I’m in the market for a new phone, I’m not in the slightest bit interested in phone tech and currently just run a small dumphone on a sim only deal. I’ll be keeping a new phone til it breaks/falls in the sea/etc

I want something that has better internet access /email access and a decent camera. The SE still gets good reviews and most importantly for me is small and has a decent camera. Is it still worth buying?

Yes, mrs_oab has one only 6 months old
If you like small, look up Sony XZ1 Compact.

Or XZ2 compact. I’ve just got one. I like it.

Bought one today, £250, 128gb from John Lewis. Will run IOS 12, and didn’t think I could get an iPhone for any less.

i had a new battery installed in my 2 year old SE just before Xmas. Still runs the latest OS and never feels slow. With a new battery I comfortably get through the day without needing to recharge.

I was looking to upgrade but all the newer phones feel too large (and/or expensive). I’d really like an SE sized phone with an edge to edge screen….

It’s a decent phone for relatively little money, it’s a shame they didn’t upgrade it during the last round of updates, not that the hardware is bad or anything, just Apple will decide to kill it at some point.

For me we reached peak smartphone years ago, unless a real game changer comes about there should be no reason why they couldn’t continue to sell the SE for years to come, but that sort of thinking didn’t make Apple make quadzillion dollars a year or whatever. At some point they’ll stop releasing security patches for it and Apps will stop working on it.

Yeah, I would buy any iphone that can run the current software,
Apple have publicly made a commitment to supporting older equipment for as long as they can, as it’s greener.

as long as they can

Fora year or two then.

Apple have publicly made a commitment to supporting older equipment for as long as they can, as it’s greener.

Or because they got caught buggering about with battery life to make owners want to upgrade. No I wouldn’t buy an SE or anything Apple. **** those bitches.

Mines 2yr old. I took advantage of the battery replacement for £25 before the price increase next year. (The battery was only just starting to struggle) I can’t justify changing it, so I’ve gone sim only and it’ll do another year or two.

Wife has an SE that is nearly 2 years old and definitely due for an upgrade. If it was cheap (very) I’d say yes, if not look elsewhere.

I just went sim only on my 2 year old SE. I’ll probably change the battery, but otherwise it is fine, has a decent camera, and actually fits in my pocket. Can’t see the need to upgrade it…

I’d have kept mine going another year at least, but that silly cheap iPhone XR deal over black friday weekend swayed me.

Still plenty quick enough, decent camera, decent battery life, excellent size.

Got one for work and a 7+ for home. Dislike the SE. Too small and typing is too fidly. With the keyboard up the remaining screen is tiny. And the battery life is rubbish in comparison to the 7+

Don’t be fazed by a “large” phone. Once you get used to one you won’t want to go back. I had to factory reset an iPhone 4 the other day and I couldn’t believe that I used to use it everyday, it was awful.

£250 will buy you a fantastic Huawei/Honor/Xiaomi in a range of screen sizes.

As you aren’t already an apple user there’s no great reason to choose an iphone over android. Assuming you don’t have an ipad/macbook, etc at home as well.

Here you go, stock Android with no branding, updates direct from google. Cracking VFM.

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Just started using one as we had a new one at work that was no longer needed. Coming from an ancient 4s it’s quite an improvement and certainly does everything I want and is still nice and compact.

My 5s died a few months ago but I didn’t want a large phone. Instead I got a second hand SE from CEX. 128Gb (so approx 1 year old) with a 2 year guarantee fir £180. Not bothered about running the latest IOS, though it works fine with 12. Its as fast as my wife’s 7 just at a third of the price.

I’d really like an SE sized phone with an edge to edge screen….

Amen.

At some point they’ll stop releasing security patches for it and Apps will stop working on it.

Apple not supporting will probably come before new Apps being released that don’t run. It is 64 bit which was the main reason the previous 32 bit models are now no use.
I have had one for 18 months and I love it. Perfect size, well made and I like iOS.
I bought a big Android phone a few weeks back so I could use the EU settled status apps for my wife (which only runs on Android in pilot) but sold it straight away. Felt uncomfortable in the pocket but mainly just didn’t like the OS. And that is not because I am some sort of Apple fanboy, I actually preferred the Windows phone OS but that died a death and have very low application support unfortunately.

I’d really like an SE sized phone with an edge to edge screen….

Amen.

Wouldn’t that be an X/XS/XR then? They’ve got a bigger screen than an 8, but come in a smaller case.

XR is bigger than the 8. Significantly bigger than the se

Samsung Galaxy A3 here. I dont know how big the iphone se is but the A3 is smaller than a lot of phones today with a good camera and is waterproof* too. Which means it’s good for on the bike handlebars.

*well, probably not waterproof, but good enough…

My girlfriend has one, she just got a new battery for it for £25 a few weeks ago (in fact Apple just gave her a new phone).

She’s just bought a cheap pair of them from music magpie and is off to the Apple shop after work today to get them new batteries, before giving them to her parents.

It’s a bit of faffing but will get them as good new phones for £135 each.

I prefer Android but can see the Apple appeal, 2 years on and it’s still working perfectly. My previous Android was just about done after 2 years.

One of the benefits the larger phones gives is much much better battery life… you can’t get away from the size aspect and limitations on battery size and with iOS and apps becoming ever more power hungry battery life, which is already nowhere near as good as the larger phones, will be an issue. The SE is a cracking little phone but it’s days are numbered and not just because Apple might want to kill it, but because it’s size will just become too limiting.

I had an iPhone 5 and a 6 work phone and the size increase to the 6 was not a problem at all to get used to, and the screen is much much better. And recently my 5 died and i’ve replaced it with an X, and again the size difference is really easy to get used to and the benefits the larger size brings far outweighs any perceived downsides. But, of course the cost is significantly more. £250 is great value for the SE.

but because it’s size will just become too limiting.

Don’t find it limiting at all and like the smaller size so don’t assume everyone is like you.

I’ve had variations of the 4 and have had the SE for 2 years now. It’s still going strong, no problem with the battery starting to fade or anything. But 3 months ago my work phone was upgraded from an SE to an iPhone 7. I’ve always loved the compact size of the 4/5’s that’s why I’ve stuck with them but have to admit the more I use the 7 the more I’m loving the size of the bigger screen.

I got rid of my 64Gb SE a year ago as it was so rubbish. Bought an A8 (2018) instead for just over £300 and its streets ahead of any iPhone I’ve owned.

I’ve always loved the compact size of the 4/5’s that’s why I’ve stuck with them but have to admit the more I use the 7 the more I’m loving the size of the bigger screen.

Exactly my experience. Clearly from Kerley’s post above yours we don’t all feel the same. I would not by choice have a phone with a screen as small (and a battery as small) as an SE again. The other advantage of a 7 and newer is the waterproof aspect. I use my phone as backup GPS in the hills. Knowing a bit of damp is no issue (and not having to have a lifeproof case) is a bonus too. I appreciate the cost difference is significant though.

I like how these topics on decent sized mobiles keep coming back. Of course, it’s all down to personal preferences and usage, but I don’t understand why there are so few choices out there.
The iPhone SE and Xperia X(Z1) Compact are about the only options IMO. No more headphone jack in the XZ2+ models, and a SE2 is unlikely at the moment.
Regarding OP’s question, an SE can be worth it right now, depending on how it is used. With occasional use, I could stretch the battery up to 3-3.5 days (iOS 12, new battery). Just don’t get the 16GB version, it’s barely enough space for the operating system. Unfortunately, the battery replacement fee goes up to £45 starting 1st January, so right now, the SE has lost at least £20 of its value compared to last week.

I bought one last year, it’s perfect for me I don’t want a massive phone.

FWIW, John Lewis is currently having a sale of the 128GB model. Considerably more expensive than a new XZ1 Compact (even when adding a 128GB micro SD card), but AFAIK it’s the best price ever; combined with John Lewis 2 year warranty, this is probably one of the last great deals on the SE.

SE is still my daily phone. I much prefer the compact size and durable design over larger screen phones (I’m in front of a couple of 27″ screens all day at work and at home if I need a larger screen I have a 12.9″ iPad).

I wouldn’t buy one new though. Loads of good condition second-hand SEs out there these days.

My girlfriend has one, she just got a new battery for it for £25 a few weeks ago (in fact Apple just gave her a new phone).

Same here. Put our two SEs in for battery replacements (£25 each). Apple broke one and replaced it with a brand new SE. Which was nice.

they got caught buggering about with battery life to make owners want to upgrade.

Not quite. They got “caught” when it was revealed that if your phone had an unexpected shutdown due to battery/power issues then it would turn on a mode that throttled maximum performance to try to prevent it happening again.

In response they added a setting to turn this off, added battery health stats, and started the cheap battery replacement program.

is the battery replacement program still in operation? mines gone shite in the last week!

is the battery replacement program still in operation?

Nope. Ended 31st December.

But… the apple guy spoke to said it was not returning to the previous (extortionate) price. I think he said it would be £45 once the deal ended.

Still more than you’ll pay at the Phil’s Phone Phixes market stall – but at least you know you are getting a genuine new battery, a warranty on the work, and a replacement phone if they bugger it.

The 6S is still supported, and remarkable affordable if you find a refurbished model.

I have one as a workphone.

It’s perfect for that for me, it’s not like i want to watch Netflix on it, just reply monosyllabicly to a few emails, the occasional phone call and the odd text.

If you go for battery replacement via Apple (even at £45 it’s not a bad deal for peace of mind) you stand a a chance for getting a bonus – I got a brand new 6s Plus back for my £25.

I have an SE for work and it’s perfect – Xr of my own for anything that ‘needs’ more space.

No.1 son has an SE as it runs everything, Apple Family stuff works on it well (Music, screentime, app purchase sharing and control etc etc) and its an easy one to replace the screen on. With work incentives I got it new from Curry’s for £230, but seee plenty of perfectly serviceable ones for around 100 .. there is definitely a perception they are somehow lesser, but I rate hem.

All the iphones I’ve had have been supported longer than Android version lifetimes.. 5 years usually which is reasonable even for the top end stuff (I’ve only had Samsung and Google Android devices, and an ASUS I won in a comp and was already out of OS update support :-D)

Fora year or two then

Apple are very good at supporting older phones though. My wife has only just upgraded her iPhone 6 (which came out in September 2014) and that is still fully supported by Apple. She only upgraded because she wanted a better camera and to be fair, the cameras/technology on newer phones is significantly better these days.

I use an old SE as my bike phone. So easy to carry compared with the 8 plus. I also have an Apple Watch, which can sadly only talk to the one phone. The 8 plus has replaced my iPad mini 4 for most web browsing and communications but the SE is a perfect phone sized device. It supports Strava and garmin connect to sync rides fine.

Although I sound like a bit of a fan, I’ve used blackberry exclusive until last year with the iPad for web and Zwift. Work stopped support so they gave me the 8 plus. This was just a bit big for regular back pocket duties so I sequestered Son1’s SE after it died, was replaced with an 8 and the resurrected.

Great phone for phoning and the odd bike ride picture. Too small for me to use for much else.