Yesterday Apple announced the iPhone SE 2. Whilst it is the successor to the iPhone SE, Apple refer to it as the iPhone SE, which could cause some confusion, but I’m honestly glad to see a successor to such a great phone.

The iPhone SE 2 has the same design as the iPhone 8 from 2017, but is powered by an Apple A13 chip instead of an Apple A11, so it will get updates for longer and also be significantly faster than the iPhone 8.

Specs

The biggest difference between the iPhone 8 and iPhone SE 2 is the chip onside. The iPhone 8 has an Apple A11 chip which will be three years old this September, whilst the iPhone SE 2 has a nice, recent Apple A13 chip, as well as 3GB RAM compared to the iPhone 8’s 2GB.

Other than that, the phones look mostly the same, with the same design, same feel, same 12MP camera, and same haptic feedback home button. But the iPhone SE2 has portrait mode in camera which does not exist on the regular iPhone 8.

Price

The iPhone SE 2 is actually cheaper than the iPhone 8. It starts at £320 ($399) whilst the iPhone 8 starts at £480 ($600). You may be able to get even better deals on contract. There’s no reason to buy the iPhone 8 unless you’re a phone collector, and if you already have an iPhone 8 (provided you’ve finished your contract), you can trade it in to get a discount on the new iPhone SE 2.

Can I still buy the iPhone 8?

Not from Apple’s official website, no. The iPhone 8 has been replaced by the iPhone SE 2 as the cheapest iPhone on the website. You can still buy it from other websites such as Amazon, but there’s no point in buying an iPhone 8 considering the iPhone SE 2 is cheaper and better. The iPhone SE 2 will last you longer in terms of software updates and performance.

How can I buy it right now (considering the coronavirus situation)?

All Apple stores are currently shut so buying it in person is out of the question. You can preorder it online on Apple’s website and have it delivered, but there may take longer to deliver. And if you are considering buying it on Amazon when it goes on sale there, it’s possible you could experience further delay due to Amazon prioritising necessary items (like loo roll).

Conclusion

The iPhone SE 2 is a great phone and now Apple have discontinued the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are nice phones but it’s time the iPhone SE 2 is given a chance to shine and there is no point in buying the iPhone 8 or 8 Plus anymore because the iPhone SE 2 will last you longer.

You can preorder the iPhone SE 2 starting tomorrow.