What's the best "cheap" iPhone i could get ?

Hey ! I just broke my Pixel 4a (fp reader is dead, screen is flickering, battery health is getting really bad), and i am looking to try out Apple ecosystem. I have a budget of around 300 euros, and i have no problem looking at refurbished devices / secondhand. Here is a list i made (prices are from backmarket, a refurbished website). :

  • iP11 (around 290 euros)
  • iP12 Mini (around 310 euros)
  • iPSE 2020 (around 150 euros)
  • iPSE 2022 (around 260 euros)

I already have an M1 iPad Pro that i carry around most of the time for work / reading / video calls etc… I’ll be mostly just using iMessage / FaceTime / Maps and answering messages on average social networks with. i think I’ll keep the phone around two years max since I’m almost done with college. Am totally okay with smaller phones. I need to save a bit of money so if you see a better option, tell me!

Thanks for helping me out!

Edit : thx 4 all of ur replies<3 probably gonna get the 12 mini since i love small phones, and Face ID on my iPad Pro is just so great to open Bitwarden haha:)

yacht_boy,

Besides the face unlock, the 12s and newer have magsafe charging and it’s a delight.

OrteilGenou,

12 mini is an excellent choice

TenderfootGungi,

Not the SE. Pick the size you prefer. My 11 Pro still doing great.

weedwhacking,

Definitely the 12 mini because it’s oled, even a little smaller it’s so much higher quality for everything especially night usage

I wouldn’t bother with the SE at all. The 11 isn’t bad if battery is more important to you than display

roht,

I got an iPhone 11 last year as my work phone. I prefer the larger screen over the iPhone 12 mini while still being compact.

Toes,

I had the 2020 SE for a long while; was quite happy with it but I ended up switching back to android. Found the appstore was too restrictive.

Ghostalmedia,
@Ghostalmedia@lemmy.world avatar

The 2022 se has the best CPU of that bunch and will last the longest.

B0rax,

Sure, but it’s screen is smaller than the 12 mini and it is still a touchID device, which will feel much older than the faceID phones.

Ghostalmedia,
@Ghostalmedia@lemmy.world avatar

Touch ID is faster and the CPU will get OS support for longer.

B0rax,

Sure, but it still feels old with the giant bezels and the homebutton.

Ghostalmedia,
@Ghostalmedia@lemmy.world avatar

IMHO, it’s a personal preference. One thing is for sure - a phone that is not getting OS updates and can’t run current App Store software isn’t just going to feel old, it will be old. And the SE has the newest silicon, it is likely to be supported the longest.

If you want Face ID and small form factor, that old Mini is a good idea. But you’re likely going to be sacrificing an extra year of software support and you’re definitely going to be getting much worse battery life.

rustydomino,

I used to have a 12 mini and other than battery life this was my favorite phone of all time. If you’re rarely in a situation where you’re away from a charger it’s fine. But if you depend on it for something mission critical at the end of the day I would get a mobile charger. Reiterate: favorite phone of all time and this includes iPhone 14 pro max and pixel 8 pro.

DJDarren,

As someone who uses a 13 Mini, I can fully recommend this form factor, particularly if you also use an iPad. So the 12 Mini would be a decent buy. Bear in mind that the battery is considered to be fairly poor in those, so it might pay to replace that if you buy a pre-owned one.

aeharding,
@aeharding@lemmy.world avatar

13 mini also starts at 128gb vs 12 mini at 64gb

aarRJaay,
@aarRJaay@lemmy.world avatar

DON’T GET AN SE!! I’m forced to use one for work, it’s terrible. It’s small, unusable, slow. But then I’m not an iPhone guy so some of it may just be how iOS works. (I think it’s most likely the 2020 edition I have). It’s just horrible (did I say that already)?

tahoe,

It’s slow? If it is indeed a 2020 one it shouldn’t be slow, there might be a problem with it. I’m using an iPhone XS (2 year older phone) and even that isn’t slow.

Earthwormjim91,

If they’re using it for work, they could have a bunch of corporate stuff loaded on it, and using a VPN by default. All of which can slow it down.

corytheboyd, (edited )
@corytheboyd@kbin.social avatar

Wouldn’t all of that slow anything down? Hardware will not change latency added by network IO.

aarRJaay,
@aarRJaay@lemmy.world avatar

Maybe the slowness is just that iOS is so ass-backwards it’s impossible to do anything. The default iOS keyboard is terrible but they seem do something to other keyboards to make them slow to the point of unusable. I’m not sure why I wrote slow TBH - I apologise.

dudewitbow,

I always like to say, editions labeled SE are the “Shit Edition”

vzq, (edited )

I’m going to go the other way and recommend you get a Face ID enabled phone. It’s a neat way to unlock your phone and it’s done really well. No friction.

Storage wise, it really depends on what you do. I’ve been running on 64GB for ages and I’m not even close to capacity. But if you play lots of games (that tend to have beefy apps) or make lots of photos you’ll run out of storage.

I would go for the 11, but I have fairly large hands. If you are looking for something smaller, then the 12mini is the obvious answer.

dojan,
@dojan@lemmy.world avatar

FaceID is so good that you don’t think about it until you use a device that doesn’t have it. I hate the fingerprint reader on my Pixel 6. It’s so inaccurate and slow, often prompting me to try two or three times before asking for a pin instead.

FaceID only ever fails when I’m partially under covers or the sun shines on it. Otherwise my phone is unlocked the moment I lift and look at it.

03ari,

i totally agree with u ! faceid is indeed so great on my iPad. Plus i am paying for iCloud, so storage might not be a huge problem :) gonna get the 12 mini because even if i have large hands, i always loved small phones!! thx a lot

hanni,

All are fine options, but make sure to get more than 64gb. People often regret getting the smallest storage. I think 2022SE is the most solid buy in this lineup.

corytheboyd,
@corytheboyd@kbin.social avatar

Eh, if you’re gonna use 64 then you’re also very likely gonna use 256 etc., in which case you’re gonna buy an iCloud subscription anyway. At least this is how it worked out for me.

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