The first-generation iPhone SE (also known as iPhone SE 1 or iPhone SE 2016; SE is an initialism of Special Edition) is a smartphone that was developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is part of the 9th generation of the iPhone alongside the higher-end iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. It was introduced on March 21, 2016, with pre-orders beginning on March 24, 2016, and was officially released on March 31, 2016, alongside the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. It was re-released on March 24, 2017, with larger storage capacities.
The iPhone SE shares the same physical design and dimensions as the iPhone 5s, but has similar internal hardware to the iPhone 6s, including the newer Apple A9 system-on-chip, greater battery capacity, and a 12-megapixel rear camera that can record up to 4K video at 30 frames per second. The iPhone SE can shoot Live Photos and has features like Retina Flash and the option to have Hey Siri activated without the need to be plugged into a power source.
The iPhone SE was discontinued by Apple on September 12, 2018. The A9-based SE, 6s and 6s Plus were the first iPhones to be supported through seven major versions of iOS, from iOS 9 to iOS 15.
Its successor, the iPhone SE (2020), was announced on April 15, 2020, and released on April 24, 2020.
The iPhone SE was the last iPhone to feature a dual-core CPU, a standard 3.5 mm stereo headphone jack, and 16 GB of internal storage.