I’ll be straight with you: I’ve never been a fan of budget iPhones. The old SE models always felt like Apple was just recycling parts from three years ago and calling it a day. But when the iPhone SE 4 dropped last Tuesday, June 9, 2026, I figured I’d give it a fair shot. After all, the reviews from outlets like The Verge and CNET were surprisingly glowing. So I bought one, used it as my daily driver for a full week, and now I’m ready to tell you what’s actually good about it—and what’s not.
The Design: Finally, an iPhone That Looks Like 2026
Let me start with the most obvious change: the design. The old SE looked like an iPhone 8, which in 2026 is basically a fossil. The SE 4 borrows the chassis from the iPhone 14, which means you get flat edges, a 6.1-inch OLED display, and—thank the tech gods—Face ID. No more fumbling with a home button in 2026. The screen is bright, colors are punchy, and the bezels are thin enough that you don’t feel like you’re holding a relic. But here’s the thing: it’s heavy. At 7.8 ounces, it’s noticeably heavier than the Pixel 8a or the Galaxy A36. I didn’t notice it at first, but after a few hours of scrolling, my pinky started to ache. Is that a dealbreaker? Probably not, but it’s worth knowing.
Performance: The A18 Chip Is a Beast, but There’s a Catch
Under the hood, the SE 4 packs Apple’s A18 chip, the same one found in the iPhone 16 Pro Max. That means it’s fast. Really fast. Apps open instantly, games like Genshin Impact run at 60fps without a stutter, and multitasking is a breeze. I even tried editing a 4K video in LumaFusion, and it handled it like a champ. But here’s the catch: the SE 4 only has 6GB of RAM, compared to 8GB in the Pro models. In day-to-day use, I didn’t notice the difference. But if you’re someone who keeps 50 Chrome tabs open (guilty as charged), you might see a few app refreshes. It’s not a huge deal, but it’s a reminder that this is still a budget phone.
The Camera: Surprisingly Good, but Not a Pixel Killer
The camera setup is a single 48-megapixel sensor on the back, with no ultrawide or telephoto. That sounds like a downgrade, but Apple’s computational photography does a lot of heavy lifting. In good light, photos are sharp, with accurate colors and great dynamic range. I compared it to my wife’s iPhone 16 Pro, and honestly, in most casual shots, you’d struggle to tell the difference. Low light is where it falls apart. Without a dedicated night mode like the Pixel 9 Pro, the SE 4 produces softer images with visible noise. And the lack of a telephoto lens means you’re stuck with digital zoom, which looks like a watercolor painting past 3x. But for the average person who just wants to snap pics of their dog or dinner, it’s more than enough.