The new 4.7" iPhone SE shows that the era of small smartphones that could be comfortably operated with a single hand is over
Dan Seifert / The Verge :
Context & Ripple Effects
The original $399 four-inch iPhone SE of 2016 was pitched exactly at the buyers this eulogy mourns: small-handed and cash-strapped users who wanted flagship speed in a one-handed body. Apple kept that template alive through the 2022 SE, whose 4.7-inch display was already called a tired design, while its own iPhone 12 mini experiment showed how much adjustment a genuinely small modern phone demands.
This piece matters because it marks the moment the compact option stopped being a compromise and started disappearing: the 'new' SE grew to 4.7 inches, and per the later coverage Apple eventually discontinued the 4.7-inch model entirely, leaving only 6.1-, 6.7-, and 6.9-inch iPhones.
First-order effects
- Buyers who valued one-handed use lose their default choice overnight — the SE's audience of older-iPhone upgraders and Android switchers (per Counterpoint) must now accept a larger device or stay put.
- The SE's role as the cheapest on-ramp to the iPhone lineup weakens: a bigger screen pushes the bill of materials up, pressuring the entry price away from the $429 anchor.
Second-order effects
- Apple's own mini experiment — where the iPhone 12 mini required adjustment even from fans of small phones — signals that demand for sub-5-inch bodies was too thin to justify a second small chassis alongside the SE.
- With the small form factor gone, the value tier migrates upward: the eventual replacement sits at a significantly higher starting price than the SE's $429, reshaping who can afford into the ecosystem.
Third-order effects
- The endgame visible in the coverage is a single-screen-size-strategy lineup — Apple selling only 6.1-inch-and-up models — meaning compact-phone preference becomes an unserved niche rather than a product tier.
- Legacy designs also face regulatory pressure: Lightning-based models like the SE fall outside the EU's USB-C requirement, giving Apple one more reason to retire old chassis rather than refresh them.
The trend: Smartphone lineups are converging on large displays, with each generation raising the floor on both screen size and entry price until the compact phone disappears as a category.