This is the difference that helps the new iPhone SE to avoid the fate of iPhone SE 2016

Launched in early 2016 and officially dead in 2018, the iPhone SE has never been considered a successful Apple product. According to IHS Markit, this last 4-inch iPhone didn't even make the top-selling smartphone of the year. This is something that almost never happens with other iPhones.

Even in the same year (2016), both iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus all took the top 4 spots in the rankings: the success of more expensive iPhone models made the iPhone SE a an unforgettable exception of the Apple family.

But that didn't stop Apple from putting the SE name back. On March 15, in accordance with previously leaked rumors, Apple unveiled the new iPhone SE generation with the design of the iPhone 8 and the configuration of the iPhone 13. The price for a "new bottle of old wine" smartphone once again at $ 400, the lowest price frame ever used by Tim Cook for iPhones.

The iPhone SE is a forgotten exception to Apple: It didn't make it to the top-selling best smartphone of the year.

Does that mean that Apple doesn't know from past mistakes? Not really, because there is a difference between iPhone SE 2016 and iPhone SE 2020 that can be decisive.

First, let's take a look at iPhone SE's biggest weakness: the screen. Like the iPhone 5 or 5s, the iPhone SE has a 4-inch screen. For users in 2016, this is a size that is too small, too inconvenient. Techies will surely remember that 4 inches has been too small since 2012, when Samsung's 4.7-inch Galaxy S3 screen rose to become the best-selling smartphone in history.

It was the thirst for the big screen that helped boost iPhone sales in the 2014 shopping season, after Apple lifted the iPhone 6 screen: compared to Q4 / 2013, iPhone sales in the fourth quarter of 2014 increased to 23.5 million units! During the next 2 years, small-screen iPhone users also upgraded and maintained iPhone sales in the continuous shopping season at over 70 million units.

As the iPhone grew to the throne, the 4-inch iPhone was slowly sinking into the past. As mentioned above, the iPhone SE did not even make it to the top-selling best smartphone of 2016, even though other 4.7 / 5.5-inch iPhone models occupied the top 4 positions. Right from its launch, the fate of the iPhone SE has been decided: this is a smartphone that inherits an experience no one craves!

With the same design but more powerful configuration and cheaper price, the new iPhone SE is the perfect upgrade of iPhone 8.

The iPhone SE 2020 is essentially the same philosophy as the 2016 iPhone SE: reusing an old screen when Apple popularized the new screen. More specifically, the new iPhone SE still uses a 4.7-inch screen with a 16: 9 aspect ratio, while the iPhone X, XS and 11 have all switched to using a "rabbit ears" screen, removing the Home button on the back.

This is the core difference we seek. The 4-inch experience in 2016 was an inconvenient experience that was unacceptable, while the 4.7-inch experience in 2020 was still a sufficient experience. In fact, the screen width of the iPhone SE is not too inferior to the iPhone X or iPhone 11 Pro. Since the majority of video content is still done at 16: 9, many people will probably notice the difference between Touch ID and Face ID rather than the display experience.

The numbers also allow Tim Cook to be confident enough to refresh the 4.7-inch experience in 2020. In 2018, the iPhone 8 was the world's best-selling smartphone. According to Counterpoint data, iPhone 8 continues to rank in the list of best-selling smartphones in 2019, which is monopolized by the iPhone (expensive) and Samsung Galaxy (cheap).

That is, the new iPhone SE is serializing an experience that is still very popular with users!

Until 2019, iPhone 8 still surpasses most Android smartphones to reach the best-selling list globally.

This means that, in 2018, when the "rabbit ears" trend spread worldwide, the most popular smartphone was a 4.7-inch iPhone model with a 16.9 screen. In 2019, the number of people who spent $ 450 on a 4.7-inch iPhone was still high enough for the iPhone 8 to beat all the top Androids to make it to the top. Even in the past year, the number of buyers of 4.7 inch iPhone 8 screen price of 450 USD is higher than the number of people buying Redmi Note 7 screen "teardrop" 6.3 inch price of 150 USD.

This incredible success is the basis for Apple to launch iPhone SE. If 2019 users still support the iPhone 8 so much, they will certainly support an iPhone with the same screen, but the performance will increase significantly and the price will be even more attractive: for only $ 400!