Photo: 01x07x2022000 / CC0 / Wikimedia Commons · source
iPhone SE (2nd generation)
The iPhone 8 body with a flagship A13 Bionic chip inside.
Overview
In April 2020 Apple revived the SE by taking the iPhone 8 body, including the 4.7-inch display, glass back and Touch ID home button, and pairing it with the A13 Bionic chip from the iPhone 11. It was a combination that made it the fastest phone at its price when it launched.
The single 12-megapixel camera did not have Night mode, but software used the A13's image processing for Portrait mode with depth control and Smart HDR. It supported Wi-Fi 6, wireless charging and fast charging, and gained dual SIM through an eSIM. It was also IP67 rated for water resistance.
The phone was announced at a time when the world was entering lockdowns, so it launched through online sales only. At $399 for 64GB it was the lowest-cost new iPhone in years, and it shipped with a 5W charger and wired EarPods.
Why it mattered
It showed that the SE strategy could work as a regular product line, bringing top-tier chips to a budget price.
At a glance
- Announced
- April 15, 2020
- Released
- April 24, 2020
- Discontinued
- March 8, 2022
- Launch price
- $399
- Chip
- Apple A13 Bionic
- Display
- 4.7"
- Storage
- 64GB, 128GB, 256GB
- Status
- Discontinued
Highlights
- A13 Bionic in the iPhone 8 design
- Touch ID and home button
- Wi-Fi 6 and wireless charging
- Dual SIM with eSIM
- Starts at $399
Tech specs
Specifications as published at launch. Some values (like battery life) are manufacturer estimates.
Display
- Size
- 4.7-inch
- Type
- Retina HD IPS LCD, True Tone
- Resolution
- 1334 x 750 pixels (326 ppi)
- Refresh rate
- 60 Hz
Chip
- Chip
- Apple A13 Bionic (7nm, six cores)
- Neural Engine
- Eight cores
Memory
- RAM
- 3GB
- Storage options
- 64GB, 128GB, 256GB
Camera
- Rear cameras
- 12MP wide, f/1.8, OIS
- Front camera
- 7MP, f/2.2
- Video recording
- 4K at 24, 30 or 60 fps; 1080p slo-mo at 120 or 240 fps
Battery
- Video playback
- Up to 13 hours
- Charging
- Qi wireless; fast charge to 50% in 30 minutes with 18W+ adapter
- Capacity
- 1821 mAh
Connectivity
- Cellular
- Gigabit-class LTE
- Wi-Fi
- Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
- Connector
- Lightning
- Bluetooth
- Bluetooth 5.0
- SIM
- Dual SIM (nano-SIM and eSIM)
Design
- Dimensions
- 138.4 x 67.3 x 7.3 mm
- Weight
- 148 g
- Materials
- Aluminum frame, glass front and back
- Water resistance
- IP67 (up to 1 m for 30 minutes)
Security
- Authentication
- Touch ID (second generation)
Software
- Launch OS
- iOS 13.4
