SpecEagle review · Apple

iPhone SE (2020) review: The A13 budget iPhone that revived the SE line.

Item: iPhone SE (2020)
Rating: 70
Author: SpecEagle Editorial

SpecEagle Editorial·Apr 2020·$399

Overall

70/100

Class rank

#7 of 22

Tier

Mid

Buy?

At the right price

The verdict, up front

The iPhone that revived the SE line.

iPhone SE (2020) packed the A13 Bionic into the classic 4.7" Touch ID body for $399. A budget legend — held back by a tiny battery and 4G.

01Display

60/100

60/100 is one of the weaker display results among mid phones of 2020 — 15 points under the average. Check the rows below before buying for this.

TypeRetina IPS LCD, 60 Hz

Size4.7 inches

Resolution1,334 × 750 px

02Camera

72/100

72/100 — right at the average for mid phones of 2020.

Main12 MP, f/1.8, OIS

Selfie7 MP

FeaturesSmart HDR, Portrait mode

Video4K 60 fps

03Performance

80/100

At 80/100 this is one of the strongest performance showings among mid phones of 2020 — 17 points above the cohort average.

ChipsetApple A13 Bionic (7 nm)

RAM3 GB

Storage64 / 128 / 256 GB

04Battery

54/100

54/100 is one of the weaker battery results among mid phones of 2020 — 19 points under the average. Check the rows below before buying for this.

Capacity1,821 mAh

Wired18 W (PD)

Wireless7.5 W Qi

05Build

74/100

74/100 — right at the average for mid phones of 2020.

06Value

76/100

76/100 — right at the average for mid phones of 2020.

What works

A13 Bionic — fast for years.
Just $399 at launch.
Touch ID + compact size.
Long iOS support.

What doesn't

Smallest battery of any modern iPhone.
No 5G.
60 Hz LCD with thick bezels.
Single camera.

Cross-shop it against

Pixel 5a

$449 · score 74/100

How this review is built: every section score, spec row and comparison on this page comes from SpecEagle's tracked catalogue — scores weight measured specs against the 22-phone cohort of mid devices released around the same time. We don't publish invented lab anecdotes. Spot an error? .