2020 iPhone SE Misses Out On These 5 Features

BY Smidh

Published 23 Apr 2020

Apple iPhone SE 2020 Black White Colors

The 2020 iPhone SE is the perfect compact powerhouse of a smartphone. The A13 Bionic chip inside the device ensures that it is by far the most powerful sub-5″ smartphone available in the market. However, even if one looks past the missing ultra-wide angle camera on the iPhone SE, there are a lot of other features as well that the 2020 iPhone SE does not pack when compared to other iPhones. These features might not be immediately noticeable when one goes through the specs sheet, but if you get the phone and start using it, you would realize that they are missing.

For some, the lack of the features mentioned below might be a deal-breaker. Others might not care too much about it since the compact form factor of the device is more important for them. Whatever the case might be, it is always important that you know the features which you are not going to get on the iPhone SE when compared to the likes of the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and older iPhones.

The 2020 iPhone SE Misses Out On These Features

5. Ultra Wide Angle Camera

This might be pushing it for many especially since the iPhone SE costs only $399, but an ultra-wide angle camera is extremely useful to have. Thus, its omission from the 2020 iPhone SE is a major one in my opinion. An ultra-wide angle camera brings a great level of flexibility and Apple should have paired it with the primary 12MP shooter on the iPhone SE. The lack of an ultra-wide shooter will be even more glaring in a few years from now. The sensor has already become commonplace in mid-range to flagship Android devices and it is only going to keep getting more popular. Perhaps, Apple intends to launch an iPhone SE Plus next year with an ultra-wide angle shooter?

Read: iPhone SE vs iPhone XR vs iPhone 11: Which Budget iPhone Should You Buy?

4. No Night Mode

When Apple launched the iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro last year, it made quite a big deal about the new Night mode as it greatly helped in improving the photos in low-light conditions. Sadly, the 2020 iPhone SE misses out on Night mode. This means its low-light image taking capabilities are going to be average at best, and it also puts a serious dent on the imaging capabilities of the 2020 iPhone SE.

2020 iPhone SE

3. No Face ID and Headphone Jack

This is too big to miss but a feature that I still think that’s worth mentioning. The 2020 iPhone SE does not feature Face ID. Instead, it features Touch ID. Many people do not like Face ID and this perhaps will be the reason as to why they would end up going for the iPhone SE instead of any other Phone.

Another important feature that’s missing from the 2020 iPhone SE is the headphone jack. The original iPhone SE had a headphone jack so many people might upgrade to the new version thinking it would also have the jack, though that’s not the case.

2. No Tap to Wake

This is directly linked to the missing Face ID feature. Since the iPhone SE does not have Face ID, it also misses out on the handy tap to wake feature. This means you cannot wake up the display of the device by simply tapping on it. However, since there’s Touch ID on the iPhone SE, you simply need to tap the home button to wake the device up. Still, given that tap to wake is a common feature in every smartphone nowadays, the lack of this feature might just surprise many users.

1. U1 Ultra Wideband Chip

Ok, the U1 Ultra Wideband chip inside the iPhone 11 and the iPhone 11 Pro is really not that useful right now. As things stand right now, it is only used to offer a slightly better AirDrop experience. However, the Ultra Wideband chip has a lot of potential which Apple is going to slowly unlock over the coming months and years. The company could use the chip for faster file transfer between its device, turn iPhones into a digital car key for vehicles, and more.

The lack of an Ultra Wideband chip on the iPhone SE might not seem like an issue right now, but a year from now, its exclusion is going to stick out like a sore thumb.


Are you still planning on buying the 2020 iPhone SE despite all the above features that it is missing out on? If so, is it due to the screen size and the form factor of the device?

Check out our other iPhone SE related guides and comparisons below: