The iPhone SE vs. the competition: Battle of the mid-range
You don't need to spend a lot for top-shelf features.
The past few years have seen the major phone manufacturers release handsets that were low on price but big on features — basically flagship phones at a mid-range price. Today Apple announced an update to its own offering, the iPhone SE. It packs in the powerful Apple A15 Bionic, 5G connectivity and a dedicated home button, while coming in at a nice affordable $429 to start.
But the SE isn't the only stunning midrange phone; Samsung has offered up a slew of affordable handsets for years now, and Google continues its line of “a” phones with the 5a. And if you’re outside the US, you may even have the option of picking up a OnePlus Nord 2. We’ve taken all of these outstanding affordable phones and lined their specs up in the table below so you can get an idea of the power on offer, but make sure you check out our review of the new iPhone SE when it drops later this spring.
iPhone SE | Pixel 5a with 5G | Galaxy A52 5G | OnePlus Nord 2 | |
Pricing | $429 / $479 / $579 | $449 | $500 | £399 (no US release) |
Dimensions | 138.4 x 67.3 x 7.3 mm (5.45 x 2.65 x 0.29 inches) | 156.2 x 73.2 x 8.8 mm (6.1 x 2.9 x 0.3 inches) | 159.9 x 75.1 x 8.4 mm (6.30 x 2.96 x 0.33 inches) | 159.12 x 73.31 x 8.25 mm (6.26 x 2.89 x 0.32 inches) |
Weight | 144g (5.09 ounces) | 183g (6.46 ounces) | 189g (6.67 ounces) | 189g (6.67 ounces) |
Screen size | 4.7 inches (119.4 mm) | 6.34 inches (161 mm) | 6.5 inches (127 mm) | 6.43 inches (163.3 mm) |
Screen resolution | 1,334 x 750 (326 ppi) | 2,400 x 1,080 (413 ppi) | 2,400 x 1,080 (407 ppi) | 2,400 x 1,080 (410 ppi) |
Screen type | Retina HD LCD | OLED | AMOLED | Fluid AMOLED |
Battery | Up to 15 hours, mAh unknown | 4,680 mAh | 4,500 mAh | 4,500 mAh |
Internal storage | 64 / 128 / 256 GB | 128 GB | 128 GB | 128 / 256 GB |
External storage | None | None | microSD up to 1 TB | None |
Rear camera(s) | Wide: 12 MP, f/1.8 | Dual pixel: 12.2 MP, f/1.7 | Main: 64 MP, f/1.8 | Main: 50 MP, f/1.88 |
Front camera(s) | 7 MP, f/2.2 | 8 MP, f/2.0 | 32 MP F/2.2 | 32 MP, f/2.45 |
Video capture | 4K at 60 fps | 4K at 60 fps | 4K at 30 fps | 4K at 30 fps |
SoC | Apple A15 Bionic | Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G | Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G | MediaTek Dimensity 1200-AI |
CPU | 3.23 GHz hexa-core | 2.4 GHz octa-core | 2.2 GHz octa-core | 3.0 GHz octa-core |
GPU | quad-core Apple GPU | Adreno 620 | Adreno 619 | ARM G77 MC9 |
RAM | 4 GB | 6 GB | 6 GB | 6 / 8 / 12 GB |
WiFi | 802.11ax | 802.11ac | 802.11ac | 802.11ax |
Bluetooth | v5.0 | v5.0 | v5.0 | v5.2 |
NFC | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Operating system | iOS 15 | Android 11 | Android 11 | Android 11 |
Other features | IP67 certified, Lightning port | IP67 certified, USB-C | IP67 certified, USB-C | USB-C |
Catch up on all of the news from Apple’s Peek Performance event right here!
