iPhone SE 2nd gen: Why This Old Phone Is Still All Over the Place

Honestly, walking around with an iPhone SE 2nd gen in 2026 feels like a weirdly specific choice. You’re basically carrying a piece of tech history that refuses to die. Most people look at the chunky bezels and the physical home button and think it's a relic from a decade ago.

But it’s not.

Actually, for a certain type of person, this phone is still a bit of a hero. Launched in 2020 during the height of the world going sideways, the 2nd generation SE (or the iPhone SE 2020, if you prefer) was Apple's "greatest hits" album. It took the body of an iPhone 8 and shoved the brains of an iPhone 11 inside.

The Touch ID Nostalgia is Real

The biggest thing you notice? That home button.

In a world where everyone is staring at their phones waiting for Face ID to recognize them through sunglasses or a scarf, there is something incredibly satisfying about a haptic click. It just works. You've got that muscle memory of resting your thumb on the sensor and—boom—you're in.

It’s simple.

Some people hate the "forehead and chin" design. They want the edge-to-edge screen. But if you’re someone who constantly drops their phone or hates accidental palm touches on those curved displays, the 4.7-inch Retina HD screen is actually quite refreshing. It’s tiny by today's standards. It fits in a pocket without poking you in the hip when you sit down.

Is the A13 Bionic Still Alive?

You might think a chip from 2019 would be struggling to open Instagram by now. Surprisingly, it’s not. The A13 Bionic was so over-engineered at launch that it’s still handling the basics quite well.

Wait.

I should be honest—if you're trying to play high-end games or edit 4K video on this thing in 2026, you're going to feel the heat. Literally. The phone gets warm. The 3GB of RAM is also starting to show its age. If you switch between five different apps, the phone will likely start "killing" the background ones to keep up.

But for texting? Email? Scrolling TikTok? It’s fine. It's actually more than fine.

The Software Situation

Apple just released iOS 26 (yeah, the naming got a bit weird), and the iPhone SE 2nd gen is right on the edge. According to the latest support cycles, this model is still receiving security patches, though it's missing the flashy AI features that the newer iPhone 16 or 17 Pro models flaunt.

You don't get the "Live Translation" overlays or the advanced AI photo expansion.

Does that matter? Probably not if you just want a phone that doesn't glitch when you try to call an Uber.

The "One-Camera" Struggle

We need to talk about the camera because this is where the gap between 2020 and 2026 is most obvious. You get one lens. Just one. A 12MP wide-angle.

There’s no Night Mode.

If you're at a dimly lit bar trying to take a photo of your friends, the iPhone SE 2nd gen is going to struggle. It produces a lot of "grain" in low light. However, in broad daylight? The photos are remarkably crisp. Because it uses the A13’s Image Signal Processor, it still does "Smart HDR," which makes outdoor shots look natural and balanced.

It’s a "good enough" camera.

• Pros: Great color accuracy, fast shutter speed, 4K video at 60fps.
• Cons: No ultrawide, no zoom, terrible low-light performance.

The Battery is the Elephant in the Room

If you are buying one of these used today, check the battery health. Please.

The physical battery inside is only 1,821 mAh. For context, modern "Plus" or "Max" iPhones have batteries nearly three times that size. Even when it was brand new, the SE 2nd gen was a "charge by 4 PM" kind of phone.

In 2026, with a degraded battery? You’ll be tethered to a wall.

If you find one with 80% battery health or lower, it’s going to be a frustrating experience. Replacing the battery is cheap, though. It’s one of the last iPhones that a local repair shop can fix in 20 minutes for about $50. That’s a huge plus if you’re trying to save money.

Who is this phone actually for now?

It’s definitely not for the tech enthusiast.

It's for your kid's first phone. It's for your grandfather who wants a button he can press. It's for the "distraction-free" crowd who wants a device that isn't an immersive, 6.7-inch entertainment portal.

Actually, a lot of people use it as a "work phone" because it supports eSIM. You can have your main line on a newer iPhone and your business line on a cheap SE. It's durable, it's cheap to replace if you crack the screen, and it still runs the latest apps from the App Store.

What Most People Get Wrong

People often confuse the 2nd gen (2020) with the 3rd gen (2022). They look identical. Seriously, you cannot tell them apart by looking at them.

The 3rd gen has 5G and a slightly better A15 chip. The 2nd gen is stuck on 4G LTE.

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In 2026, 4G is still everywhere, so you won't lose signal, but you won't get those "blazing fast" download speeds you see in commercials. If you're mostly on Wi-Fi, you won't even notice.

Practical Steps If You're Using One

If you’re still rocking an iPhone SE 2nd gen or thinking about picking one up for $100 on the used market, here is how to make it survive another year:

1. Check Battery Health: Go to Settings > Battery > Battery Health. If it’s under 85%, get a new battery. It changes the whole feel of the phone.
2. Optimize Storage: The base model only had 64GB. That fills up fast in 2026. Use iCloud Photos to offload the heavy stuff.
3. Turn off "Background App Refresh": This saves the tiny battery from dying while the phone is in your pocket.
4. Use a Case: The back is glass. It’s "ion-strengthened," but it’s still glass from 2020. One bad drop on a sidewalk and it’s a spiderweb.

The iPhone SE 2nd gen isn't going to win any beauty pageants this year. It's a tool. It's the "hammer" of the smartphone world—basic, reliable, and does exactly what it says on the tin. While the world moves toward folding screens and holographic displays, there's a certain peace in a phone that just has a button and a screen that you can reach with one thumb.