CMF Phone 1 shows that cheap is not always bad

Apple hasn’t had a real entry-level iPhone for years. The CMF Phone 1 shows how it can be done. Apple, are you watching?

CMF Phone 1 shows that cheap is not always bad

The CMF Phone 1 comes from the same company that makes the Nothing phones. This budget line shows that you can also make an incredibly impressive smartphone for little money. Something that Apple can secretly learn something from. We show you a number of differences between the CMF Phone 1 and the iPhone SE 2022.

The Phone 1’s display has a resolution of 1080×2400 (6.67 inches). For comparison, the iPhone SE 2022’s resolution is 1136×640 (4.7 inches). The pixel density is also higher on the CMF Phone 1: 395 pixels per inch compared to 326 on the SE 2022. But that’s not all: the refresh rate of the display is 120Hz on the CMF Phone 1 and 60Hz on the iPhone SE 2022.

The processor performance is harder to compare, because they are two completely different chips. The chip in the CMF Phone 1 has at least 8 cores and a clock speed of 2.5 GHz. The A15 chip in the iPhone SE 2022 has six cores, two of which are 3.24 GHz and four of which are 2.01 GHz.

The iPhone SE 2022 has Touch ID with a button at the bottom of the device. The CMF Phone 1 has an optical fingerprint scanner that is located under the screen. With the CMF you can choose between 6 or 8 GB of RAM, with the iPhone SE 2022 there is only room for 4 GB.

There are also differences in the cameras. The Phone 1 has two cameras on the back, while the iPhone SE 2022 has to make do with one camera. The main camera of the CMF device has 50 megapixels, that of the iPhone SE 2022 only 12 megapixels. The selfie camera of the iPhone SE 2022 is 12 megapixels, that of the CMF Phone 16 megapixels.

The battery capacity of the CMF Phone 1 is also better. The battery of the iPhone SE has a capacity of 2018 mAh, that of the Phone 1 is 5000 mAh. The iPhone SE 2022 can be charged wirelessly, the CMF cannot.

In addition, the CMF Phone 1 can do something special. The back is attached with four screws. You can remove these screws so that you can replace the back. Do you want a different color? Or are there just a few too many scratches on your device? Then you can easily replace the back. Also fun: you can also attach various accessories to the device with this system.

And then the most important difference: the price. For the CMF Phone 1 you currently pay 199 euros. This is an introductory price, because the recommended retail price is 239 euros. Still, this is a lot less than the 529 euros that Apple asks for the iPhone SE 2022.

Of course, there are more differences between the two devices. But these were the most important. It also shows that cheap does not have to be bad. That is why we think it is high time that Apple makes a truly affordable entry-level iPhone.

More Apple news

• CMF Phone 1 shows that cheap is not always bad

• iOS 17.6 update coming very soon – here’s what’s new

• I bought an iPhone 15 Plus but now regret it (and this would have been the better choice)

• iOS 18 public beta is now available to install (iPhone News #29)

• The Best iPhone Wallpapers of the Week (Wallpaper Weekly #2 2024)