In March, Apple Inc. (AAPL) broke from tradition and introduced the iPhone SE, diverting from its traditional once-a-year iPhone event in September. From an investor’s perspective, I applauded the move, which I believed would soak up some latent demand for customers wanting smaller iPhones. Before the release of the SE, the last time a 4-inch model debuted was in 2013 with the iPhone 5s.
On the flipside, it was apparent from the jump that the smaller iPhone wouldn’t be revolutionary by any stretch of the imagination, which reinforces a concern many AAPL stock owners have right now: Is the innovative Apple of yesteryear dead and gone?
The jury’s out on that question, as far as I’m concerned. But as far as Apple’s latest smartphone is concerned, the jury is very much in.
Let’s take a look at some iPhone SE reviews from some of the top consumer tech outlets out there, and see if it gives Apple investors reason to squirm … or applaud.
iPhone SE Reviews: Generally Favorable for AAPL
Here’s an ultra-quick outlet-by-outlet summary of the iPhone SE reviews … which were (spoiler alert) overwhelmingly positive. Score a win for AAPL, as far as I’m concerned.
Engadget
Engadget gives the iPhone SE an 89 out of 100 rating. Remember the brief pros and cons that it lists, which we’ll see popping up quite a bit throughout:
- Pros: Performance, battery life, starting price of “just” $399.
- Cons: Screen is too small for some users, outdated front camera and Touch ID sensor and the base model has just 16GB of storage.
Macworld
Macworld gave a glowing review of the iPhone SE. It makes “barely any compromises, compared to the larger, more expensive iPhone 6s.”
While “Nothing about this phone feels slow or sluggish,” isn’t a ringing endorsement for AAPL, the 4.5 out of 5 stars the new iPhone received is. One of the biggest upgrades from the old iPhone 5s — the body of which is mimicked by the iPhone SE — is the Apple Pay compatibility. As for tradeoffs? Macworld cites the absence of 3D Touch as the most notable.
The Verge
And what does The Verge have to say about Apple’s latest iteration of its hit product?
“It’s a shiny little fishing lure for first-time iPhone buyers or people who feel overdue for an upgrade. Those people might be tempted by the many good Android phones that can be had for less than $400, and Apple is taking them on more directly than it ever has before.”
Hopefully, The Verge is right about that lower price point giving AAPL another tool to use against Alphabet Inc‘s (GOOG, GOOGL) Android OS.
Since the iPhone SE is basically just an iPhone 6s stuffed in the body of an iPhone 5s, how is the SE different from each of its predecessors?
“The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus have better front-facing cameras, but the iPhone SE is stuck with a 1.2-megapixel sensor.”
Not so flattering. However, the differentiation from the iPhone 5s is:
“Even though they’re the exact same size, the iPhone SE can get up to 50 percent better battery life than the iPhone 5s.”
Overall grade? 8.7 out of 10.
Wired
The Wired review of the iPhone SE had more than a few notable quotes, but here are two of the most insightful ones:
“It’s like Apple took all of Dwayne Johnson’s strength and muscle and charisma and stuffed it into the 5-foot-5 frame of Daniel Radcliffe.”
Shots fired, Harry Potter! Quote number two?
“The downgrade I noticed most by far was the slower Touch ID fingerprint reader, which is now just slow enough that I was forever thinking it didn’t work and typing my passcode a quarter-second before it kicked in.”
That said, at the end of the day the iPhone SE only walked away with a 7 out of 10 rating. Pretty good, but still the least flattering of the iPhone SE reviews accumulated here.
Of course, no summary of iPhone reviews would be complete without CNET‘s opinion, and the techies over there were rabid fans, giving the iPhone SE an 8.5 out of 10 rating (or four out of five stars).
So, all in all, pretty solid reviews across the board.
While most reviews cautioned readers that the $399 beginning price is a bit misleading — 16GB of storage doesn’t go so far nowadays — most also concluded that the speedy little smartphone was a nice deal for the money.
Given the positive reception, I still think the decision to combine modern-day features with an old-school form factor should be good for AAPL stock, too.
As of this writing, John Divine did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. You can follow him on Twitter at @divinebizkid or email him at editor@investorplace.com.
