Deciding between the SE and the S7 is like comparing, well, apples with marshmallows. Looking at size and price alone you’ve clearly got two very different smartphones to choose from, but there are some similarities, too. So which one is for you? That depends on what you are looking for.
Image: Apple
Apple iPhone SE Vs Samsung Galaxy S7
Operating System
The SE is running on iOS 9, while on the S7 it’s Android Marshmallow.
Display
The SE has a 4-inch IPS display with 1136×640 resolution and 326 ppi. The S7 has a 5.1-inch AMOLED display with 2560×1440 resolution and 577 ppi — that’s a 77 per cent sharper display.
Size And Style
The SE is 124mm long, 59mm wide and 7.6mm thick weighing in at 113g, while the S7 is 142mm long, 70mm wide and 9.7mm thick at 152g. Overall, the S7 is 15 percent taller and 19 percent wider than the SE.
Style-wise, the SE is a standard-looking iPhone with a full aluminium body. The S7 is both aluminium and glass, harking back to the designs of the S5 era.
Performance
The Apple A9 dual core 1.85GHz processor powers the SE — the same as you’ll find in the 6s — while the S7 features the 2.15GHz Snapdragon 820 quad core processor.
The S7 has double the RAM of the SE, and almost twice the battery life. Although, when you are comparing two phones of such vastly different sizes it’s difficult to know how important these differences are.
Camera
The SE features the same rear camera as the iPhone 6s, matching the S7 at 12MP. The SE’s front-facing camera is 1.2MP and the S7’s is 5MP. The S7 also features optical image stabilisation and a wider aperture range for low-light photography.
Storage
The SE base model had 16GB of storage, with the option to upgrade for an extra $150. The S7 comes with 32GB of storage, plus a microSD slot which can hold an extra 200GB.
Extra Features
Both handsets have options for tap-and-pay, with the SE having Apple Pay and the S7 with Samsung Pay.
Both have fingerprint access — Apple is using its last generation Touch ID and Samsung has its upgraded fingerprint sensor.
The S7 is IP68 water resistant, features optimised VR support through Samsung Gear VR and has fast as well as wireless charging. The SE isn’t offering any of these features.
Price
If you’re not an OS loyalist, this is probably the one point that will make your decision easier. At $679 for the 16GB model and $829 for the 32GB the S7’s $1149 price point makes it clear the Samsung is in another category altogether.
Release Date
Don’t want to wait? The Samsung Galaxy S7 is available right now, whereas while pre-orders for the Apple iPhone SE open, it won’t be released for another couple of days on 31 March.