iPhone SE 3 Storage: Which Size Should You Buy?

iPhone SE 3 Storage: Which Size Should You Buy? is a post by Adam Mills from Gotta Be Mobile.

Picking the right iPhone SE 3 storage size for your needs and your budget could be tricky so we want to help you decide between the cheapest option, the middle-of-the-road option, and the most expensive variant.

While you might be tempted to go with the cheapest iPhone SE 3 variant or the model with the most storage, a lot of you will be much better off with something in between.

One thing to keep in mind is that you will probably end up paying for more storage one way or another. Either you’ll spend the money up front or you’ll pay a monthly fee for additional storage space via Apple’s iCloud service.

iPhone SE 3 Storage Options
Pay for Storage Today or Pay Later
Who Should Buy 64GB iPhone SE 3?
Who Should Buy 128GB iPhone SE 3?
Who Should Buy 256GB iPhone SE 3?
How to Check Your Current iPhone Storage

There are several important factors to consider before you settle on an iPhone SE 3 model and we’ll break down all of the things you need to consider in this guide.

iPhone SE 3 Storage Options

Apple and its retail partners are currently selling three different iPhone SE 3 storage options at three different price points.

The cheapest iPhone SE 3 configuration is the 64GB model which is $429 without a deal. The middle option, the 128GB iPhone SE 3, retails for $479. The largest storage configuration, the 256GB model, goes for $579.

If you don’t want to pay full price, you can get a solid refund if you’re able to trade in an eligible phone. We’ve also seen a number of deals from retailers and carriers.

While you can add additional storage to some Android phones, the iPhone SE 3 doesn’t come with a microSD card slot. So if you want to add additional storage you’ll need to utilize iCloud or buy a Lightning-compatible drive.

Pay for Storage Today or Pay Later

If you plan to shoot a lot of 4K video, download a bunch of content, or play a ton of games on your iPhone SE 3, you’ll need quite a bit of space.

While 64GB might seem like enough, there’s a good chance it’ll fill up quickly and you’ll be forced to either continuously delete files you no longer need, buy a compatible drive, or pay for iCloud storage.

Fortunately, iCloud is pretty inexpensive and you can get 50GB of additional cloud storage for as little as a dollar a month. Here’s how the current pricing breaks down:

50GB: $0.99
200GB: $2.99
2TB: $9.99

Remember, you can also share iCloud storage with your family members.

Why You Should Buy a 64GB iPhone SE 3

The 64GB iPhone SE 3 is definitely worth a look if you don’t want to spend a bunch of money on a new iPhone.

Back when we reviewed the iPhone 8 we determined that 64GB of storage isn’t enough space for a lot people. If you go this route you’ll likely have to pay very close attention to your storage space and app usage as the months go on.

Here are a few reasons to consider going with the 64GB model:

You’re on a budget.
You stream most of your movies and music.
You don’t plan to shoot a lot of 4K content.
You plan to store your photos in iCloud Photo Library or on a computer.
You come nowhere close to using 64GB of storage on your current devices.

Why You Should Buy a 128GB iPhone SE 3

Some of you might want to spend the cash for an extra 64GB of space. Even if it’s just for the peace of mind that comes with having the additional room. Here are a few reasons to go with the 128GB iPhone SE 3:

You like to store some of movies and music locally.
You need or prefer to keep your photos stored locally.
You plan to shoot some 4K content.
You’re using more than 64GB of space on your current devices.
You can’t stand having to constantly manage the data on your devices.

The 128GB iPhone SE 3 model is a solid middle-of-the-road option that can work with or without iCloud.

Why You Should Buy a 256GB iPhone SE 3

We’ve been using an iPhone 12 for awhile now. And during that time we’ve managed to take up around 200GB of its internal storage. That’s well beyond the 64GB threshold, well over 128GB, and just under 256GB.

We’re not storing any huge movie files on the phone. Instead, storage is mostly taken up by apps, videos, iMessages, photos, and music.

We haven’t hit 256GB mark yet, but we like knowing that we can do virtually anything on the device without coming close to the device’s threshold.

Here’s who should think about buying the 256GB iPhone SE 3 model:

You like to store lots of Movies and Music locally.
You need or prefer to keep your photos stored locally.
You plan to shoot lots of 4K video.
You’re close to using 128GB (or more) of space on your current iPhone.
You can’t stand having to constantly manage the data on your phone.

How to Check Your Current Storage

Before you pick one one of these storage options, you should check your current storage because you’ll be able to gather some great insight into your habits. Here’s how to do this:

Tap on your Settings app.
Tap on General.
Tap on iPhone Storage.

This will show you how much free storage you currently have on your iPhone and how much you’re currently using. It’ll also tell you exactly what’s taking up the most storage. For many of you, it’ll be photos and videos, apps, and messages.

If you’re within 10-15% of its capacity, you probably need more storage on your next iPhone.

If you’re using iCloud, you should also check on your iCloud storage usage:

Open Settings.
Tap on your Name at the top of the screen.
Tap on iCloud.

This screen shows your iCloud storage use and your current plan. If you tap on Manage Storage you’ll get a better breakdown of how you use cloud storage.

4 Reasons Not to Install iOS 15.6.1 & 11 Reasons You Should

Install iOS 15.6.1 for Better Security

1 / 15

If security is important to you, you'll want to think about installing Apple's iOS 15.6.1 update right away.

iOS 15.6.1 has two security patches on board. They are essential if you want to keep your device and its data protected. You can read more about the pair on Apple's website.

If you missed Apple's iOS 15.6 update, it had 30+ security upgrades on board. You can learn more about them right here.

If you missed iOS 15.5 it brought 27 new security patches to the iPhone. You can learn more about these patches over on Apple's security site.

If you missed iOS 15.4.1, it had one new security patch on board. You can read more about it over on Apple's website.

If you missed the iOS 15.4 update, it had a whopping 36 new security patches on board. If you want to learn more about these patches, head on over to Apple's security site for the particulars.

If you missed iOS 15.3.1, it had one security patch on board. For more about it, head over to Apple's security page.

If you missed iOS 15.3, you'll also get its patches with your upgrade. iOS 15.3 brought 10 new security patches to iPhone users. If you're interested in the details, you can read more about them right here.

If you missed iOS 15.2.1, you'll get its security patch with your upgrade. You can learn more about the change over on Apple's website.

If you missed Apple's iOS 15.2 update, you'll get its 30+ security patches with your upgrade. You can read all about them over on the company's security site.

iOS 15.2 also included some important upgrades to privacy. The software brought the company's App Privacy Report to Settings. This lets you see how often your apps have accessed your location, photos, camera, microphone, contacts and more during the last seven days. You can also see their network activity.

In addition, iOS 15.2 brought Apple's communication safety features for kids. You'll find these features in the Messages app, in Siri, in Spotlight, and in Search.

If you missed iOS 15.1, iOS 15.6.1 will bring its security patches to your iPhone. You can read more about them on Apple's website.

If you missed iOS 15.0.2 you'll also get its security patch with your upgrade. You can learn more about it right here.

iOS 15.0 also brought numerous security patches to your iPhone. If you'll be moving up from iOS 14 and you're interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple's security website.

Apple's updated its website with new information about iOS 15's batch of security patches. The company now says the software patched up an issue that could have exposed a user's private Apple ID information and in-app search history. It also says iOS 15 patched up an issue that allowed apps to override Privacy preferences.

If you skipped iOS 14.8 or any older versions of iOS, you'll get the security patches from those updates with your iOS 15.6.1 update as well.

In addition to those patches, iOS 15 comes with some security and privacy upgrades including improvements to Siri. Requests made to Siri are now processed on the device itself using Neural Engine. This makes it more secure.

If you're an Apple Card user, you'll now get a security code that changes regularly to use when you make online transactions.

Apple's also included a built-in authenticator that's similar to Google Authenticator. This will let you generate verification codes for enhanced sign-in security under your Passwords.

There's also a Mail feature that hides your IP address.