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iPhone SE (2016) I prefer the SE over my 11 pro after a few weeks of use

Airforcekid

Airforcekid

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Sep 29, 2008
1,708
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United States of America
I received an iPhone SE as my new work phone a month ago and since then I find myself reaching for it more than my 11 pro max for general tasks. Touch ID is a million times more accurate than Face ID and the simple screen with the new CPU is incredibly fluid this is the first iPhone I have used with zero lag launching and switching applications. The camera and battery life leave a little room for improvement but I am debating selling the pro and going for an SE for my personnel phone now.
 
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Airforcekid said:
I received an iPhone SE as my new work phone a month ago and since then I find myself reaching for it more than my 11 pro max for general tasks. Touch ID is a million times more accurate than Face ID and the simple screen with the new CPU is incredibly fluid this is the first iPhone I have used with zero lag launching and switching applications. The camera and battery life leave a little room for improvement but I am debating selling the pro and going for an SE for my personnel phone now.
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Absolutely. I love the full screen look but my SE is so easy to use and to pocket and have around. If they make an iPad mini with Face ID I think I will have the perfect combo for my life
 
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Glad you appreciate your iPhone SE airforcekid. It really is a very snappy, compact and lightweight phone. The iPhone 11 Pro Max is a stunning phone, but sometimes simpler is better!
 
WingsAndBeer said:
This is why I refuse to let go of my 8 Plus...bought one in Oct 2017, it just had a cellular modem failure...so I replaced it this month with a refurb 256GB from Apple. Screw Face ID.
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Wings and beer, just keep your 8 plus, don’t sell it, that’s what I’m doing. It’s a special phone, and now appears to be quite hard to get hold of brand new.
 
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Good to hear OP, it’s important for people to try different devices so they find what works for them as opposed to using a device that doesn’t work. We use our smartphones daily so it’s important to have something you enjoy using.

my experience was the opposite; using the SE when I owned it made me appreciate my 11 Pro more. I’m not a huge camera person but the screen, Face ID and battery were big reasons for sticking to my 11 Pro

That said, the SE is perfectly fine and usable and even preferable for many users. Imagine if Apple only sold one iPhone? The options are great and the SE raises the value bar for Future iPhones to be judged against
 
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WingsAndBeer said:
This is why I refuse to let go of my 8 Plus...bought one in Oct 2017, it just had a cellular modem failure...so I replaced it this month with a refurb 256GB from Apple. Screw Face ID.
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snipr125 said:
Wings and beer, just keep your 8 plus, don’t sell it, that’s what I’m doing. It’s a special phone, and now appears to be quite hard to get hold of brand new.
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Another 8 Plus user here! Best iPhone I've ever owned.
 
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Airforcekid said:
I received an iPhone SE as my new work phone a month ago and since then I find myself reaching for it more than my 11 pro max for general tasks. Touch ID is a million times more accurate than Face ID and the simple screen with the new CPU is incredibly fluid this is the first iPhone I have used with zero lag launching and switching applications. The camera and battery life leave a little room for improvement but I am debating selling the pro and going for an SE for my personnel phone now.
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I sold my IPhone 11 for the new SE and have not looked back. The IP11 was a great phone but too clunky/heavy for carrying around all day. The SE is a great size and I missed the Touch ID A LOT. I really love this phone. Perfect size.
 
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Airforcekid said:
Its a shame they didnt make an SE plus but at least touch id will be sticking around for awhile.
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Its coming. 1st/2nd quarter of 2021 I suspect it will be here. Both Kuo and Prosser have both said it’s almost guaranteed. Personally, I’ll pick one up just for work purposes. The 5.5 design was one of my favorites, and I do believe the physical haptic touch ID will be the last time it will be in existence for an iPhone.
 
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I went from the 11 Pro Max to the SE ... and although I loved the SE ... the battery life is so horrendously bad compared to the Max that I just couldn't do it. I went from charging my phone every two days to three times a day. It's a really great little phone, but battery life is too important to me. It's a stupidly fast little phone.
 
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Interesting. Everytime i use a device with TouchID it annoys me a lot.
Especially when using a Password Manager or Finance App and i have to actively put my finger on the sensor instead of just facetime doing its thing automatically.
 
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Nozuka said:
Interesting. Everytime i use a device with TouchID it annoys me a lot.
Especially when using a Password Manager or Finance App and i have to actively put my finger on the sensor instead of just facetime doing its thing automatically.
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Had an iPhone X for a week, annoyed that I couldn't lay it on my desk and unlock it easily. Pros and cons to both. I'd rather have my device unlocked before it's at my face than having to wait on Face ID and then swipe up.
 
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Airforcekid said:
Touch ID is a million times more accurate than Face ID
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I have to say that I've never had any luck with any Touch ID iPhone that I've owned. While it's great in winter it's only useful which I'm not having to remove a glove. In summer its absolutely horrendous (I think due to the much higher humidities) and I usually end up simply switching it off completely. Face ID with my XS has been functionally rock solid for me and while it does have its own usage "issues" (I like unlocking with an IPS when I'm working at my desk for instance) I've been really impressed with it's accuracy (outside of the fact that I could unlock my mother's iPhone X with Face ID - and yes, it was set up with her face, and no, we don't look anything alike - my father on the other hand).

FWIW the best circumstance for me for it to have an in-display Touch ID plus Face ID. I use both in differing circumstances and as such both are important for a convenient interaction with my phone for me.
 
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I couldn't deal with that level of battery life in leaving the 11 Pro Max. It lasts and lasts and lasts and going back to the days of charing mid to late afternoon would be awful.
 
I think it just come down to this: Does FaceID or TouchID work better for you?

I have naturally oilier skin and TouchID never worked well for me. 50% or less accuracy, no matter what I tried. FaceID works 90%+, in generally 100% if the angle is good. So of course I hate all TouchID products and love all FaceID products.

But for some people it's the opposite. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
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oneMadRssn said:
I think it just come down to this: Does FaceID or TouchID work better for you?

I have naturally oilier skin and TouchID never worked well for me. 50% or less accuracy, no matter what I tried. FaceID works 90%+, in generally 100% if the angle is good. So of course I hate all TouchID products and love all FaceID products.

But for some people it's the opposite. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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On my Samsung Galaxy S10 I really like the convenience of having both. I just wish their face unlock was both as good and as secure as Face ID. I'd actually no longer wish to make that choice and I'm saying that using both a far from perfect FPS and face unlock.
 
It’s like I said before. The people who stand by Touch ID are the ones who don’t work with their hands. Get water logged, your print changes, get a cut or scratch, your print changes. Then you have to re do your print, and then again when you heal. If you love it all the power to you. My wife likes Touch ID only because she doesn’t know what Face ID is about. I get both sides of the argument, but because I do work with my hands, Touch ID is a no go. Now if I was a student using my phone in class when I shouldn’t be, Touch ID would be great. But I’m not a student.
 
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freeagent said:
It’s like I said before. The people who stand by Touch ID are the ones who don’t work with their hands. Get water logged, your print changes, get a cut or scratch, your print changes. Then you have to re do your print, and then again when you heal. If you love it all the power to you. My wife likes Touch ID only because she doesn’t know what Face ID is about. I get both sides of the argument, but because I do work with my hands, Touch ID is a no go. Now if I was a student using my phone in class when I shouldn’t be, Touch ID would be great. But I’m not a student.
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Lots more examples than just a student. It's fair to say faceID is going to work better for people depending on your situation, as in one like yours. TouchID works far better for me, it's not even close. Is it a deal breaker? Not quite but faceID is noticeably slower/more inconvenient for how I use the device.
 
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freeagent said:
It’s like I said before. The people who stand by Touch ID are the ones who don’t work with their hands. Get water logged, your print changes, get a cut or scratch, your print changes. Then you have to re do your print, and then again when you heal. If you love it all the power to you. My wife likes Touch ID only because she doesn’t know what Face ID is about. I get both sides of the argument, but because I do work with my hands, Touch ID is a no go. Now if I was a student using my phone in class when I shouldn’t be, Touch ID would be great. But I’m not a student.
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I work in a cleared environment with my previous XS the only option was a six digit pin every time as they removed all the cameras before they give them to us. Touch ID has a big advantage in this area as well. Only reason ive been able to play with the SE camera is the lockdown once I go back in I imagine that will be removed quickly.
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Donnation said:
I couldn't deal with that level of battery life in leaving the 11 Pro Max. It lasts and lasts and lasts and going back to the days of charing mid to late afternoon would be awful.
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This is the biggest downside I typically throw my phones onto a wireless charging pad when I am not using them so I can sort of deal with it.
 
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