SEeing things

The development of mobile technologies is all about thinking big. These big ideas can potentially have a big impact on the masses. But a new product from Apple has the company thinking small. 


At a press event held at their headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., Apple’s executive team, including CEO Tim Cook, announced the launch of the new iPhone SE. Described as being a 4-inch version of one of their legacy products, the iPhone 5S, the creation of the SE was based on customer demand.

“Why are people buying 4-inch iPhones? First, some people simply love smaller phones,” explained Greg Joswiak, head of marketing for the iPhone.

The 6 series boasted screen sizes of up to 5.5 inches. While offering a better viewing capacity and picture quality of up to 1080p, the phones were somewhat unwieldy, and could not fit into a user’s pocket. Despite the success of the larger devices, 4-inch iPhones were hot sellers in 2015, with over 30 million units sold. This accounts for roughly 40 per cent of all Apple smartphones worldwide.

For new iPhone owners, size was a major factor when it came to device selection. “We found for a lot of these customers, it’s their first iPhone,” Joswiak said. “Some people asked us, some people even pleaded with us, please keep the 4-inch products in our lineup. Today, we’re going to do just that and we’re going to make it a lot better.”

The SE was crafted to build upon the success of the 5S with new features and increased processing power. The device is equipped with a 64-bit A9 chip that features and embedded M9 processor. The inner workings are rounded out by an M9 motion coprocessor, which allows users track their fitness progress and interact with Siri by saying “Hey, Siri,” and a 12MP iSight camera.

Although the screen is smaller than that of the 6S, the SE offers “(the) same incredible graphics performance as the 6S, which is three times faster than the 5S,” Joswiak added.

Further emphasizing the concept of “smaller is better,” the SE’s price points may be endearing to long-time Apple users. The 16GB model retails for $399, while the 64GB version will retail for $499. Apple will begin taking orders for the SE on March 24, while the official launch date is set for March 31. By the end of May, the device will be available in more than 100 countries.