The iPhone SE is here, and we’ve given your our initial impressions as well as a look at some of the device’s top features. Now it’s time to talk more about the key differences that differentiate the iPhone 5s from the iPhone SE.
The one key difference that Apple likes to keep under the radar is the amount of RAM included in its mobile devices. It’s ironic, because this is arguably one of the biggest changes between the iPhone 5s and iPhone SE, and it makes a noticeable difference in day to day usage. Watch our video, and see for yourself.
No surprise, 2GB RAM makes a big difference
To perform this test, I used a scenario that all of us are likely to encounter — switching between tabs in the mobile Safari browser. As a device is deprived of precious RAM, one of the first things to go are the contents within Safari’s tabs. Safari tab content is held in memory until there isn’t enough memory to spare, causing the tab’s content to refresh.
With only 1GB of RAM, which is what’s inside of 2013’s iPhone 5s, it doesn’t take long before Safari tabs start to refresh on the RAM-starved device. Fortunately, Apple has been much more generous with RAM as of late, and it has blessed the iPhone SE with double the RAM at 2GB.
The addition of another gigabyte of RAM makes a noticeable difference on system performance in tangible ways. One of the most discernible differences happens when using Safari, which is something that most customers do on a regular basis. With the iPhone SE, you’ll notice that Safari tabs stay in memory for much longer, because the 2GB of RAM gives it leeway to do so. This results in less waiting and more efficient browsing, because you can easily revisit a tab without having to wait for it to refresh.
The video evidence
More importantly, having the extra RAM results in less frustration. You need not worry as often about losing important information contained within a Safari tab as it refreshes with no warning. That’s not to say that Safari tabs no longer refresh on the iPhone SE, because 2GB is still a finite amount of RAM. It’s just that the refreshing should happen a lot less often when compared to the iPhone 5s.
This, along with many of the top features that I highlighted in our top 15 iPhone SE features post, is one of the main reasons why you should consider upgrading your iPhone 5s to an iPhone SE. Also, be sure to read first impressions from Zac and Ben, as they provide some valuable insight into Apple’s latest iPhone.
