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Apple iPhone SE 2020 preview: First impressions of design, performance – Business Insider – Business Insider

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  • Apple’s $400 iPhone SE is a new smartphone that has the same processor as the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro, but in a compact, 4.7-inch design like the iPhone 8. 
  • The launch comes just as rival smartphone makers like Samsung and Google have been introducing less expensive alternatives to their own flagship smartphones.
  • I’ve only spent a few hours with the iPhone SE so far, but its speedy performance and compact design should make it a compelling option for Apple fans on a budget. 
  • Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

It’s only April, but Apple has already unveiled a new iPhone. And no, it’s not the rumored 5G-enabled iPhone 12 you’ve probably been hearing so much about.

Rather, it’s the $400 iPhone SE, a revival of the special edition iPhone Apple introduced back in 2016.  Unsurprisingly, the 2020 model comes with a number of improvements over its 4-year-old predecessor, particularly when it comes to performance. The device officially launches on April 24 and is currently available for preorder. 

The new iPhone SE features a 4.7-inch screen with a Touch ID home button and a glass and aluminum design, making it very similar to 2017’s iPhone 8. But most importantly, it runs on Apple’s A11 processor — the same chip that powers the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro. That gives the iPhone SE an advantage over other similarly priced smartphones, like the $400 Google Pixel 3a, which runs on a less powerful chip designed for less expensive smartphones.

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I’ve only been using the iPhone SE for roughly a couple of hours, but I can already tell it fills an important hole in Apple’s lineup. At a time when rivals like Google and Samsung are introducing more budget-friendly options, Apple had been lacking an inexpensive smartphone that still feels new until now. 

The iPhone SE may not have a borderless screen like the $400 Samsung Galaxy A51 or a camera that can see in the dark like Google’s $400 Pixel 3a. But it does pack as much power as Apple’s latest flagships — a sign that Apple intends to give Android device makers more competition when it comes to targeting shoppers on all budgets. 

Here’s a closer look at my brief first impressions of the new iPhone SE.

In terms of design, it looks and feels almost identical to the iPhone 8.

iPhone SE and iPhone 8

iPhone SE (left) and iPhone 8 (right)

Lisa Eadicicco/Business Insider


The iPhone SE should look very familiar to anyone who has used an iPhone 8. The phone’s screen size, physical dimensions, and weight all match those of the 4.7-inch iPhone Apple released in 2017.

The biggest physical differences between the iPhone SE and the iPhone 8 are in their colors. The iPhone SE comes in black, white, and red, while the iPhone 8 was available in silver, space gray, and gold. 

The Apple logo on the back of the phone is also located much lower near the center of the device compared to the iPhone 8. The “iPhone” branding is also gone from the back of the device, as shown in the photo above. 

Since the iPhone SE is hundreds of dollars less expensive than the iPhone 11 and even 2018’s $600 iPhone XR, it’s not necessarily surprising that it lacks the modern edge-to-edge screen found on other recent iPhones.

However, the design does feel a bit antiquated when you consider that companies like Google and Samsung have managed to design $400 smartphones with bezels that are significantly thinner than those found on the iPhone SE.  

The iPhone SE is also a welcome return for Touch ID.

iPhone Se touch Id



Lisa Eadicicco/Business Insider


Apple hasn’t released a new smartphone with its Touch ID fingerprint sensor since the iPhone 8, and it’s making a welcome comeback on the new iPhone SE. 

That’s because Apple’s newer phones use facial recognition instead since they no longer include a home button. While Face ID is a promising and secure alternative to Touch ID,  I sometimes still prefer using a fingerprint scanner over Apple’s Face ID.

For example, Touch ID is more convenient at times when I want to unlock my phone without having to pick it up. Using a fingerprint scanner is also usually faster when unlocking my device while wearing sunglasses as well. 

It’s nice to see that that those who prefer Touch ID over Face ID no longer have to compromise by purchasing an older iPhone with a less powerful chip.  

Even though I’ve only spent a short amount of time with the iPhone SE so far, it does feel a bit faster than the iPhone 8.

iPhone Se and iPhone 8 2

The iPhone SE (front) and iPhone 8 (back)

Lisa Eadicicco/Business Insider


The iPhone SE should bring notable performance improvements over the iPhone 8, but without using the phone for a longer period of time it’s difficult to tell exactly where those enhancements will be noticeable.

Still, I immediately noticed that the iPhone SE felt a bit snappier when launching apps compared to the iPhone 8 I’ve had since 2018. When launching apps like the Messages app, Google Maps, and Seamless, the iPhone SE beat the iPhone 8 every time. I also felt like the iPhone SE was a bit quicker and more accurate at finding nearby surfaces when using Apple’s augmented reality measuring app compared to the iPhone 8. 

Overall, the iPhone SE doesn’t come with any exciting new changes — but that’s probably why its intended audience will like it.

iphone SE front



Lisa Eadicicco/Business Insider


The iPhone SE is the opposite of what you’d expect from an Apple product launch. There aren’t any groundbreaking new features like a triple-lens camera or a brand-new chip. Even the design feels old and unchanged.

But that’s precisely why it will likely appeal to some people. The iPhone SE isn’t for early adopters or camera enthusiasts. It’s for iPhone users that want a new phone but are hesitant about spending $700 more on a new smartphone. Or Apple fans that are very much in need of an upgrade but aren’t interested in switching to a phone with a larger screen and no home button. Or parents looking for a relatively inexpensive first smartphone for their child. 

For legacy iPhone owners, there’s nothing new to learn with the SE — no new gestures to replace the home button, no facial recognition, no new key combinations for taking a screenshot. And that’s probably very important to some shoppers.

With so many high-quality, inexpensive Android phones in the market — like Samsung’s Galaxy A151 and Galaxy S10, Google’s Pixel 3a, and TCL’s upcoming 10 Pro, Apple couldn’t afford to not come out with a new budget option of its own. Even if the iPhone SE doesn’t have all the bells and whistles found on those rivals, Apple at least has a new affordable iPhone that’s fit to compete when it comes to performance. 

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Ask Andy: How can you tell whether a startup is a good place to work? When is it safe to disclose a mental-health challenge to coworkers?

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As a software developer who would like to work for a startup, what should I look for in a company so that I know it’s legit? If I am putting a lot of work into a product, I want to know that at minimum it’s for a legitimate company and founder—not just another person with an overdone app idea that knows nothing about the tech world. Sarah C.

If you’re learning the startup game, the best bet here is to go later-stage. Focus on a pre-IPO company that is growing quickly, has raised money from blue-chip investors, and is getting positive buzz in the market that it will go public within the next two years.

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Then, don’t believe any of it.

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Network your way into three of the company’s team members on LinkedIn or through your network. Have three virtual or IRL coffees. Have them tell you about the culture: If they’re learning; if the company’s really growing; and most importantly, whether or not they respect and, ideally, admire the leadership.

Keep looking until you find this vetted opportunity.

That’s a systematic, rational approach. But that’s not the only way to go. You could throw it all out the window.

Find a company where you believe in the mission. One where you fall in love with the product or service. You might already be a high LTV customer or a power user. Check your credit card statement and your app home screen to source ideas. Your passion for the mission will make it work for you for some time, even if the company doesn’t work in the long run.

However you get there, once you’re inside for a year or two, you’ll be learning.

You may have to switch horses. That’s okay.

When you do, you’ll know more people, you’ll have more insight, and the path on what to pick next will be clearer. Heck, you might even notice an inflection point and meet a cofounder that leads to you starting a company yourself.

It’s like dating.

You probably won’t marry your first love—but you might. If you don’t, your judgment will iteratively improve. And the good news is unlike a marriage, you can change out your partner every few years. (What I’ve found, though, is that the most successful people professionally, and those who generate the most wealth, have more like 5- to 10-year runs.)

Trust your intuition. Follow your heart on the mission or product. Then, don’t trust yourself.  Study the market. Use the product.  And do at least three off-list references outside of who you interview with. Read every single Glassdoor entry.

And then jump!

You’ll be fine.

Do you think you could have shared your mental health conditions publicly BEFORE you were professionally successful, and still have been successful? Or was the fact that you had already achieved professional success what allowed you to be open? Zack

No, I don’t think I could have shared before we succeeded. I wouldn’t have had the courage to, and I feared it might be career-limiting.

Then again, it was almost seven years ago that I had my I-can’t-deny-this-any-longer moment with my Bonobos colleagues and investors. As of today, I think it’s becoming more possible to be candid about mental health. I hope we can move to a world where I could have been more open, sooner, at least selectively with my leadership team and board.

Some entrepreneurs ask me when to tell their VCs about the mental-health challenge or mental-health diagnosis they wrestle with. I always say the same thing: at a breakfast meeting, four months after you’ve closed the round and hit your numbers. Nobody cares about your neurodivergence if you’re performing—and most VCs actually know enough to know that most founders have more going on than meets the eye.

With your team, I think it’s doable, even now. Perhaps especially now. The truth is, they know. They know you deal with stuff because they’re around you. And the vulnerability you share in disclosing will multiply their respect for you. More importantly, it’ll give those team members the space to reciprocally share their stuff with their colleagues, and potentially you as well, and bring their full selves to work.

Wouldn’t that be cool?

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Take-Two Buys Gearbox And Its New ‘Borderlands’ Game From Embracer

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If you’re a game developer owned by Embracer Group at this point, you are nervous about layoffs, shutdowns or game cancellations after the last few years. But now, there is a somewhat happy ending for one of them, Gearbox.

It’s just been announced that Take-Two, which owns GTA developer Rockstar, will purchase Gearbox for $460 million. This also includes the properties Gearbox owns, the Borderlands and Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands franchises, Homeworld, Risk of Rain, Brothers in Arms and Duke Nukem. The report says Gearbox has six games in development, five sequels, including a new Borderlands game, the not-announced-but-definitely-happening Borderlands 4. Here’s Strauss Zelnick:

“Our acquisition of Gearbox is an exciting moment for Take-Two and will strengthen our industry-leading creative talent and portfolio of owned intellectual property, including the iconic Borderlands franchise,” said Zelnick, Chairman and CEO of Take-Two. “This combination enhances the financial profile of our existing projects with Gearbox and unlocks the opportunity for us to drive increased long-term growth by leveraging the full resources of Take-Two across all of Gearbox’s exciting initiatives.”

Gearbox has been working with 2K and Take-Two for decades, so it was a logical place for them to land. This is, of course, not a great look for Embracer, who only purchased Gearbox three years ago. The price tag back then was “worth up to $1.3 billion” but there were a lot of strings attached to that where it’s not necessarily the case that selling for $$460 million netted them a ~$900 million loss.

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As for what this means for gamers, it would seem something like the Borderlands franchise is now on more stable ground, as it was hard to believe any project at Embracer is fully safe these days. Last year, Embracer quietly cancelled 29 different unannounced games and shut down seven studios in a six month period including Volition and Free Radical Design. That came with around 1,400 layoffs. More recently, Embracer laid off 97 people at Eidos in Janaury and cancelled a Deus Ex game.

Sufficed to say, those at Gearbox probably feel pretty good about this. And as for Take-Two, Borderlands is still a valuable IP, and Tiny Tina’s Wonderland was a surprise hit. There’s a new Homeworld game coming as well. In an era for multi-billion dollar acquisition, Gearbox for $460 million doesn’t seem that bad. That’s probably a third of what GTA 6 will sell on day one next year.

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What’s Brewing in the iPhone 16 Rumor Mill? AI, Action Buttons and More

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As the iPhone 15 settles into the market, the tech community is buzzing with anticipation for Apple’s next-generation handset, which is expected to be named “iPhone 16.”

We’ve heard whispers about the iPhone 16’s features, which are said to span from a new power-efficient display to larger screens, better zoom lenses, an action button and, perhaps not surprisingly, a suite of new gen-AI powered features.

Read more: Best iPhone of 2024

However, the iPhone 16 is still presumably six months away and nothing will be confirmed until Apple’s iPhone event in the fall. Still, these rumors could give us an idea of what to expect from the next iPhone.

Here are the most credible rumors for the iPhone 16.

Will the iPhone 16 fold?

Probably not. The newest rumors suggest Apple has been working on iPhone Flip models in two different sizes, though there have been difficulties in making the devices to Apple’s standards. The company may also be working on a folding tablet with a screen around the size of an iPad Mini. Even though virtually every major phone-maker — from Google to Oppo to OnePlus and Samsung — have launched their own bendable handsets, Apple has been characteristically quiet about whether there will ever be an iPhone Flip or an iPhone Fold.

Prior rumors said Apple may not launch its own flexible screen device until 2025. Samsung hasn’t let phone fans forget it — by releasing an app that will let Apple phone owners experience a Z Fold-esque experience by placing two iPhones side-by-side.

iPhone 16 Pro models to get bigger screens?

Apple has maintained the two screen sizes for iPhone Pro models since 2020 when it launched the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro and the 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max. However, that’s rumored to change with the iPhone 16 Pro models, which might get bigger screens.

Display analyst Ross Young suggested earlier this year that the iPhone 16 Pro models will have larger screens, putting the sizes at 6.3 inches for the iPhone 16 Pro and 6.9 inches for the iPhone 16 Pro Max. That rumor was later corroborated by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who said the iPhone 16 Pro models could grow by “a couple tenths of an inch diagonally.”

The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus models are believed to be sticking with the current 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch sizes. If the size increase is accurate, it would be yet another move from Apple to distinguish its Pro iPhone models from its regular ones.

iPhone 15 screen sizes

  • iPhone 15: 6.1 inches.
  • iPhone 15 Plus: 6.7 inches.
  • iPhone 15 Pro: 6.1 inches.
  • iPhone 15 Pro Max: 6.7 inches.

Rumored iPhone 16 screen sizes

  • iPhone 16: 6.1 inches.
  • iPhone 16 Plus: 6.7 inches.
  • iPhone 16 Pro: 6.3 inches.
  • iPhone 16 Pro Max: 6.9 inches.

iPhone 16 gets more AI tricks

One of the most salient selling points of Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series and Google’s Pixel 8 lineup were each of their souped-up AI tips and tricks, and it wouldn’t be a major shock if Apple went in the same direction. Apple CEO Tim Cook has gone on the record this year confirming Apple sees “a huge opportunity for Apple with gen AI and AI.”

According to Gurman’s Power On newsletter, iOS 18 will feature generative AI technology that “should improve how both Siri and the Messages app can field questions and auto-complete sentences.”

A September report from the Information says Apple plans to use large language models, a crucial part of generative AI, to make Siri smarter. The report said this feature is expected to be released with an iPhone software update next year.

Read More: iPhone iOS 18: A Possible Big Leap In AI

iPhone 16 design: New action button?

In March, AppleInsider published a collection of photographs purportedly displaying 3D-printed dummy models of the rumored iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro. The images revealed that the iPhone 16 may have a vertical camera stack as opposed to a diagonal one and an action button, similar the one on last year’s iPhone 15 Pro.

iPhone 16 gets more power-efficient display?

Another change that could make its way to iPhone 16 displays is greater power efficiency. Samsung Display is apparently developing a new material set, dubbed M14, specifically for Apple, according to a TheElec report, which says the new technology should arrive on iPhones launching next year. M14 will replace the blue fluorescent technology that’s used now with blue phosphorescence technology, creating an even more power-efficient screen than the current LTPO ones used on Pro models, the report says.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET

iPhone 16 gets better zoom?

Both the iPhone 16 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro Max could both have 5x telephoto lenses next year. According to Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo, a tetraprism lens will make its way to both Pro models next year, as opposed to just the Pro Max model. Apple equipped the iPhone 15 Pro with a 12-megapixel 3x optical zoom, while the iPhone 15 Pro Max has a 12-megapixel 5x optical zoom camera, which is the equivalent of 120mm lens on a full-frame camera.

If this rumor is true, it could mark a breakthrough in design. When Apple launched the 15 Pro Max with its 5x telephoto lens, it cited the phone’s bigger body as to why the Pro Max had it, but the Pro didn’t.

iPhone 16 processors: A18 chip for all models?

In a break with the past two years, all four iPhone 16 models will apparently get a next-generation Apple chipset, which will all receive A18 branding. According to a MacRumors report citing Jeff Pu, an executive analyst for Haitong International Securities, all four models will have an A18 series chip with Pro iPhone models getting an A18 Bionic Pro and base models getting a regular A18.

The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus currently have an A16 Bionic, which debuted on the 2022 iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max, while the 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max run on the A17 Pro processor. Pu says the A18 chip will be manufactured with TSMC’s cutting-edge 3 nanometer process.

Read more: Apple iPhone SE 4 Rumors: iPhone 14 Design, Face ID and More

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