iPhone SE: First Impressions

I happen to have quite a number of friends, most of them women, who cannot abide large phones. And anything above 5 inches, is certainly large, by their standards. They've been asking for recommendations for a really good phone that's also small, and I've been stumped for an answer because everything that's small is either the lowest end of the Android food chain, or old and outdated.

So yes, I don't think Apple has in any way got it wrong with the thought that a small iPhone, which also costs less, would work in a country where a niche is many thousands of people. Bring it on.

Small phone, big price
The only problem is that the price, starting at Rs 39,000 for a 16GB model turns out to be 36 per cent more than it does in the US. That's too much for many. A teardown by IHS says that the iPhone SE costs just Rs 10,700 to make. I can't say whether that's accurate, but this much is for sure: the current price is stiff and ends up making it compete with Apple's own iPhone 6 which actually costs lower. IHS describes the iPhone SE as being a mix of the iPhone 6, iPhone 5s, and iPhone 6s. Packed into a 4-inch body, it's a very powerful phone -- in fact equivalent to the current flagship in some ways -- but the expectation was of a lower price.

I rather doubt that Apple will lower the price on a new product to what the masses want in India. This would take them right out of the aspirational image that they've persisted in maintaining.

Not impossibly small
Picking up the iPhone SE in my hand for the first time, my immediate thought was, oh, it isn't too small to use. It's like the iPhone 5s, with little tweaks to the design to fine-tune and update.

But like many users in India I will probably never go back to willingly using a tiny phone, unless it's a second device, or strictly for some lighter tasks while keeping a big chunk of what I do for a display with lots of real estate. I liked the feel of the phone in my hand. So very Apple, well-built, flat and solid, and sporting that signature back that no one else has quite been able to copy despite trying.

From the front, the device is still all-Apple, but it's a tired look that I now long to see the end of. Big wide bezels on the top and bottom take up so much space on a device that is otherwise so small that one wonders why Apple has not at least 're-imagined' that part. Perhaps it's time to remind the company of its old tagline -- Think Different.

The size of this phone is just about the one deciding factor for anyone who's considering it. Think of your likely usage ever so carefully. Having become totally accustomed to large screens and feeling no shame carrying them or raising one to my ear for a call, I would not easily be able to go back to a small screen. Except for pairing it for use with an Apple Watch, slipping it easily out of my pocket for calls, taking quick pics with its wonderful camera, and using the apps that never ever make it to Android. I'm not a one-handed user, but anyone who is, will find the iPhone SE a dream to use. I find myself reluctant to even use it for email because I want to keep my use of the keyboard, which is necessarily small, at a minimum. Luckily, you do have Siri and the ability to dictate into the phone -- with very good voice recognition -- so like I said, it's not impossibly small.

Easy power
In my initial use, I found that the iPhone SE is predictably just as easy to use as other iOS devices. Someone asked me, in fact, how easy it was to navigate, and I immediately know the person couldn't have been familiar with an iPhone, which is the essence of simplicity. That makes it particularly nice for those who want to use it lightly and not get too involved, immersed or caught up in either the phone or technology in general.

The iPhone SE doesn't have the "Forced Touch" feature from the iPhone 6s but does have much else including the powerful A9 processor driving it. So yes, it's very fast and doesn't anywhere near have the kind of lag or stutter that is a hallmark of Android phones. The experience, overall, is thoroughly Apple. Through a day of light use (since I just got the device) the battery held up just fine.

That fantastic camera
The iPhone's camera is among the top three in the world. Until the Galaxy S7 came along, it was more or less understood that it's the one to beat. Apple has taken the camera from its most recent flagship, the iPhone 6s and put it into the iPhone SE -- and incidentally also the iPad Pro 9.7 which was also launched at the same time as the SE. That almost feels like a bonus, somehow.

In that small a form factor, it's rather interesting to be carrying one of the best phone cameras around. It's easier than ever to flip out and use very quickly. The shutter speed is quite fast and you can be sure of catching the moment. But, the camera on the SE doesn't include optical image stabilisation. Though you can shoot 4K video (and get a little warmed up on the edges) you can't get too bumpy. The front 1.2MP camera is also a bit of a downer.

It's true that the 4 inch iPhone SE is the most powerful phone in its form factor. But it's probably also the most expensive. If you opt to pick up the iPhone 6, for instance, you'll find it's cheaper though larger. So, anyone opting for the iPhone SE has really got to want that small size.