DTEK60!
Thanks all!
My iPhone SE arrived yesterday and I’ve been busy setting up the and playing around with it.
First impressions are positive! I prefer the iOS operating system over Android as I find it quite intuitive. That being said, BB10 OS still kicks iOS hard. I do not seem to have any issues with iOS 11 and it is very snappy.
The phone itself is of excellent build quality. Zero complaints here.
Coming from a 5.5” screen, it is taking a while to become acclimatized to the smaller 4” screen. Typing will take some getting used to. My thumbs feel a little cramped at times. But I love how the little SE just slips into the pockets of my trousers and jeans!
I don’t really notice the difference in the screen’s lower pixel count, but I have not watched too many videos yet. That being said, I do notice the missing second speaker that is present on my DTEK60 when I did watch a video - but no complaints with the sound quality. It’s just not as vivid.
I’ve made a few phone calls and the difference in call quality is noticeable. While perfectly acceptable, the SE is audibly behind the DTEK60 and not in the same league with BlackBerry Passport, which is my gold standard.
I have not used the camera in anger yet, but I know I will be perfectly happy with it as we all know Apple’s cameras are outstanding and, besides, I am a crap photographer.
The fingerprint scanner/Touch ID is not as fast as the one found on my DTEK60, but I am still coming to grips on it being on the front and having to use a little pressure to activate it. Not a big deal in my mind.
I must admit I do appreciate how Apple integrates it’s registration process. It’s so easy to add a new device to ones account and to seamlessly transfer content over from another device.
I paid about $400 CDN taxes-in ($320 USD) for a lightly used unlocked 128gb SE from an eBay store that sells refurbished smartphones. In fact it is so lightly used there was barely a smudge on the device and Apple Care is good until the end of August 2018 so I can still buy extended care if I wish. I saved about $275 CDN compared with buying a new unit from the Apple Store. Score for me!
To sum this all up, I think I will very much like my SE and am pleased with my purchase. It’s a terrific phone that more than meets my needs and should serve me well through several iOS updates. I might even sell my DTEK60!
Thanks all!
Rose Gold. It was the only one available from the seller with 128gb of storage.
I would have preferred the grey/black colour combo, but I always use cases with my mobile devices. It's currently sporting a black Spigen case and I have an OtterBox for when I'm motorcycling or any other outdoor activity.
The SE & the AirPods are my 2 favorite Apple products of the last 5 years.
It's not even close.
It's not even close.
Tempted to pick up one from the states and have my dad bring it here from his travels. Can I unlock it and use with swedish carriers? My carrier is using 800mhz and 2600mhz frequencies for the LTE networks.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Edit: I should add that I looked at the phone from Simple mobile, not AT&T.
There are a few who use R-SIM with the iPhone SE on SlickDeals on iOS 10. Of course, future iOS updates might render that particular workaround useless. For unlocking, I believe it's easier to unlock AT&T compared to Simple Mobile, iirc.
Most of the carriers that are selling it cheaper than the $349 price require it to be active on their service for a particular length of time. AT&T Prepaid is six months. I think Simple Mobile (and Straight Talk, Tracfone, Net10, and the rest of the America Móvil brands) is a year. You'd probably be better off getting the unlocked one from Apple.
In terms of support, the A1662 model, which is sold unlocked at Apple Stores as the SIM-free model and is also the AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon model, seems to not support 2600MHz for LTE (this is the one sold on Simple Mobile, by the way). If you want that, you'd need the Sprint model, A1723, which is also the "rest of the world except China" model: https://www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/#iphone-se
I haven't dealt with it or paid attention to Sprint much, but you might have some luck buying a Sprint one at the Apple Store for full price, which should have it unlocked if that's cheaper than buying it in Sweden.
Last I checked, AT&T unlock through third party was ~$70 so that's still cheaper than $350.