Apple iPhone SE (2022) vs iPhone 12

67 out of 100

71 out of 100

Apple iPhone SE (2022)

Here we compared two smartphones: the 4.7-inch Apple iPhone SE (2022) (with Apple A15 Bionic) that was released on March 8, 2022, against the Apple iPhone 12, which is powered by Apple A14 Bionic and came out 17 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Differences
Review
Specs
Benchmarks
Battery life
Camera
Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone

Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone SE (2022)

Fingerprint scanner
10% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1171K versus 1061K)
The phone is 1-year and 5-months newer
15% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 2247 and 1953 points
Weighs 20 grams less

Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 12

Has a 1.4 inches larger screen size
Thinner bezels – 20.6% more screen real estate
Comes with 797 mAh larger battery capacity: 2815 vs 2018 mAh
Shows 27% longer battery life (32:27 vs 25:39 hours)
Better camera quality (According to DxOMark rating)
41% higher pixel density (460 vs 326 PPI)
Waterproof body (IP68 classification)
Has an ultra-wide angle camera lens
OLED display (versus competitor''s IPS LCD)
The front-facing camera can record video at 4K

Review

Evaluation of Apple iPhone SE (2022) and iPhone 12 crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Camera

Photo and video recording quality

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Performance

CPU and memory performance (apps, system)

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Gaming

Capabilities for playing modern games

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Battery

Battery life, charging type and speed

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Connectivity

Networks, ports, data transmission

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

NanoReview Score

Final comparison evaluation

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests

Phone:

iPhone SE (2022)

iPhone 12

Display

Type	IPS LCD	OLED
Size	4.7 inches	6.1 inches
Resolution	750 x 1334 pixels	1170 x 2532 pixels
Aspect ratio	16:9	19.5:9
PPI	326 ppi	460 ppi
Refresh rate	60 Hz	60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	No	No
Max rated brightness	625 nits	625 nits
HDR support	Yes, Dolby Vision	Yes, Dolby Vision
Screen protection	Tempered glass	Ceramic Shield
Screen-to-body ratio	65.4%	86%
Display features	- DCI-P3	- DCI-P3

Display tests
RGB color space	99.9%	99.4%
PWM	-	226 Hz
Response time	38 ms	16 ms
Contrast	1655:1	∞ Infinity

Peak brightness test (auto)

iPhone SE (2022) +1%

652 nits

iPhone 12

646 nits

Design and build

Height	138.4 mm (5.45 inches)	146.7 mm (5.78 inches)
Width	67.3 mm (2.65 inches)	71.5 mm (2.81 inches)
Thickness	7.3 mm (0.29 inches)	7.4 mm (0.29 inches)
Weight	144 g (5.08 oz)	164 g (5.78 oz)
Waterproof	IP67	IP68
Rear material	Glass	Glass
Frame material	Metal	Metal
Colors	White, Black, Red	White, Black, Blue, Green, Red
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-button	No

Screen-to-body ratio

iPhone SE (2022)

65.4%

iPhone 12 +31%

86%

Performance

Tests of Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Apple iPhone 12 in the benchmarks

SoC
Chipset	Apple A15 Bionic	Apple A14 Bionic
Max clock	3223 MHz	3100 MHz
CPU cores	6 (2 + 4)	6 (2 + 4)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 2.02 GHz: Blizzard - 2 cores at 3.23 GHz: Avalanche	- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Icestorm - 2 cores at 3.1 GHz: Firestorm
Lithography process	5 nanometers	5 nanometers
Graphics	Apple A15 GPU	Apple A14 GPU
GPU shading units	640	256
GPU clock	1338 MHz	1278 MHz
FLOPS	~1712.6 GFLOPS	~654.3 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

iPhone SE (2022) +15%

2247

iPhone 12

1953

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

iPhone SE (2022) +1%

5084

iPhone 12

5038

AnTuTu Benchmark 10

iPhone SE (2022) +10%

1171074

iPhone 12

1061696

CPU	268130	221376
GPU	325843	336882
Memory	182253	136582
UX	388874	363783
Total score	1171074	1061696

3DMark Wild Life Performance

iPhone SE (2022) +4%

7914

iPhone 12

7603

Max surface temperature	46.2 °C	41.2 °C
Stability	72%	77%
Graphics test	47 FPS	45 FPS
Graphics score	7914	7603

Memory

RAM
RAM size	4 GB	4 GB
Memory type	LPDDR4X	LPDDR4X
Channels	2	2

Storage
Storage size	64, 128, 256 GB	64, 128, 256 GB
Storage type	NVMe	NVMe
Memory card	No	No

Software

Operating system	iOS 15.3 (Can be upgraded to iOS 17)	iOS 14.1 (Can be upgraded to iOS 17)
OS size	12 GB	7 GB

Battery

Capacity	2018 mAh	2815 mAh
Max charge power	20 W	18 W
Battery type	Li-Ion	Li-Ion
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes	Yes (7.5 W)
Reverse charging	No	No
Fast charging	Yes (61% in 30 min)	Yes (58% in 30 min)
Full charging time	1:18 hr	1:30 hr

Battery life tests
Web browsing	09:55 hr	11:23 hr
Watching video	08:38 hr	12:11 hr
Gaming	03:18 hr	05:05 hr
Standby	93 hr	119 hr

General battery life

iPhone SE (2022)

25:39 hr

iPhone 12 +27%

32:27 hr

Camera

Specs and camera test of smartphones

Main camera
Matrix	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	4032 x 3024	4032 x 3024
Zoom	Digital	Digital
Flash	Quad LED	Quad LED
Stabilization	Optical	Optical
8K video recording	No	No
4K video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	240 FPS (1080p)	240 FPS (1080p)
Angle of widest lens	-	120°
Lenses	1 (12 MP)	2 (12 MP + 12 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Pixel size: 1.22 micron - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.6 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/3.4", Sony IMX372 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization
Ultra-wide lens	-	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 13 mm - Sensor: 1/3.6" (CMOS)
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode
Samples	Photo samples of Apple iPhone SE (2022) from DxOMark	Photo samples of Apple iPhone 12 from DxOMark

Selfie camera
Megapixels	7 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	3088 x 2320	4032 x 3024
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.2
Focal length	-	23 mm
Sensor type	-	BSI CMOS
Video resolution	1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS

DxOMark camera tests

Photo quality

iPhone SE (2022)

126

iPhone 12 +5%

132

Video quality

iPhone SE (2022)

106

iPhone 12 +6%

112

Generic camera score

iPhone SE (2022)

103

iPhone 12 +18%

122

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5	5
Bluetooth features	LE	LE, A2DP
USB type	-	No
USB version	2	-
USB features	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG	- Charging - USB-Storage mode
GPS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS	GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS
NFC *	Yes	Yes
Infrared port	No	No

Network
Number of SIM *	1	1
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
eSIM support *	Yes	Yes
Hybrid slot	No	No
LTE Cat *	-	18
5G support	Yes	Yes

Sound

Speakers	Stereo	Stereo
Headphone audio jack	No	No
FM radio	No	No
Dolby Atmos	Yes	Yes

Speakers test

Max loudness

iPhone SE (2022) +6%

85.9 dB

iPhone 12

81.1 dB

Other

Category	Mid-range	Flagship
Announced	March 2022	October 2020
Release date	March 2022	October 2020
SAR (head)	-	0.99 W/kg
SAR (body)	-	0.99 W/kg
Sensors	- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint	- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor
Bundled charger	Not included	-

* Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

If the display, camera, battery life, and design are more important to you, then choose the Apple iPhone 12 . But if the performance is more of a priority – go for the Apple iPhone SE (2022) .