Apple iPhone SE: testing the technology

APPLE claims its new iPhone packs a real punch. Technology writer Rod Chester reports on what you can expect from the tech giant’s latest gadget.

WITH the new iPhone SE, Apple has taken the Apple 5S and given it a revamp.

But instead of a facelift to make the facade look different, this rebirth is all about the power of what is inside.

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back to basics ... the new iPhone SE is the same size as the 5S, but a lot more powerful. Picture: Supplied

Picking up an iPhone SE is like meeting an old friend — everything seems familiar.

At a casual glance, the new iPhone looks almost identical to the old iPhone you have probably passed on to your mum or kids when you upgraded to an iPhone 6.

The physical size is identical. This new iPhone will fit into those old iPhone cases that are sitting in your bottom drawer.

A closer inspection identifies a few difference. Apple has made the back of the phone look more attractive and given the chamfered edges a matt finish instead of a shine.

The only really noticeable difference is the different shape of the flash next to the camera lens is a hint that the camera within this iPhone is leaps and bounds ahead of that in the iPhone 5S.

New camera ... Apple Vice President of Product Marketing, Gregory Joswiak introduces the new iPhone in Cupertino, California. Picture: AFP

Why would Apple release a new iPhone that looks like it came out of a factory two years ago? Because there was nothing wrong with the old form.

Instead, the improvements come were it really matters. This is a faster, more powerful iPhone with a better camera.

In fact, aside from the 3D Touch feature which lets you access extra menus by pushing the screen harder, this is the equal to the iPhone 6s but in a form that is, in the eyes of many people, more convenient.

Road test ... Rod Chester was one of the guests invited to take a look at the new iPhone SE. Picture: AP

The iPhone SE has a A9 chip, a 12-megapixel camera, Touch ID that is compatible with Apple Pay and it can shoot by 4K video and Live Photos.

The last time Apple flirted with releasing a “lower model” iPhone, they went with a different approach. The iPhone 5C came out at the same time as the 5S but had the features of the previous generation 5.

You could buy a cheaper iPhone but you had to put up with the power of last year’s model.

Perhaps there were lessons to be learnt by that experience and this smaller iPhone is the match of its bigger cousins.

When the iPhone 6 was released with the 4.7-inch screen, I joked to an Apple executive that I would have to hit the steroids so that my weedy arms would be able to cope with the larger phone in an armband when I run.

Forget about the muscle boosters. There is plenty of muscle in the iPhone SE and so long as I can live without 3D Touch, this could become my new best running mate.

* iPhone SE 16GB & 64GB models starting at A$679 inc. GST. Pre-orders start Thursday, 24 March PDT, in store from Thursday, 31 March.

*Rod Chester travelled to Cupertino as a guest of Apple.