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AirPods 2 Vs. BeatsX – FIGHT!

by GeeksModo Staff

So, you’ve got a gorgeous iPhone. And you notice something awful. Something horrible. You don’t have a headphone jack.

What will you do?!? How are you going to listen to music on that flashy, new Spotify subscription? I mean… you could use the EarPods that came in the box- the ones with the lightning connector instead of a 3.5mm jack. You could spend $10 on a tiny adapter to… well… adapt your old, trusty headphones.
Or you could spend some bucks on Bluetooth headphones and make wires (mostly) a thing of the past.

What is dead may never die.
But which wireless headsets should you purchase? I mean, there are an array of Bluetooth headphones out there, however, I’m not here to discuss every option you could possibly purchase. Let’s discuss two of Apple’s own choices instead. Because if Apple expunged the headphone jack intentionally, they have to have their own options to listen to your music, right?

Granted, there are possibly better options than the AirPods 2 or the BeatsX- for instance, the AirPods Pro or the PowerBeats Pro, which Apple also made- but you’re on some sort of budget; after all, you just paid for a brand new iPhone. And possibly an Apple Watch. And you had to purchase a case for your iPhone. And an AppleCare+ protection plan. Now’s not the time to go nuts spending on wireless headphones that will, in effect, do the same thing those free EarPods with a lightning connector will do.

In this article I’m comparing the
AirPods 2
And
the BeatsX
since they are competitively priced and offers similar features. It’s up to the fight to determine which are the better choice. Set?
3… 2… 1… Fight!

Price

Let’s start by comparing the price before comparing the features. They aren’t cheap, and that’s a fact; the BeatsX will cost you $99, while the AirPods 2 will set you back $159, or $199 if you chose the version with a wireless charging case (you might be able to get the original AirPods for slightly less, but I mean slightly less).

$60 is a huge chunk of cash, but are the AirPods worth that additional bucks? Both options are still much cheaper than their Pro counterparts, but far more costly than options from companies such as Jlab and Sony.
But we can’t really tell whether the price is worth it or not until we talk about what each headphone brings to the table. Therefore, for the moment, this category has no winner.

Winner: Tie… for the time being.

Battery Life

Those freebie EarPods ($30 if you want to purchase a replacement pair, if we’re still hung up on prices) have one thing up on any pair of wireless buds: they don’t need to charge. So long as your iPhone has battery power, so do the EarPods.

Since you’ve chosen to go wireless, you should consider how long your headphones will last. Apple says that the AirPods themselves will last about 5 hours, with 24 hours of charge from the handy dandy charging case. The BeatsX, in contrast, should last you 8 hours.

Having said that, the AirPods are far much better when it comes to battery management. They are only connected while they are in your ears; because of the built-in accelerometers, each AirPod disconnects immediately you take them out of your ear or put them into the charging case. In contrast, the BeatsX will stay connected- and draining their battery- until you turn off the headphones manually with the power button located in the right hand side of the neckband.

To be precise, during my testing, I unplugged the BeatsX around 8:30 in the morning. I didn’t use them at all, and they were down to 91% by 10 am. That’s almost 10% in an hour and a half with no actual usage other than being connected (during playback, they dropped about 10% after an hour). By comparison, in two hours of using the AirPods (the Pods themselves went from 100% to 76%) and popping them into the charging case, the AirPods charging case went from 80% to 75% (charging the Pods back up to 100% in that time). Someone who is better at math could probably tell you just how much longer the AirPods would last, but the long and short of it is that the AirPods provide substantially more use time, particularly if you are using them on and off throughout the day as they will pop back up to 100% each time you place them in the charging case for about 15 minutes. The charging case itself will also stay a couple of days before needing a recharge of its own.

The way you charge the headsets is certainly something else to consider with the AirPods and the BeatsX. Both sets of headphones will charge with a lightning cable, meaning you can use the same charging set up that you use with your iPhone (It’s worth noting, the AirPods ships with a full length lightning cable, whereas the BeatsX ships with a short cable). Again, if you opt to spend double the price of the BeatsX for the AirPods with a wireless charging case, you can charge them with the same nifty charging pad that charges your iPhone. Both deliver fast charging, though the BeatsX will definitely charge more rapidly; they offer 2 hours of use with only 5 minutes of charging time, and will fully charge in under an hour. The Cupertino based company indicates that 15 minutes of charge will give the AirPods three hours of use time (for anyone doing math, fifteen minutes on the BeatsX should give you about six hours of use). Online estimates say it takes about 2.5 hours to fully charge the AirPods charging case.

Also it’s worth noting that you can’t use the BeatsX while they are charging. Sure, it would be a little cumbersome to try, particularly with the short cable Beats offers in the box. But with the AirPods, you can use the Pods while the case is plugged in.
It’s an interesting crossroads; the AirPods will give you more use time, but the BeatsX will charge more rapidly when you do need to plug up. It all depends on which will work better with your lifestyle in this area, but the winner for me is the AirPods, simply because I stand more chance of having them around all day long, especially if I forget to turn off the BeatsX when I’m not using them (which is a constant).

Winner: AirPods 2. Faster charging is good, but headphones that stay charged all day is absolutely fantastic.

Connection

If you aren’t connecting your headphones with a good old wire, then how are these headphones gonna speak to your devices?

We all know how cumbersome it is to switch Bluetooth headphones from one device to another. Most nowadays support syncing with multiple devices, but switching usually means unpairing from one device to pair to the other (or turning of Bluetooth signal on the device you don’t want connected, which could interfere with other gadgets that are linked to the device). But Apple has come up with a way to make switching nearly as seamless as unplugging your wired headphones from one device and plugging into another (as long as those devices are made by apple). They’ve done this through proprietary chips (because of course they have).

Both pairs of headphones feature Apple’s proprietary chips that make connecting to your i-devices a breeze (the BeatsX have the W1 chip while the AirPods 2 pack in the newer H1 chip). Those chips are the reason these headphones are two of the very best options to use with your iPhone; once you sync it to one device, it becomes pretty easy to switch between all devices linked to your iCloud account. No need to unpair your headphones from your iPhone to use them on your iPad. Just simply tap on the headphones in your AirPlay menu and they switch to the device you are currently working with.

Apple says the H1 chip in the AirPods 2 (the same chip that is also in the pricier AirPods Pro and the PowerBeats Pro) provides a much faster connection when switching between devices and reduces latency when watching a video or playing a game, but honestly that speed is negligible; you probably won’t notice it in day to day usage. The AirPods 2 also has Bluetooth 5, whereas the BeatsX features the older 4.2, meaning the AirPods 2 will have a stronger connection when you use them with devices that don’t have an “i” in their title. The newer chip and Bluetooth signal also mean that the AirPods 2 are a tiny bit more future proof; this makes sense, as the BeatsX are a few years older than the AirPods 2.

In day to day use, both version of headsets are just about as easy to use as the other one, however, I did notice that my devices recognized the AirPods more often than the BeatsX when first connecting, and Occasionally, the BeatsX weren’t listed as an available device although they were turned on.

Another strange connection issue with the BeatsX came when using Siri. With the AirPods connected to my iPhone, when I used Siri on my Apple Watch, the audio responses from Siri and the recording of what I was saying to Siri happened on the AirPods. It appeared the BeatsX were trying to do the same, but unfortunately the microphone didn’t pick up anything I said, as if it was confused as to which microphone to use (I’m assuming the one in the Apple Watch is disabled if headphones are paired and listening).
The AirPods aren’t without their connection issues. One that I can’t decide if it should be classified as a connection issue or in the features section causes the AirPods to revert back to my iPhone even if that wasn’t the last device that they were actively connected to. For instance, if I was watching Netflix on my iPad Pro during my lunch break, once I’ve returned to my office and double tap the AirPods to resume playback, they start playing music from my iPhone instead. Of course, I wanted music and not Netflix at that juncture, so either the AirPods are anticipating which device and service I want audio from, but it could also be a glitch that has them reverting back to my iPhone after they’ve been put into the charging case for a few minutes. Whatever it is, the BeatsX don’t do it.
Both will connects seamlessly with your iPhone, but AirPods have the upper hand here.

Winner: AirPods 2. Both offers the magic of Apple’s seamless connection, but the AirPods just felt more seamless than the BeatsX.

Features

It’s not enough for these headsets to just play music in your ears, right? No, if these things are costing you a fortune, you need something more than Beyonce voice echoing in your head.

Neither pair of headsets disappoint, but they are quite different, either, and a lot of that comes down to their form factor. The AirPods are true wireless, which means they look like you just chop the cords off your EarPods and pop them in your ears, while the BeatsX are connected by a cord and a slightly stiff neckband that goes… well… around the back of your neck.

The AirPods includes tap controls which are customizable in Settings on your iPhone. A double tap on either Pod can either play/pause, activate Siri, jump to the next track, or go back to the previous track (or the beginning of the current track). Personally, I set mine up so that the right AirPod skips to the next track and the left goes to the previous track. Since the AirPods 2 have the H1 chip, they support “Hey, Siri,” so tapping for Siri is somewhat redundant, and, likewise, taking one AirPod out of your ear pauses the media, which is faster than double tapping to pause (and makes more sense, as you are probably going to take out the AirPods immediately after pausing anyway). The AirPods don’t have volume control other than to say “Hey, Siri, turn up (or down) the volume”, which can be a bit weird in public.

The BeatsX, unfortunately, do not offer any of those features, but they do include some unique features of their own. They include an inline controller that provides pretty much the same music controls that tapping gets you on the AirPods (plus, volume control), and while they don’t support “Hey, Siri,” you can launch Siri with a long press of the center button (and “Hey, Siri” will work with them if your phone or Apple Watch is nearby enough to hear the command, although the aforementioned confusion with the microphone may or may not interfere with your request). Being around the neck headphones, the BeatsX are also fantastic for when you aren’t using them, as you can just let them drop and rest instead of fumbling around with the charging case (or leaving the loose AirPod sitting at your desk). The BeatsX have no an automatic pause feature when you take one of the headset out, unfortunately, but you don’t really need that with the inline controls. If you are not a fan of that feature you probably won’t miss it, but it can be irritating if you realize your headphones have been playing music for no one for a couple of minutes and sucking that precious battery life.

Another feature to take into consideration with both headphones is the ease of misplacing your headsets. AirPods are pretty easy to lose, and although the Cupertino based brand has a “Find My AirPods” feature to help you locate a stray Pod, if one falls out of your ear while you are on the move, recovering the lost Pod might prove difficult. You can get a replacement for each Pod (or the charge case), but you’ll have to fork out about $50 per missing piece (and more for the case).

The BeatsX, by comparison, are fairly harder to lose. Along with the around the neck design, each bud is also magnetized, so when they are not on your ears, they stick together to form a sort of necklace. Unfortunately, if you happen to place the BeatsX down in some place and forget where that place was, they don’t seem to appear in Apple’s Find My app. One of many small things that honestly makes the BeatsX feel Apple compatible but not Apple made, despite being entirely owned by Apple.

Winne: It’s another close call for me here, and really depends on your preference. The AirPods have the more revolutionary features, but the BeatsX do a better job at not getting lost. Still, in day to day use, I find the AirPods more convenient. So I give this to AirPods, but this category is more subjective.

Fit and Sound

Now, all of this stops short if the headsets sound like crap. So, how do they sound?

I’ll be straightforward; the BeatsX sound better. This is mainly because of the design; BeatsX are in-ear buds that have a couple of different tips to find the best fit for your ear. Because of that, they isolate sound and block the outside world. They don’t feature active noise cancelling, but they definitely blocks up some of the noise. This also means you don’t have to have the volume up as high to hear the music. I’m not an audiophile, but the BeatsX definitely offer better bass and sound more balance than the AirPods.

The AirPods, in comparison, definitely leak a lot of sound from the outside world, which isn’t fantastic for listening to music, but works if you want to keep abreast of your surroundings. This is because their design is basically the same as the EarPods (without the wire), and they don’t include any kind of tips to make a better fit or seal. They are one size fits all, which means they will work- and therefore sound better- to some people than to others. Sound quality is basically the same as the EarPods, as well, which isn’t that bad, but there isn’t much depth to the music either. Treble and Bass all seem a little flat, particularly compared directly to the BeatsX. Likewise, to hear the music in louder atmospheres, you will have to raise the volume to a higher level, which may not be best for your eardrums (maybe that Apple Watch can tell you what decibel the music is at).

But sound quality is subjective to some extent, and it depends on what you are going to use these headsets for. If you prefer sound isolation and better depth in your music, the BeatsX are your best bet, but if you would rather keep abreast of your surroundings while listening and don’t mind sacrificing audio quality to do so, the AirPods might suit your needs.

The AirPods are also capable of working together or on their own; depending on if you pulled one or both out of the case, the audio will automatically switch between stereo sound and mono. I prefer this at work, since I can listen to music but it is great to be able to keep abreast of my surroundings; I usually put just the right Pod in so I can keep in touch with the outside world. The BeatsX only play music in stereo, meaning you might miss part of the song if you don’t have both buds in.

Winner: This one is completely subjective. If audio quality is your first priority, the BeatsX are your best bet, for certain. But if you are looking for something to add more of a background soundtrack to your day without sacrificing alertness, the AirPods are going to be the better option. But I’m not going to pick sides on this category.

Conclusion

So… where do we go from here?
The BeatsX clearly have better sound and clarity (if you’ll pardon the pun), but worse battery life and frankly horrible power management when it comes to standby time.
In contrast, the AirPods have decent-but not outstanding – sound but stellar battery management and performance, as well as more revolutionary features (and design).
By my own categories, AirPods seem to have taken the lead, but really, it is hard for me to say one wins out over the other, as these headsets are trying to do different things. What matters to you? What is most important to you? Do you need the best sounding headsets (between these two choices; there are definitely better sounding headsets out there without Apple’s branding on it)? Do you mind charging you headsets daily (and will you remember to turn off the headphones when you aren’t using them)? Or do you need an excellent battery life, notwithstanding the sound quality?
The choice, dear reader, is yours. Or, you know, save your cash. After all, your gorgeous iPhone did come with perfectly usable wired EarPods. And retro tech is in these days.

Tag: AirPods
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Is the new (2020) MacBook Pro worth the investment?

by GeeksModo Staff

Apple has finally said goodbye to the butterfly keyboard forever as new
13-inch Macbook Pro
comes with Apple’s new and improved Magic Keyboard. I am currently writing this on a
2019 13-inch MacBook Pro,
so will I be upgrading to the new one?
Without any further ado, let’s discuss what’s new with the 2020 13-inch Macbook Pro. Before the arrival of this, we saw the release of the new 16-inch MacBook Pro and smaller and lighter MacBook Air with the new Magic Keyboard. Therefore, it was only a matter of time before Apple applied the same treatment to the 13-inch Pro model. There had been rumours for a 14-inch MacBook Pro, but we haven’t seen one…yet.

So, what’s new? Well, not much with the basic ones. The bottom two models of the new 13-inch are pretty much the same as the 2018 Macbook Pro except you get double the amount of storage to start off with.
Now starting at 256gb, this is an excellent Computer for those who don’t really care about performance, but then again, if you are in that group then you may as well get the MacBook Air for a few hundred pounds cheaper?
But the real changes appear in the more impressive 2.0GHz Quad-Core MacBook which starts at £1,799 and this is the one to go for. It now comes with a 10th-generation Intel Core i5 processor instead of the 8th gen on the older one. It also comes as standard with 16gb of RAM which is a first for the 13-inch models. Before this, they started at 8gb. This more expensive one also comes with two more USB C ports than the cheaper ones which is always a bonus.

On top of this, you can now opt for up to 4TB of SSD storage which is a massive improvement. My concern, however, is that once you have specced up a top of the line 13-inch MacBook Pro, you are already looking at nearly £4,000 and by that point, you may as well get the 16-inch for £2,399.

Apple’s update is an unusual one, as in this particular case, the level of changes seen depend on whether the customer opts for a lower-end or higher-end configuration. Across the board, the Magic Keyboard and higher storage capacity starting points will be welcomed.

However, while that’s largely the story for the lower-end options, the higher-end arguably gets more of the changes. Shifting from eighth-generation Intel chips to tenth-generation versions will give a considerable performance advantage, while the faster memory and higher memory capacities will further push the 13-inch MacBook Pro as a portable powerhouse.

Even the maximum storage capacity of 4TB is only available to those with deep pockets to go for the higher-end configurations from the start. That price premium would buy a lot of network or Thunderbolt 3 storage.

For those looking to buy a new 13-inch MacBook Pro to replace their existing model, there isn’t really that much to write home about for the lower-end versions. Sure, the Magic Keyboard is a nice addition, but aside from a storage bump, there isn’t much in the way of groundbreaking elements here.

Anyone considering the upper end of the range, however, will see considerably more changes and huge performance boosts. Those with a bigger budget will fare better for their upgrades than people who go for the frugal option this time around.

Tag: MacBook Pro
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Why I Choose the Smart keyboard Folio for the iPad Pro!

by GeeksModo Staff

in this article, I’ll tell you exactly why I chose the Smart Keyboard Folio instead of the Magic Keyboard And whether I regret it.
I had thought about buying the Smart Keyboard Folio for my 2018 12.9 ” iPad Pro for a while but at $179, I could never make a leap. When the Magic Keyboard was launched, like many other people, was drooling. The design was outstanding and the capabilities it added to the iPad Pro was thrilling. Not only did it finally give the iPad Pro a “real keyboard” it also gave it something brand new, a trackpad. The Magic Keyboard seemed ready to finally answer the question “Can an iPad Replace a Laptop?”
I was certain I would get the Magic Keyboard. Until I didn’t. Instead, I bought the Smart Keyboard Folio. This is why:

Cost

If I were to buy the Magic Keyboard for my 12.9 ” iPad Pro, it would set me back $299. That’s a lot of money. It’s a lot of money by itself but even more when you consider I already paid $999 for the iPad. It’s a huge investment to make my iPad Pro work more like my MacBook Pro.
If I already own a MacBook Pro, do I need to spend $299 to make my iPad Pro function more like MacBook Pro? Although yes, the Magic Keyboard adds a trackpad as well as a keyboard but does what I do on my iPad support the need for both of those?
This was the issue I started pondering the more I considered parting with the considerable amount of money.
Now, compare that $299 price tag to $179 for the Smart Keyboard Folio. Like I pointed out, I already had a difficult time convincing myself the Smart Keyboard Folio was worth buying. Let the internal fight begin.
Yes, the Magic Keyboard is gorgeous.
And yes, it has a “real keyboard” with real keycaps and actual key travel. Gone are the woven-fabric keys of the Smart Keyboard Folio.
And yes, it has an additional USB-C port for charging, so you can free up the one on the iPad for accessories.
And yes, it comes with a trackpad for a whole new way of interacting with the iPad Pro.
But for $299, I had to make sure the things I did on my iPad Pro versus my MacBook Pro justified that price tag.

Uses

The
Magic Keyboard
is an absolute solution for a very specific category of iPad users. If you are someone who is deeply entrenched into the iPad and iPadOS and has long desired to replace your traditional laptop with it, the Magic Keyboard makes that a very real possibility.
If the things you care about are web browsing, word processing, email, and media consumption then the Magic Keyboard now lets you get the best of most worlds.
You get a great typing experience with backlit keys, more viewing angles, and an extra USB-C port. And you get a trackpad that gives you more control of your apps.
However, if you are like me and you want your iPad to be the best device you can get, one that lets you surf the internet, watch movies and TV shows, and play some games from time to time, one that doesn’t replace your laptop but complements it, you should reconsider the
Smart Keyboard Folio
as I did.

Besides wanting the best tablet, I also want to be able to sit down and easily reply to an email, type a new blog post, or take some notes.
When I need something with more power and capabilities, I take my MacBook Pro with me. When I need something more portable and handy, I take my iPad Pro with me.

Weight and Portability

Unfortunately, Due to the pandemic, I didn’t get a chance to try the Magic Keyboard myself. I was, however, watching all the unboxing and review videos I could find. A commone theme came up in every video, the weight.
My 12.9 ” iPad Pro, with no case, weighs 631.00 grams. The Smart Keyboard Folio weighs 297 grams compared to the Magic Keyboard at 601 grams. The Magic Keyboard by itself weighs almost the same as my iPad Pro. I needed something that would offer me a more comfortable typing experience without sacrificing portability.

Apple’s Smart Keyboard Folio is the best option if you truly value portability. It’s a slim case that attaches magnetically to the back of the iPad and flips around like a laptop, with two angles that you can snap the screen into. The fabric-covered keys have very shallow travel but actually offers a pretty comfortable typing experience. I prefer them to Apple’s current MacBook keyboards, and they’re certainly less likely to break.

One thing that separates the Smart Keyboard Folio from the park though, is its convenience. It’s the only iPad Pro keyboard to make use of the Smart Connector on the back of the tablet, which handles pairing and power automatically. You never have to charge the keyboard or dive into Bluetooth settings. It’s also really easy to remove whenever you just want to use the iPad as a tablet by itself, and it’s by far the thinnest and lightest keyboard option out there. Actually, it’s arguably the only keyboard that really makes sense as a basic protective case at times when you’re unsure whether you’ll be doing any typing.

While the combined weight of my iPad Pro and the Magic Keyboard, at 1232 grams or just about 2.8 pounds, would still be less than my 13 inch ” MacBook Pro at 3.02 pounds, it was getting close. To me, the Magic Keyboard would actually add a lot of weight to my iPad and affect one of it’s best features, it’s portability.

Final Thoughts

I was waiting for the Cupertino based company to announce the “next-gen Smart Keyboard Folio” just as much as the next person. I had long wanted to get the Smart Keyboard Folio and was excited to see what Apple would do to eventually get me to buy it. As it turned out, they announced a brand new keyboard instead.

Like I said, the Magic Keyboard is one of the best keyboard for the iPad pro out there. It certainly offers the best typing experience you can have with an iPad and I think the trackpad will surely be a game-changer for the iPad Pro.
But at the moment, for the stuff I do with my iPad on a daily basis, I couldn’t justify spending the cash on it.

I purchased the Smart Keyboard Folio because it lets me get an fantastic typing experience on my iPad Pro without sacrificing weight, comfort, or portability. I can still take notes using my Apple Pencil without having to take off the folio. The Smart Keyboard Folio hasn’t forced me to change the way I use my iPad Pro whatsoever, it has just made one part of what I do with it, typing, a much better experience.

If I needed to replace my laptop with my iPad or didn’t have a laptop and wanted my iPad to be able to do more things a traditional laptop can do, then I would have considered getting myself a Magic Keyboard.

I think the iPad Pro together with the Magic Keyboard is a fantastic set-up for a student or writer but even though, if you purchase the cheapest iPad Pro at $799 and the Magic Keyboard for $299, you’re looking at almost $1,100, which is more than the base MacBook Air. It’s a tough decision to make and one that requires some thoughts about what you plan to use it for.
Definitely, the Magic Keyboard made my decision to purchase the Smart Keyboard Folio easier. It compelled me to consider what I use my iPad for and how each keyboard would fit into that. The Smart Keyboard Folio is a perfect fit for what I use both iPad Pro and MacBook Pro for. I have enjoyed using the Smart Keyboard Folio and it has made me grab my iPad Pro over my MacBook Pro more times than I might have in the past. I don’t regret my purchase and recommend anyone considering the two options to take a closer look at what you do with your iPad Pro and what you want out of it. Keep in mind, there is no single best iPad Pro keyboard for everyone.
See also:
A few reasons the iPad Pro can’t replace the MacBook, even with the Magic Keyboard

Tag: iPad Pro
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Apple Watch Series 5 Review: Imperfectly Perfect!

by GeeksModo Staff

Was the wait for an always-on display worth it?

Early last year, I got a pretty awesome promotion at work, and as a gift to myself, I purchased an Apple Watch Series 4 in Stainless Steel with a Milanese Loop band.

I have been wearing an Apple Watch on and off since day one, but after purchasing the Series 3, I got bored of the same old design that it shared with the first two versions. So I sold the watch and used a Seiko 5 dumb-watch for almost a year before I decided to get myself the Series 4.

Since march last year this watch has been on my wrist every single day, besides while sleeping — not into sleep tracking yet.
It is the best Apple Watch since the original, and I have enjoyed using it for everything like time (of course), weather, workouts, notifications, podcast playback, adding to my to-do list, and, above all, timers!

So when the Cupertino based brand announced
Apple Watch Series 5,
and it was the same old Apple Watch I adored, but with a new and better screen that allowed an “Always-On” display, my initial reaction was excitement until I started thinking about it deeply.
Don’t get me wrong, the fact that Apple was able to get the display not only to be always-on but to also, almost¹, keep the overall style of the watch face by keeping all of the colors and complications always available for view is a brilliant idea.
One biggest thing you lose, which isn’t at all that big of a deal, is the screen goes from 60Hz to 1Hz when in dim mode, meaning the refresh rate drops to help with power consumption.
The next thing that you may lose, though, which is still coming in from early users, is the battery life not being great on these watches. It is hard to know if it is the watch itself, the always-on screen, or something else like a bug in iOS.
Nonetheless, if you want the Apple Watch Series 5, the major upgrade is this new Always-On display feature. So I bought a Series 5 and put it to the test for a few days to see if it is worth the hype.

Is it worth upgrading from a Series 4, like some are suggesting, or even an early model?
Apple describes the new screen in the Apple Watch Series 5 as an Ultra-low-power LTPO display.
If you switched off the always-on display on the Series 5, it would be indistinguishable from the Series 4. The new screen technology is only there to assist in the always-on feature. So my aim of testing this out was to see if the always-on was that useful and if it is worth upgrading from any other previous Apple Watch model.

So I wore the watch for a couple of workdays and tested to see how much I would benefit from having the time and complications always available to me on my wrist.
Usually, at work, I sit a desk with a keyboard and mouse. Of late, I have been using a MacBook more with a monitor so I can jump around to meetings and other buildings more efficiently. As I sit at my
MacBook Pro
using the keyboard, it was nice to be able to look down at my wrist and see the time without having to lift my arm.
But honestly, how useful is this really?
When I am on my computer, I usually look at the time on the screen. I touch type, so I am never looking down at my keyboard when I am typing. So looking down at my Apple Watch, is not typical for me. So to me, this isn’t that useful, it’s nice that it is there, but generally I don’t see a massive benefit.

When walking back and forth to meetings, I sometimes have to travel outside to other buildings. I wanted to see how useful the always-on display was when walking in the sun, especially when holding something, like a cup of coffee or laptop, that wouldn’t allow me to raise my wrist.
I could see the time, but not that great. If I was in direct sunlight, I doubt I would see much at all and honestly at this angle do we really need to see the time? If I really wanted to look at my watch, I would have lifted my arm, which would exit dim-mode, or set my coffee down.

The next test I wanted to conduct was going to the gym. I wanted to see how beneficial it would be to use the Series 5 while running on the treadmill inside. When you are sweating, breathing heavy and in motion, lifting your arm sometimes can be a problem. I may be exaggerating a little, but it would be a good idea to glance down at your wrist while jogging instead of having to lift your arm to check your progress.
This, I will say, was the biggest sell for me to move to the Series 5 from my Series 4. The always-on display when in dim-mode shows everything I need to know when wanting to glance down to see my progress. My heart rate, miles run, the time elapsed, calories, and I can see the actual time in the top right corner effortlessly.
I’m certain outside the display would be a little less visible, but overall I think this is a superb use of the always-on display. Using it at the gym would be a huge benefit whether you are running, lifting, or even stretching to be able to glance at your wrist without having to pause the activity you are doing.

In general, I think the Apple Watch Series 5 is the same exceptional Series 4 with a feature I don’t feel is necessarily worth the upgrade.
If you own a Series 3 or earlier, sure, the new Series 5 will be a significant upgrade. Not only for the always-on display but the display itself with it being larger and rounded in the corners like the Series 4. It is far much better than the boxy earlier models.
But if your primary objective in purchasing Series 5 is to use it as an ordinary dumb-watch, I don’t think it is worth it. A non-smartwatch is in a whole different category from smartwatches in the sense that a smartwatch does more than tell you the time. I would reason time is the lowest priority when buying a smartwatch.
It is the same when purchasing a smartphone over a dump-phone. You don’t purchase a smartphone to make calls and send text messages; you use it for all of the other superb features that are bundled in a smartphone.

I do understand that you are getting more than just the time with an always-on display. You can see other complications like weather and your activity rings. But for me, if I want to check a timer or the weather or check my activity progress on my watch, I will raise it to my face.
The intention of wanting to check something will drive me to want to lift my arm. Causally looking down at our watch is something we do when we are at a meeting or something people do casually while doing something else. If I intend to get information off of my watch, I’ll raise it to my face. Even while admitting that at the gym it is really beneficial, I don’t think that is enough to get it.
So if you’re in the market for a smartwatch and you want one from Apple, get the Series 5.
It is an excellent watch.
However, if you already have one that is still working perfectly and you are like me and don’t see the real need of an always-on display, I would say your better off not upgrading.
When I do upgrade my Series 4 in a couple of years I am sure the always-on display will be on that new watch, I am sure it will be even better² than it is on the Series 5, and I will probably love it.
But for the time being, I love my stainless steel Series 4 and the black screen that is there when I look down as I type this doesn’t bother me whatsoever.

Obviously it’s different for everyone, so I would recommend visiting an Apple store to try them out. Don’t worry, they sanitise them after each person
is done with them, and they will also allow you to pair them to your personal phone.

Alternatively, you can purchase them, and try them for 14 days, as long as you return them within this period, Apple’s return policy allows you to give them back.

I hope this review has helped and answered your questions, if not, leave a comment below and I will answer them.

Please do share your experience as well. I would be very interested to hear them.

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MobiMover Review: Easily Transfer Files From iPhone to Computer

by GeeksModo Staff

One of the most common questions regarding using iPhone is how to transfer files from iPhone to PC or iPhone to Mac. This is a deceptively simple question, and we’re going to push aside any of the complexities of transferring files from iPhone to computer, and instead we’ll show you the single most direct method of transferring files from iPhone to PC or Mac computer, since that is usually what people are looking to do.

You have photos, music, or videos on your iPhone, and you want to transfer those files to your Mac or PC – simple right? Yes, the process is easier than you may expect, as we’ll show in the walkthrough here.

Copy files from iPhone to computer without iTunes

Even though Apple allows users to transfer data between iPhone and computer via iTunes, it isn’t really up to the mark. It has a lot of limitations when it comes to supporting file types during the transfer. That’s what people at EaseUS are trying to solve with their tool called MobiMover
EaseUS Logo

“MobiMover” has a lot more features to help you easily transfer data from iPhone to computer, computer to iPhone, or iPhone to iPhone. Let’s explore all its features in details.

MobiMover from EaseUS – Easily Transfer Data Between iPhone and Computer

Transfer files from iPhone to computer

This is one of the best features of this tool as most of the users find it extremely hard when they want to transfer files from iPhone to computer. With MobiMover from EaseUS, you can:

  • Transfer files from iPhone to PC
  • Transfer files from iPhone to Mac

MobiMover allows you to transfer various file types that includes: Photos, movies, books, ringtones, TV shows, messages, voice memos, notes, contacts, music ETC.

Transfer files from computer to iPhone

If you are searching for something that can seamlessly transfer files between iPhone and Mac, then MobiMover is the perfect solution. The app allows you to:

  • Transfer files from PC to iPhone
  • transfer files from Mac to iPhone.

It supports all the file types mentioned in the above list.

Transfer files from iPhone to iPhone

Similar to transferring files from iPhone to computer, iPhone to iPhone transfer also supports all the above-mentioned file types. As it is the same ecosystem, there isn’t anything special when transferring data from iPhone to iPhone.

Let’s see how it works.

How to transfer files from iPhone to computer using EaseUS MobiMover App

Step #1. Connect your iPhone to your PC or Mac using USB cable and launch EaseUS MobiMover.
How to transfer data from iPhone to PC without iTunes

Step #2. On the MobiMover app screen, choose the data transfer mode for example phone to PC and click next.

Step #3. MobiMover will automatically read and load all the supported files on your iPhone and list them all unchecked, use the checkbox beside different file types to make the selection. After everything’s checked, all you need to do is to click the “Transfer” button.
How to transfer data from iPhone to PC without iTunes

Step #4. MobiMover will start the process of transferring files from iPhone to computer without iTunes. Once the process is complete, you can click view to check the transferred files.
How to transfer data from iPhone to PC without iTunes

Whether you want to copy files from iphone to PC or the other way round, the data transfer speed is incredibly fast using the MobiMover tool.

Do you have videos you want to download? Well, MobiMover can help you download video via urls for free. Let’s face it! It’s easy to download YouTube videos for people who have little technical knowledge. But it isn’t straightforward for a newbie. With just one click on the MobiMover tool, you can download video via urls from sites such as YouTube, Facebook or Vimeo to your computer, iPhone or iPad free of charge.

Pricing

If you are looking for a free iPhone transfer software for Mac or PC, MobiMover is available for free to download but with few limitations. If you want to transfer unlimited data to multiple computers, please consider buying EaseUS MobiMover Pro version.

Should I Buy EaseUS MobiMover Pro version?

Importing files from iPhone to computer can be very difficult for people who aren’t “tech-savvy” and things can go wrong. MobiMover also runs independently of iTunes, so it can be a perfect workaround for people who have had problems with iTunes in the past.

And this brings me to my favorite feature of EaseUS MobiMover — it’s hands-free. You plug your iPhone, iPad, or iPod into your computer, click a few buttons in the application window, and you’ll be transferring your files in no time at all!

EaseUS MobiMover is intuitive, user-friendly, and accomplishes its intended goal in a very short amount of time.

How Do I Download EaseUS MobiMover?

You can download EaseUS MobiMover for Windows or Mac by visiting EaseUS’s website and clicking Buy Now. A free version is also available, but you won’t be able to transfer unlimited files between multiple computers without purchasing the full version.

Highlights of EaseUS MobiMover

  • Backup your iPhone data to a computer
  • Copy iPhone/iPad data to computer
  • Transfer files from computer to iPhone
  • Download video via urls
  • Allows you to bypass your iPhone or iPad Screen Passwords even if you’ve forgotten it or if your device is disabled
  • Compatible with all iOS devices including iPhone 6, 6s, 7, 8, X, 11 and SE
  • Can remove numeric passcodes, Touch ID and Face ID. Please note: this feature will erase data on your iPhone. And you need to remember your Apple ID
  • Available to download on Windows and Mac
  • A free version is available
  • Does not require professional skills

Our two sense…

EaseUS MobiMover is one of the well-known names when it comes to managing iPhone content via computer. They have a range of products and most of their products are easy to use; above all, they do the job very well. EaseUS MobiMover is a brilliant software . Actually, it might just be the best in its class in that respect. Give the free version of MobiMover a try and if you find it useful, you can decide to buy MobiMover Pro.

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MacBook Pro 2019: Quick Vadict

by GeeksModo Staff

My computer journey Before I tell you about the MacBook Pro 2019I want to first go over my laptop journey.
It has been over 3 years since I have owned a fully powerful laptop that would allow me to take on any task. It was a 2013 13-inch MacBook Air, configured with an i7 processor and 8 GBs of RAM. It was a solid machine for about 3 years before selling it and almost exclusively going iPad only once the Pro’s started coming out.
I had a couple other stints with other MacBooks and a variety of iPad Pros until I finally hit optimization fatigue. In April of this year I sold my MacBook Air 11-Inch that I was using for browsing and I gave my wife my 10.5-inch iPad. Then I went on swappa and bought myself a used iPad Mini 5 for journaling (with the support of the Apple Pencil) and reading.
I have used the iPad Mini for about a month before I started going back to writing with pen and paper for journaling. I still love the 7.9 inch size for reading so for now it is still a device I keep next to my bed, I might even trade it for a iPad Mini 3 or 4 to save a few bucks.
What I realized in scaling back so much was that I needed a device that would handle any task again. I needed a machine that I could use to do software development, writing, run Windows 10 using Parallels (to remote into work occasionally) and other more difficult tasks. These can all be done on an iPad, except to remote into work since I can’t use my work issued Yubikey to connect to the VPN, but compromising simplicity and constantly looking for workarounds get old.
This isn’t a bash on the iPad, I really do like the platform and I love what Apple has done as far as the iPadOS is concern. But I was foolling myself in thinking that an iPad was the path I needed to keep going down to accomplish the tasks I wanted.
So I bought a
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2019.)

MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2019)

In the middle of owning the MacBook Air’s I did have a 12-inch MacBook for about a year. The retina screen was a massive upgrade coming from the 1400 x 900 resolution. But this MacBook Pro screen is absolutely fantastic.
The high resolution is obviously great but the colors with true tone makes me want to never look away. And the 13 inch screen is the perfect size, it even feels bigger with the smaller bezels.

Compared to the 12-inch MacBook the keyboard feels much more soft with a little more travel. It feels comfortable and I really enjoy typing on it. I was a fan of the new butterfly keyboards since day one, so it is no surprise I would like this one. I’ve not experienced any problem with double, stuck and unreliable keys so maybe my fandom will change with this one if it starts to fail over time.

I’ve no issues with the touch bar as well. It does everything I used the previous function keys for; volume, play, pause and brightness. I rarely used the esc key, so I really don’t have a reason to miss the original function key row.
I am not sold on the touch bar yet, since I haven’t yet found it that useful, but I am excited to finally have it. There have been four generations of the touch bar laptops now but it wasn’t until this model were you able to buy one at $1299 (unless you go used).
The screen, Touch Bar, two USB-C ports, and the new generation keyboard were all things I was looking forward to when I saw this laptop get released at the lower price. The only hesitation was that it “only” had a 1.4 GHz Quad-Core i5 Processor.
After watching various reviews though, the hesitation disappeared. In some other tests I saw in other videos the processor in this MacBook Pro was thrashing last years 15-inch MacBook Pro.

Needless to say, performance on this MacBook Pro will never be a concern for me.
I was a bit surprised of the weight when I first took it out of the box. I think because I have been so used to much smaller MacBooks and iPads that the heft threw me off gaurd. After carrying it around the house and in my backpack the past couple of days, I definitely do not find it heavy.
Overall I am very pleased with this MacBook Pro.

When I went to Apple Store to pick it up, I thought, this would just be a try out to see if this is what I want. I have done this many times when I would bring a new iPad Pro or Windows Laptop home and immediately regret my purchase. This time was different though. As soon as I took it home I turned it on, set it up and immediately started writing.

In my opinion, this MacBook offers true value for your money. There will be reasons for people to pick a more powerful or cheaper device but for the sweet spot that will please just about anybody for a long period of time, MacBook Pro 13-inch, 2019 is a perfect choice.

See also:
Don’t buy a Laptop, Buy a MacBook: Here’s Why

Tag: MacBook Pro
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iPhone SE (2020) Review: a classic design and state of the art performance gives me the best of both worlds

by Tyler Stephen

Intro

Since 2016, I had used an iPhone 7 as my daily driver. For me, at the time, the improved water resistance, capacitive home button, faster Touch ID sensor, and strong performance gains were a compelling upgrade from my two-year-old iPhone 6.

 

In the proceeding years, however, I began to feel like the iPhone, and other smartphones, were stagnating, iterating less and less each year. For example, in 2017, Apple introduced the iPhone 8 with a faster A11 Bionic chip, an improved camera, and a glass back to support wireless charging. At the same presentation, they introduced the iPhone X, which was largely regarded to resemble the future of the iPhone.

 

With its edge to edge OLED display, no home button, Face ID, and a dramatically improved camera, many users viewed the iPhone X as a refreshing change to the core iPhone design. However, neither the iPhone 8 nor iPhone X felt particularly compelling to me as a blind iPhone 7 owner at the time. For one thing, the iPhone 8 seemed like merely an incremental upgrade, and I had several concerns with the new design of the iPhone X.

 

I would eventually learn that Apple had indeed come up with alternative VoiceOver gestures to replicate the functions of the home button, and that Face ID was generally usable even if you couldn’t see or look at the camera, if not as convenient or reliable as Touch ID. However, similar to the addition of the Touch Bar on the MacBook Pro, I viewed the experience of Face ID as a VoiceOver user as neither a step forward nor a step backward, but an expensive step sideways at best.

 

I figured that eventually, either my iPhone 7 would stop working or the A10 Fusion chip would reach end-of-life status, necessitating an upgrade. However, as the years past, and the iPhone XS followed by the iPhone 11 were released, I kept hearing rumblings from various Apple rumor sites about an iPhone SE revival. Sure, at any given time, numerous rumors concerning upcoming Apple products float around the Internet with no way for me to independently verify their veracity, but the consistency of the chatter and the chorus of seemingly reliable sources corroborating the reports gave them significant credibility.

 

By the beginning of 2020, I knew that I would need a new phone sooner rather than later. Having worked reliably for over three years, my iPhone 7’s battery began to show signs of age, with decreased battery life and overall capacity depreciating. While I at one point considered replacing the battery, I ultimately decided that that would be good money after bad, since I would need to buy a new phone eventually. At the same time, I also considered just biting the bullet and getting an iPhone 11 Pro, the closest screen size model to the iPhone 7, but the increased chatter on rumor sites about a new, low-cost iPhone persuaded me to wait until the spring.

what the iPhone SE (2020) is, and what it isn’t

As the iPhone line matured over the years, the screen size gradually increased from 3.5, to 4, to 4.7, to 5.8 inches and beyond. For sighted users, there are obvious benefits to a larger or clearer screen iPhone, such as more real-estate to comfortably display high-definition visual content or play games. For me, I need just enough real-estate to use VoiceOver while comfortably holding the device with one hand, as I am totally blind and have found larger screen devices disorienting and unwieldy. In addition, there are other reasons why users may not like a larger screen.

 

In an effort to compel users of the iPhone 5 and 5S to upgrade, Apple introduced the original iPhone SE in 2016. This device featured the small body and 4 inch screen found on the iPhone 5S, with the A9 processor and NFC chip found in the iPhone 6S. With the exception of the first generation Touch ID sensor found on the iPhone 5S and 6, the iPhone SE featured similar specs to Apple’s flagship iPhone at the time. This move proved very successful in compelling iPhone 5 and 5S users to upgrade to a smartphone that felt comfortable and familiar, while ensuring support by Apple and app developers for years to come.

 

As it always does, however, technology moved on, Apple introduced larger and more expensive iPhones with no new smaller or cheaper siblings, and the original iPhone SE was discontinued in September 2018. Like Apple’s previous changes to iPhone design, there were naturally people who were reluctant to upgrade to an iPhone X or later. For the reasons mentioned earlier, I was one of them. The ever increasing price of iPhones didn’t make the thought of upgrading any more palatable either. Catching on to this market, Apple went about developing a device that resembled the physical characteristics of the iPhone 8, with the internals that would ensure support for about four years.

 

However, while the original iPhone SE and the iPhone SE (2020) share the same name and marketing objectives, they are two very different devices. While the original iPhone SE physically resembled the iPhone 5S, the iPhone SE (2020) resembles the iPhone 8. This seemingly indicates that Apple is not planning to develop any 4 inch iPhones, with 4.7 inches the smallest size available. Therefore, if you’re using an original iPhone Se and don’t like the design first introduced with the iPhone 6, the iPhone SE (2020) is not for you.

 

Another thing to keep in mind is that like the iPhone 8, the iPhone SE (2020) does not include a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack, nor is a 3.5 millimeter to Lightning adapter included in the box. For users who depend on headphones or other audio equipment that connects via this standard, the adapter can be purchased from Apple for US $9. As I use a bluetooth streamer to output my iPhone’s audio to my hearing aids, and because if I needed it, I still have the adapter included with my iPhone 7, this was not an issue for me. However, I thought it prudent to include that information in this review for anyone with an original iPhone SE who relies on the 3.5 millimeter headphone jack.

internals

For me, the most impressive thing about this phone are the internals. The iPhone SE includes an A13 Bionic processor, giving me similar performance to the flagship iPhone 11 and 11 Pro at a fraction of the cost. Additionally, it includes Wi-Fi 6, which while currently new and supported on a relatively small number of devices and wireless routers, is likely to become ubiquitous in the next couple of years.

 

One thing the iPhone SE, and any iPhone for that matter, does not include, is the technology that has been hyped like crazy by the cellular industry for the past couple of years, 5G. For people in the Apple ecosystem who want that, Apple is rumored to be developing several 5G capable iPhones reportedly scheduled to launch this fall.

 

Personally, while I feel like I’ve heard a lot of noise about 5G from wireless carriers, I’ve yet to hear from people who have been able to take advantage of the truly mind-blowing speeds that it can theoretically offer. For that to work, I would need to have a 5G phone on a city block in range of a newly deployed transmitter, not obstructed by buildings or my hand gripping the device. For more details than I can cover in this review, check out this explainer of the current limitations of the technologies known as, “5G.”While the piece is from December of 2018, the essential problems of internal smartphone design compromises, comparatively short range, and limited scale of deployment still persist, from what I can tell. That said, I’m sure in a few years, as manufacturers develop more efficient 5G modems and carriers deploy more transmitters in wider coverage areas, this new generation of cellular connectivity will become more practical, and by then, I most likely will be looking for a new phone anyway. Until then, I have my iPhone SE, with 4G LTE, which gives me perfectly adequate speeds when I’m not on Wi-Fi; not that I’ve been leaving my house much in the last couple of weeks anyway.

 

If you’re interested, the iPhone SE starts at US $399 for 64 gigabytes, US $449 for 128 gigabytes, and US $549 for 256 gigabytes. It comes in three colors, black, white, and (PRODUCT)RED. For customers who purchase the (PRODUCT)RED edition, Apple will donate a portion of the proceeds to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

using the device

Now that I’ve hopefully given a sufficient overview of the device, as well as a good explanation of my rationale for purchasing it, it’s time to use it in the real world.

 

The short answer is, it’s basically an augmentation of my iPhone 7 use case. The vast majority of tasks I used my iPhone 7 for, voice and video communication, texting, email, light web browsing, online banking, Twitter, and a few audio games perform exactly the same, if not snappier, on my new iPhone SE, with the exception of 3D Touch, the technology that could sense how hard I’m touching the screen and respond differently based on this input. This comes as no surprise, as 3D Touch never really seemed to catch on with developers and users the way Apple probably hoped it would, and tellingly, it was removed from all new iPhones released in 2019. In its place, Apple has implemented what it calls, “Haptic Touch,” which simply involves double tapping and holding, (or long pressing if you don’t use VoiceOver) instead of hard pressing on an item to get a context menu. This is the same menu that would appear if hard pressing on an item on a 3D Touch enabled device.

 

One interesting oddity with Haptic Touch on the iPhone SE relative to other iPhones is the inability to interact with notifications. For example, I would expect if I was to double tap and hold, or perform a three-finger flick down, on an incoming text message, I would be able to reply to that message without needing to open the Messages app. However, this does not seem to work, with some reports even saying that this is expected behavior, not a bug. As sighted users have reported this problem when using equivalent gestures, it does not appear to be VoiceOver related.

 

As Haptic Touch seems to work as expected in other instances, I don’t understand why Apple would intentionally impede its functionality for notifications, provided that such reports are correct. I’ll update this review if I learn more. While I am the furthest thing from a software or hardware engineer, I can’t imagine that it would be infeasible for Apple to release an iOS update to correct this behavior.

 

Update: as of iOS 13.6, it is now possible to flick down to the, “View,” rotor action on an incoming message to reply to that message without opening the Messages app. I suspect that similar interactions are available for other types of notifications, but cannot confirm this.

 

Aside from faster overall performance, the most noticeable improvement I have found is with the speakers. While Apple advertised the speakers on the iPhone 7 as a significant improvement over previous models, I never noticed much of a difference in my every-day use when compared to my iPhone 6. However, I find I am able to hold my iPhone SE to my ear at a reasonable volume and listen comfortably when, for example, I don’t have my hearing aids in. The audio improvements just mentioned may also be present on the iPhone 8, but I never owned that device, so this is the first time I’m noticing them.

 

One compromise of the iPhone SE relative to higher-end iPhones is the camera system. Like the iPhone 8, the iPhone SE includes a 7 megapixel front-facing FaceTime HD camera and a single 12 megapixel rear camera, as opposed to the multiple camera arrays of the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro. For me, the camera on my iPhone is mainly used for obtaining assistance in interpreting the visual world around me, either with the help of AI powered or remote human sighted assistance. Be My Eyes and Seeing AI, the two apps I use most frequently for such tasks, worked quite well on my iPhone 7. In the case of Seeing AI on my iPhone SE, I have found that recognition of short text and currency appears to be faster, but I haven’t tested it enough to conclusively determine objective improvements in the areas of speed and accuracy.

 

When it comes to battery life, with my standard use pattern, I can get through a day without needing to charge my iPhone SE, and have even been able to squeeze two days out of a single charge. However, I use this device in conjunction with my Mac, with the screen brightness reduced, so that probably gives it longer overall battery life. Your mileage will obviously vary, but if you have an iPhone 8, the iPhone SE should give you similar results, as both devices ship with the same battery.

Conclusion

Coming from an iPhone 7, I’d say my iPhone SE was money well spent. Sure, nothing about this phone is, “Revolutionary,” but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. My iPhone 7 suited my admittedly basic needs quite well, and my new iPhone SE, with vastly improved computational power, is likely to continue that trend. Also, in the event that Apple dropped software support for the iPhone 7 in 2021, and the latest iPhones featured a larger screen, no Touch ID, and higher prices, upgrading would not be appealing to me at all.

 

However, with my iPhone SE, I can take advantage of the A13 Bionic processor and Wi-Fi 6, whenever that becomes more widespread. This will hopefully give Apple and the cellular industry time to improve upon 5G, as well as the in-screen fingerprint reader that Apple is rumored to be developing for inclusion in an iPhone in several years. If such rumors pan out to be true, that will make me much more enthusiastic about buying an iPhone with a more modern design in the future.

 

As I bring this review to a close, you might be asking yourself, “Should I upgrade?” While only you can make that decision, here’s my buying advice. If you have an iPhone X or later, I would not recommend upgrading unless you really miss the smaller screen, home button, or Touch ID. Likewise if you have an iPhone 8, unless your use case demands the most powerful processor in a smartphone, I believe that phone should remain quite capable for the next couple of years.

 

If you have an iPhone 7, I’d definitely recommend giving the iPhone SE a serious look. While your device may work reasonably well today, this may be a good opportunity to future-proof your workflow at a very competitive price for a new iPhone.

 

If you have an iPhone 6S or earlier, I’d definitely recommend upgrading if it’s financially feasible for you. I would guess that either this year or the next, Apple will release a new version of iOS that drops support for the A9 processor.

 

If you do end up upgrading, I would generally recommend also buying a case, as the back is all glass in order to support wireless charging. As I plan to use this phone as my daily driver, I did not perform any stress-tests, but I would guess that its durability when dropped is similar to that of the iPhone 8. As the market for cases is quite broad, I can’t recommend any one product over another. Personally, I will be waiting for stores to reopen in my area so I can feel them in person. I have no idea exactly when stores will reopen, let alone when customers will be able to touch sample phone cases, but in the meantime, I will be at home and when my phone isn’t in my hand, it will be deep in my pocket. If you have a case that you used for an iPhone 7 or 8, it should fit on the SE, eliminating the frustrating experience of needing to purchase a new accessory to accommodate a new iPhone.

See also iPhone SE 2020: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly!

 

As of the time of this writing, I have only had my iPhone SE for a couple of weeks, and thus there may be things about it that I’ve yet to discover. However, looking toward the future, I feel quite confident that this device will give me sufficient performance for whatever I may throw at it in the next couple of years.

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iPhone SE 2020: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly!

by GeeksModo Staff

iPhone users rarely get confused about which iPhone to buy. For the most of us, it’s a matter of price. If there is one good news about the iPhone SE, it is consumer choice. Apple has now given us so many iPhones to pick from.

Apple’s new budget 2020iPhone SE second generation is a surprisingly good value for all it gives you.However, to get to that $399 price tag, you sacrifice numerous significant features that sets the iPhone range apart.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at iPhone SE (2020) The good, the bad, and the ugly.

iPhone SE 2020, The good:

compact phone

You just have to look around you to see that phone screen sizes are growing ever larger. The
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra,
for example features a 6.9-inch screen, while even the smallest member of the Galaxy S20 line boasts a display that’s larger than 6 inches. So heavy
is the demand for huge smartphone screens that companies are now trying to create foldable phones with displays that fold out into even larger panels.
And if you have tiny hands, you take one glance at these hilariously gigantic smartphones and shake your head, wondering if there’s even a place
for people like you in this Bigger Must Be Better planet.

For those with tiny hands, the introduction of iPhone SE 2020 has given hope for a more comfortable future. Although it’s bigger than the original 4-inch model, the new 4.7-inch phone should rest gently
in your hand and even more gently in your pocket. Despite the industry push toward huge displays, there’s still a need for compact phones.

Budget phone

The iPhone SE 2020 has one specific killer feature that you will come back to again and again as you compare it to other iPhones. It’s cheaper. If you’re purchasing brand new and straight fromApple, the iPhone SE is $200 less than its cheapest competitor. That’s a huge difference that it must make the iPhone SE the only iPhone some people can afford. Even if you can comfortably stretch to a more pricey iPhone, too, then this price difference is enough that it’s got to make you weigh up what is really worth your money and what is not.

Screen sizes aren’t the only thing that are getting bigger with phones. Have you seen the prices of premium phones these days? For a top-of-the-line Flagship device, $999 now looks like the starting point, and when a feature-rich smartphone comes in at anything lower less than that — say, the $899 people are generally startled.

Good value

If it were just about saving cash, the iPhone SE 2020 would already be a compelling buy. But you’re getting lots of features for just $399.

For starters, the iPhone SE is bandled with the A13 Bionic chipset, similar to the one poweringApple’s iPhone 11 lineup. The A13 has proven to be the best-performing mobile processor out there, thrashing out even the newer Snapdragon 865 in head-to-head benchmarks. Until the iPhone SE came along, you’d have to part with at least $699 for an iPhone 11 to enjoy that kind of power. Now you can have it for $300 less.

The new iPhone SE features other niceties you normally wouldn’t expect in a sub-$400 phone, like wireless charging support.
You’re only getting a single rear camera with the new iPhone SE, but the 12-megapixel lens is augmented by the A13’s built-in Neural Engine. So as far as camera is concerned, you’ll surely be impressed with what this device has to offer.

Phone that lasts

Apple does a commendable job making sure older
iPhones can still support updated versions of iOS a couple of years into the future. More recent iPhones may have had more oomph.

I don’t expect things to be different with the iPhone SE 2020. The A13 processor is going to give you a lot of muscle out of the gate, and ongoing iOS support
will last long after the upcoming
iOS 14
update coming this fall.

Good battery:

The new iPhone SE 64-bit Fusion architecture, coupled with an efficient CPU and dated but low-energy Retina LCD display should surely translate to the
longest lasting battery-life you’ll find in an iPhone.

iPhone SE 2020, The Bad:

The new iPhone SE has cut a few too many corners to bring
the price down to the budget-friendly $399. Here’s what you need to know before you make the leap.

Dated design

Starting with the obvious, Apple’s decision to reuse the design of the iPhone 8 – which in turn, dates back to the six-year-old iPhone 6 – is a stretch.
Displays have gotten so much more advanced, with slimmer bezels that maximize the use of space on the front of the device.

The design of the iPhone 5 may have been almost four years old when the first iPhone SE launched, however, it wasn’t a major concern. Users weren’t putting up with
old tech. Phones didn’t make the big leap in bezel-less technology, which is not just an aesthetic improvement. That’s loads of real estate wasted.

Overkill specs

We’re not complaining that Apple has packed an industry-leading A13 Bionic chipset in a $399, but we can only hope users find the use for it. Power users
are unlikely to be the iPhone SE’s target market. Odds are, those users will opt for phones with the color-accuracy of OLED displays, array of camera
options and a larger screen.

In Apple’s discription, the A13 Bionic is years ahead of any other chip – just in a body that’s years behind. So much of what the chip was built for is unavailable
with the new iPhone SE, such as triple-cameras, Face ID and depth-sensing for AR.

Budget phone, pricey peripherals

The iPhone SE 2020 may entice you in with its low price, but Apple’s seems to have made some calculated omissions to make sure money streams their way. The 3.5mm headphone
jack has been grumbled about to no end, but hold on, there’s an important point in defense of buyers here.

Budget customers perhaps don’t want to part with additional hundred bucks on wireless headsets. This is one of the reasons why the Google Pixel 3a didn’t
go the way of the Pixel 4 and retained the headphone jack. But in a non-budget-oriented move, Apple’s eliminated the headphone jack, forcing customers to make that
decision ultimately. A win in the making for Apple.

With no expandable storage, the base 64GB model surely can’t be sustainable for most users, who will probably choose the $449, 128GB model. Unfortunately, the
price is somewhat heavier to stomach.

iPhone SE 2020, The Ugly:

You don’t get TrueDepth and Face ID

Touch ID is as striking today on the new iPhone SE as it was when it debuted on the iPhone 5S
back in 2013.
It’s fast, secure, and as well as swiftly unlocking your phone, it allows you to quickly pay for goods or services with Apple Pay.
This technology is seven years old, though, and as of the launch of the iPhone SE, precisely one iPhone in the entire range has it. All of the rest of
Apple’s current lineup uses
Face ID
and for the bigger part, that is better. Much better.
Face ID is more secure, harder to hack, and since the original generation of it in the iPhone X, has
become faster
than Touch ID. Right now with the coronavirus we are having the issue that faces with a mask can’t reliably be recognized, but in general use, glancing
at your iPhone has become much faster than pressing your thumb onto a button and waiting.
Additionally, there are users who find that Touch ID is unreliable. That can be because of the cases that their employers require them to use, it can be because
your finger is damp or sweaty. Whatever the reason, Touch ID can frustrate users who don’t find any difficulty with Face ID.
So for convenience, speed, and security, Face ID is a strong justification to purchase a different iPhone.
Your choices are the iPhone XR starting at $599, the
iPhone 11
at $699,
iPhone 11 Pro
at $999, and
iPhone 11 Pro Max
at $1,099.
To save you counting, those prices range from $200 to $700 more than an iPhone SE. Put it differently, for the price of an iPhone 11 Pro, you could purchase two
iPhone SE models and have change enough over to get a case.

Screen size

This is one area where the iPhone SE, as good as it is, is ragging behind whichever way you look at it. If you’re someone who loves the older, smaller, 4-inch
display, then the 4.7-inch one of the iPhone SE is more of a difference than it sounds. It’s the difference between being able to work the phone entirely
with one hand, and not.
Then if you do like larger screens, as so many folks do, then have to see the 4.7-inch iPhone SE display as being paltry. Both the iPhone XR and the iPhone
11 features 6.1-inch screens, while the iPhone 11 Pro features a 5.8-inch one.
Even those don’t really compare to the larger models, or what used to be referred to as the Plus ones. The current iPhone 11 Pro Max features a 6.5-inch screen —and
that’s now your only choice for a larger form factor. The iPhone SE has really only replaced the iPhone 8, but its launch saw the larger iPhone 8 Plus
vanish too.
The iPhone 8 Plus was actually bigger, physically, than the iPhone 11 Pro Max, but it’s perhaps not a great loss to the lineup because that larger case
held a comparatively smaller screen. The iPhone 8 Plus featured a 5.5-inch display in a chassis that was slightly bigger than the iPhone 11 Pro Max with its
6.1-inch one.

That old iPhone 8 Plus was also substantially bigger than the iPhone 11 Pro, running to 6.24-inches by 3.07-inches compared to the newer iPhone’s 5.67-inches
by 2.81-inches.
The reason that even the 11 Pro can have a smaller chassis yet a larger screen is down to how the newer phones have an almost edge to edge display. The
iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone SE 2020, both have old-style thick bezels around the screen.
You can still buy an iPhone 8 Plus from resellers where it will typically cost around $499, or about $600 less than the only other large-scale model, the
iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Screen resolution

The iPhone SE is repeatedly said to be the old iPhone 8 with new internal hardware, but actually its screen goes back much further than that. As far as physical size, resolution and technology are concerned, the screen
in the 2020 iPhone SE is nearly the same as that of the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6S from 2014/15. The only difference is that the iPhone SE’s version supports True Tone so it alters color levels depending on your surroundings.
In the six years since the iPhone 6, though, displays have improved. They’re edge to edge, or nearly, and instead of the old LCD display panel, many of
them use OLED. This technology provides a better black and overall an improved contrast.
It’s not as if the difference is even close. Where the iPhone SE 2020 has a contrast ratio of 1,400:1, the iPhone 11 Pro provides 2,000,000:1. No question,
the screens on the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are better than that on the new iPhone SE. They’re also brighter on the iPhone 11 Pro, at 800 nits instead
of 625 nits on the new iPhone SE.
As clear as these differences are when either you hold the iPhones next to each other, or you downgrade, there’s no other way you’d even see the SE screen
as a problem. It is clear, bright, and sharp, and if the other models are clearer, brighter, and sharper, that doesn’t make the new iPhone SE screen unusably
poor.

Cameras are an issue

This is another area where there’s no comparison whatsoever. The iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max features a triple camera system on the back, and
all three are lenses are superb. They’re 12MP and provide seamless switching between their Wide, Ultra Wide, and Telephoto cameras.
The new iPhone SE features a single camera on the rear. It is a 12MP camera, and it is Wide, but it’s one camera and that’s your lot.
Except that of course all iPhones also have a front-facing camera. Here the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max are better than the iPhone SE 2020, or any other
model in that regard. The front or selfie camera on an iPhone 11 Pro or iPhone 11 Pro Max is a 12MP one that’s as capable of shooting 4K video as the
back cameras.
With the iPhone 11 Pro or iPhone 11 Pro Max, and exclusively with these phones, you can shoot videos equally well from front and back. If you’re making a YouTube video where you’re talking to the camera, this is a difference that means you can watch yourself on the phone screen to make sure you are framed correctly throughout.
It means you can use a Teleprompter app right there with the selfie lens.

Our two sense

iPhone SE 2020 gets so much right on the inside but will surely leave much to be desired externally after long term use. It will surely last years, with Apple’s
loyal software updates and enough power from the A13 Bionic to keep it fit for use.

However, the phone could enjoy far better longevity by going bezel-less to maximize what can be done on its screen. Wireless charging has also made the
glass back a necessity, but it would make more sense to the budget-conscious buyer to have a sturdier metal back to last the years, never mind the wireless
features.

While the iPhone SE 2020 is a really fascinating combination of features as well as price, it does not include every feature you may be used to in
an iPhone. And these missing features could either make you consider a more expensive model, or they could contribute to your deciding that you’ll stay
with whichever iPhone you already have.
And that covers everything about iPhone SE (2020) The good, the bad, and the ugly!

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