OnePlus 7T vs. iPhone SE (2020): Which should you buy?

OnePlus 7T

Fast and smooth

$499 at OnePlus

Pros

• Stunning 90Hz AMOLED display
• Powerful internals
• 30W wired charging
• Stereo sound
• Clean software with regular updates

Cons

• No water resistance
• No wireless charging

The OnePlus 7T continues to be one of the best phones in 2020, offering powerful internals backed by a gorgeous 90Hz AMOLED display, decent cameras, and all-day battery life. You also get one of the best Android skins in OxygenOS, with the user interface devoid of any bloat and receiving regular updates. As an overall package, the OnePlus 7T is one of the best phones right now.

iPhone SE (2020)

Unbeatable value

$400 at Best Buy

Pros

• Class-leading A13 Bionic chipset
• IP67 water resistance
• Wireless charging
• Four years of guaranteed updates
• Astounding value

Cons

• Big bezels
• 720p display

The iPhone SE (2020) turns the value segment on its head. The phone is powered by the A13 Bionic, the same chipset that you'll find on the iPhone 11 series. The design itself is unchanged from the iPhone 8, and the bezels are huge for a phone in 2020. That said, you get IP67 water resistance and wireless charging, a reliable camera, and more software updates than any Android phone.

OnePlus dominates the value segment, and while the manufacturer churns out new phones every six months, its devices continue to hold up fine after several years. For instance, the OnePlus 7T is still one of the fastest phones in the market today, and the fact that you can now buy it for $499 makes it a decent value. But with the iPhone SE (2020) launching at just $399 and offering exciting features like wireless charging, there's more than enough choice if you're looking to pick up a mid-range phone this year.

The OnePlus 7T is a stellar phone, and the iPhone SE (2020) isn't far behind

OnePlus has steadily plugged away at the value segment over the last five years, offering sleeker phones with more powerful chipsets and exciting new features with every generation. The highlight on the OnePlus 7T is a 90Hz AMOLED panel that makes everyday interactions that much more smooth. When seen next to a regular 60Hz screen, a 90Hz panel feels incredibly responsive. Six months down the line, the OnePlus 7T feels just as fluid as day one.

The OnePlus 7T has a large display with a 90Hz refresh rate and the internals hold up just fine in 2020.

The 6.55-inch FHD+ display is one of the best you'll find in this category, and when you factor in the thin bezels and the fact that there's stereo sound on offer, the OnePlus 7T is a fantastic choice for gaming and consuming multimedia. The internal hardware is just as robust, with a Snapdragon 855+ chipset joined by 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, Wi-Fi ac, AptX HD audio codec, and a 3,800mAh battery with 30W wired charging.

You also get an in-display fingerprint sensor that works reliably, Android 10 out of the box, and a clean UI in OxygenOS. That's not bad at all for a phone that now retails for $499, but there's a new contender in town if you're looking for value in 2020: the iPhone SE.

The iPhone SE retains the same design as the iPhone 8, but there are considerable hardware upgrades under the hood. The phone is powered by the A13 Bionic chipset, the same chipset that's used in the iPhone 11 series. It is the fastest mobile chipset in the world right now, beating out Qualcomm's Snapdragon 865 and last year's 855+ with considerable ease. The fact that you can now get it on a $400 phone is truly mind-boggling.

The iPhone SE's design is design, but it has the fastest mobile chipset in the world and wireless charging.

The phone wins out in other areas as well. You get wireless charging and IP67 dust and water resistance, two features that are generally limited to flagship phones that cost over $1,000. Wireless charging is a big deal in particular because you just don't find many Android phones for under $600 that offer the feature. OnePlus introduced 30W wireless charging this year, but it is limited to the $899 OnePlus 8 Pro.

You get 64GB of storage on the base variant of the iPhone SE, with the 128GB model retailing for $450. Because the phone is using a design from four years ago, you get massive bezels around the screen, a physical home button, a Touch ID button for biometric authentication instead of the newer Face ID, and a 720p panel. Having said that, other than the bezels, the rest of the issues don't really matter on the phone. The fact that you get a 4.7-inch screen means a 720p resolution isn't too bad, and a physical home button actually ends up being a useful addition.

You get a single 12MP camera on the iPhone SE, with the OnePlus 7T offering three cameras at the back: a 48MP primary lens joined by a 12MP 2x zoom module, and a 16MP wide-angle lens. You miss out on the versatility of the wide-angle and zoom lenses, but the main camera on the iPhone SE takes photos that are just as good as the 48MP module on the 7T.

The iPhone SE also has 18W wired charging, with a 5W charger bundled in the box. Sure, the OnePlus 7T wins out in this area with its 30W wired charging, and you also get 128GB of storage as standard, but the chipset ends up being a huge differentiator for the iPhone SE. The fact that it is one of the very few compact phones with high-end hardware makes it an attractive option in 2020.

When it comes to extended software updates, no Android phone can come close to the iPhone SE 2020.

There is another standout feature on the iPhone SE. Because it is using the latest A13 chipset, it's eligible to receive software updates for several years. iPhones generally receive iOS updates for four or five years, and that will be the case on the iPhone SE as well. The first-gen iPhone SE got four iOS version updates, so it's entirely likely that the iPhone SE (2020) will do the same. That's a big deal because most Android phones won't get more than two platform updates (if that).

When you factor in the hardware on offer and the fact that you're guaranteed updates for a lot longer than most Android phones, the iPhone SE ends up being one of the best options you can find at $400.

Category	OnePlus 7T	iPhone SE (2020)
Operating system	Android 10 OxygenOS 10	iOS 13
Display	6.55-inch 90Hz Fluid AMOLED 2400x1080 (20:9) HDR10+ Gorilla Glass 6	4.7-inch Retina IPS LCD 1334 x 750 (16:9) True Tone
Chipset	Snapdragon 855+ 1 x 2.96GHz Kryo 485 3 x 2.42GHz Kryo 485 4 x 1.80GHz Kryo 485 Adreno 640 7nm	Apple A13 Bionic 2 x 2.66GHz Lightning 4 x 1.73GHz Thunder 4-core GPU 7nm
RAM	8GB LPDDR4X	3GB LPDDR4X
Storage	128GB/256GB UFS 3.0	64GB/128GB/256GB
MicroSD slot	No	No
Rear camera 1	48MP, f/1.6 OIS, EIS 4K at 60fps	12MP, f/1.8 OIS, EIS 4K at 60fps
Rear camera 2	12MP, f/2.2 OIS, 2x zoom	No
Rear camera 3	16MP, f/2.2 Wide-angle lens 117-degree field-of-view	No
Front camera	16MP, f/2.0 Sony IMX471	16MP, f/2.2
Connectivity	Wi-Fi ac 2x2 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0 AptX HD, NFC, A-GPS	Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0 NFC, A-GPS
Audio	USB-C Stereo speakers	USB-C Stereo speakers
Battery	3800mAh Non-removable	1821mAh Non-removable
Charging	USB-C 3.1 30W	Lightning 18W Wireless charging
Water resistance	No	IP67
Security	In-display fingerprint (optical)	Front fingerprint sensor
Dimensions	160.9 x 74.4 x 8.1mm 190g	138.4 x 67.3 x 7.3mm 148g
Colors	Glacier Blue, Frost Silver	Black, White, (PRODUCT)RED

It's all down to the ecosystem

The OnePlus 7T comes with a gorgeous 90Hz AMOLED panel and high-end hardware, the software is a delight to use, and you get decent battery life. The iPhone SE may not look modern with its 16:9 panel and huge bezels, but it more than makes up for it with the A13 Bionic and wireless charging.

There's no bad choice here — it all comes down to whether you're willing to switch away from Android.

With just $100 between the two phones, it comes down to the software ecosystem. The OnePlus 7T will get platform updates to Android 12 security updates until the end of 2022, and in this regard, it fares better than most Android devices in the mid-range category. But the iPhone SE (2020) is going to receive four platform updates or more, and it has a clear edge in this area.

If you're already heavily invested in the Android ecosystem and want a reliable phone that will easily last two years or more, then the OnePlus 7T is a fantastic choice in 2020. But the iPhone SE (2020) has extra features that go a long way, costs less, and will get more software updates. If you're willing to make the switch, the iPhone SE is hands-down the best value you'll find this year.

OnePlus 7T

Fast and smooth

$499 at OnePlus

Welcome to the next level

The OnePlus 7T has a stunning 90Hz AMOLED panel combined with robust hardware, and the large 6.5-inch screen along with stereo sound and thin bezels make it an ideal phone for gaming and streaming videos. OxygenOS is one of the best skins on Android, and right now, the 7T is one of the best value flagships in the market today.

Unbeatable value

iPhone SE (2020)

From $400 at Best Buy From $400 at Apple

Hitting all the right notes

With the iPhone SE, you're getting the fastest mobile chipset in the world and a host of extras that go a long way. There are IP67 water resistance and wireless charging, and you get guaranteed software updates for four or five years. That's just not possible on Android, and when you consider the fact that the phone costs just $400, it is an absolute steal.