The first-generation iPhone SE (also known as iPhone SE 1 or iPhone SE 2016; ''SE'' is an

initialism An acronym is a type of abbreviation consisting of a phrase whose only pronounced elements are the initial letters or initial sounds of words inside that phrase. Acronyms are often spelled with the initial letter of each word in all caps wi ...

of ''Special Edition'') is a

smartphone A smartphone is a mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multi ...

that was developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is part of the 9th generation of the iPhone alongside the higher-end . It was introduced on March 21, 2016, with pre-orders beginning on March 24, 2016, and was officially released on March 31, 2016, alongside the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. It was re-released on March 24, 2017, with larger storage capacities. The iPhone SE shares the same physical design and dimensions as the iPhone 5s, but has similar internal hardware to the iPhone 6s, including the newer Apple A9 system-on-chip, greater battery capacity, and a 12-megapixel rear camera that can record up to 4K video at 30 frames per second. The iPhone SE can shoot Live Photos and has features like Retina Flash and the option to have Hey Siri activated without the need to be plugged into a power source. The iPhone SE was discontinued by Apple on September 12, 2018. The A9-based SE, 6s and 6s Plus were the first iPhones to be supported through seven major versions of iOS, from iOS 9 to iOS 15. Its successor, the iPhone SE (2020), was announced on April 15, 2020, and released on April 24, 2020. The iPhone SE was the last iPhone to feature a dual-core CPU, a standard 3.5 mm stereo headphone jack, and 16 GB of internal storage.

History

The previous major redesign of the iPhone, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus, resulted in larger screen sizes. However, a significant number of customers still preferred the smaller 4-inch screen size of iPhone 5, 5c, and 5s. Leaks about a smaller, iPhone 5s-like phone with newer components started circulating in 2015. Guesses included "iPhone 5se", "iPhone 6 Mini", "iPhone 6c", and "iPhone SE" (which was the correct name of the phone). Apple executive Greg Joswiak stated in the '' Let us loop you in'' event (held at the Town Hall auditorium in the Apple Campus) on March 21, 2016, that they sold over 30 million 4-inch iPhones in 2015, further explaining that some people love smaller compact phones. Later in the event, he announced the iPhone SE, describing it as "the most powerful four-inch phone ever." With a total

mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

of 113 grams (or 4.0 ounces), iPhone SE is one of the lightest iPhone models released, only surpassed by iPhone 5 and 5S (both having a total mass of 112 grams or 3.95 ounces). The iPhone SE, iPhone 6s, and iPhone 6s Plus were the last iPhone models to feature a standard 3.5 stereo headphone jack. No affordable successor to iPhone SE was announced during the September 12, 2018, '' Apple Special Event'', and '' Business Insider'' stated that "Apple made a big mistake by removing its smallest and most affordable iPhone from its lineup", suggesting that the company was disregarding a significant number of

customer In sales, commerce, and economics, a customer (sometimes known as a Client (business), client, buyer, or purchaser) is the recipient of a Good (economics), good, service (economics), service, product (business), product, or an Intellectual prop ...

s who had been worried over the loss of the smaller design. This was affirmed by '' Computerworld'', who claimed that "the harsh reality is that across some of Apple's biggest markets, wage growth has stagnated, and people are feeling the pinch", further stating that there will always exist

consumer A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or use purchased goods, products, or services primarily for personal, social, family, household and similar needs, who is not directly related to entrepreneurial or business activities. ...

s in the mid-tier smartphone markets. In relation with the discontinuation of iPhone SE, ''

Quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...

'' mentioned on September 22, 2018, that women and other smartphone users with smaller hands had reported "pain from holding, scrolling, and swiping on phones, and a review of research on the

ergonomics Ergonomics, also known as human factors or human factors engineering (HFE), is the application of Psychology, psychological and Physiology, physiological principles to the engineering and design of products, processes, and systems. Primary goa ...

of handheld devices concludes that bigger products, like large phones and tablets, often result in overextension of the thumb and wrist", hinting to repetitive strain injury, and that oversized iPhones and smartphones in general can be physically unusable for some users. The technology website ''

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'' shared the same concern, hoping that "there will be a return to smaller phones", and expressed a desire "to hold one's phone in a single hand, and be able to use it fully." On January 19, 2019, iPhone SE was back on sale as a clearance item for $249. However, by January 20, 2019, stock was sold out. On February 20, 2019, '' TechRadar'' announced that iPhone SE once again was on sale as a clearance item with a $100 price reduction. The price for the 32 GB version was $249, while the price for the 128 GB version was $299. The iPhones were unlocked, with

AT&T AT&T Inc., an abbreviation for its predecessor's former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the w ...

, T-Mobile, or Verizon as optional SIM card carriers. It was available in all original colors, including Space Gray, Silver, Gold, and Rose Gold. On March 25, 2019 ''Gizmodo'' reported that iPhone SE was back in Apple's clearance shop, and added, "it's likely the last of Apple's stock that the company has finally put on clearance." On April 15, 2020, the second-generation iPhone SE was announced as the successor to the original first-generation iPhone SE. The second-generation iPhone SE was released on April 24, 2020. However, the 2020 iPhone SE has a larger 4.7-inch screen size, leaving the original iPhone SE as the last iPhone to have the smaller 4.0-inch screen size.

Availability by region

March 31, 2016 *

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* China, Mainland *

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Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

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Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

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Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

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Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

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Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

April 7, 2016 *

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April 21, 2016 *

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May 28, 2016 *

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Specifications

Design

The exterior design of iPhone SE is nearly identical to that of iPhone 5 and 5S, with the exception of matte- chamfered edges and an inset

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

rear Apple logo. The iPhone SE shares the same physical sizes and dimensions, so cases designed to fit the 5 and 5S will also fit an . iPhone SE was available in the colors Space Gray, Silver, Gold, and Rose Gold.

Hardware

iPhone SE incorporates the Apple A9 system-on-chip (SoC) with an M9 motion coprocessor and supports near field communication for Apple Pay. It was originally released with or of internal storage. It features a rear-facing camera with the ability to record 2160p (4K) video at 30 frames per second and slow motion with

1080p 1080p (1920 × 1080 progressively displayed pixels; also known as Full HD or FHD, and BT.709) is a set of HDTV high-definition video modes characterized by 1,920 pixels displayed across the screen horizontally and 1,080 pixels down the sc ...

at 120fps and

720p 720p (720 lines progressive) is a progressive HD signal format with 720 horizontal lines/1280 columns and an aspect ratio (AR) of 16:9, normally known as widescreen HD (1.78:1). All major HD broadcasting standards (such as SMPTE 292M) includ ...

at 240fps options. The camera lacks optical image stabilization. Unlike iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, the SE does not include 3D Touch, nor the updated faster second-generation Touch ID sensor from the 6s and 6s Plus, or its barometer. Still photos with resolutions up to 6.5 megapixels (3412×1920) can be captured during video recording. On March 21, 2017, Apple announced that it would double the storage for these models at the same launch prices. The upgraded models were released on March 24, 2017, with 32 GB or 128 GB of internal storage.

Software

iPhone SE originally shipped with , supporting iPhone 6- and 6s-exclusive features such as Apple Pay, Live Photos, Retina Flash, and always-on Siri voice activation. The SE is compatible with iOS 15. During the WWDC 2019 Keynote, Apple announced, that iPhone SE, 6s, and 6s Plus would support most of the main features of

iOS 13 iOS 13 is the thirteenth major release of the iOS mobile operating system developed by Apple for the iPhone, iPod Touch and HomePod. The successor to iOS 12, it was announced at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June ...

. This includes the new dark mode (which aims to reduce eye strain), and Low Data Mode for restricting background network (both

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for Wireless LAN, local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by ...

and mobile network) usage. Along with iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, iPhone SE is the oldest iPhone to support iOS 13, iOS 14, and iOS 15. It does not support iOS 16, iOS 17 or iOS 18.

Reception

'' CNET'' considered the iPhone SE to be a "great choice at the small end, with no compromises", and lauded Apple for adapting iPhone 6s's hardware to three different form factors while "consumers loved the battery life and that it still had a headphone jack.” '' The Verge'' considered iPhone SE to be much-improved and well-designed with great battery life, and its screen size the only hindrance to multitasking and certain apps. Giving the device 8.7 out of 10, The Verge said the iPhone SE is "today's tech in yesterday's phone body" and warned not to overly praise something just for doing its job. '' TechCrunch'' said it was "the best phone ever made", appealing to people who prefer a smaller, highly pocketable phone. ''GSMArena'' wrote that iPhone SE "struck the right balance between size, cost and performance", helping Apple beat sales expectations, and that it was strategic in India and China where Apple struggles to match its Western markets. ''Tom's Guide'' acclaimed iPhone SE for being an affordable and compact smartphone with a headphone jack, saying it can be both held comfortably and slipped into a jeans pocket and almost forgotten, unlike a big-screen device however thin. There was praise for the ability to listen to music and charge the phone at the same time. '' The Next Web'' described Apple's iPhone SE as “the best looking phone it's ever made”, citing the beautiful satin finish bead-blasted aluminum body and classy chamfered edges.

References

{{Apple hardware since 1998 SE (1st generation) Mobile phones introduced in 2016 Computer-related introductions in 2016 Mobile phones with 4K video recording Products and services discontinued in 2018