Apple’s newest iPhone is the iPhone 16e, a budget-friendly model that brings many of the features of its more expensive iPhone 16 siblings, but with a starting price of $599. The 16e has a 6.1” screen with a Super Retina HDR display and could easily be mistaken for an iPhone 16 (the camera placement, notch, and camera control button are the only physical differences). The 16e is equipped with the latest generation A18 chip, making it the least expensive iPhone model that supports Apple Intelligence.
That means the iPhone 16e can help you make smart photo edits (like removing things from the background of your snapshots), generate images with Image Playground, summarize email threads or generate email responses, use Visual Intelligence to get information about images, and a lot more.
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The new phone also features Apple’s C1 modem, the first cellular modem designed by Apple. The C1 is built to be power-efficient, and helps the iPhone 16e get great battery life – Apple claims the phone provides up to 26 hours of video playback, up from the iPhone 16’s 22 hours (though the larger, heavier iPhone 16 Pro still has slightly better battery life). iPhone 16e has the multi-purpose Action button, giving you flexible control options depending on what apps you’re using – this is a feature that was first added to iPhone 15 Pro models, and I'm glad it's included in this budget model. iPhone 16e also keeps up with Apple’s safety features, including Emergency SOS and Roadside Assistance via satellite, as well as Messages via satellite so you can keep in touch while off the grid.
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While the new iPhone 16e doesn’t have all of the bells and whistles of the higher-end iPhones, it offers the most important features at an excellent price. And none of the features you lose are dealbreakers, in my opinion, but you should know that you’re making trade-offs for this lower price tag. Here are key features on the iPhone 16e that are less powerful than other models:
- It only has a single 48MP camera (with integrated 2x telephoto), which captures sharp snapshots and can record Dolby Vision video in 4K at 60 fps. The iPhone 16e lacks the ultra-wide camera and telephoto lens, so it doesn’t have all of the advanced photography features as higher end iPhones.
- The screen, while very similar to the iPhone 16’s, isn’t as bright, which may make it more difficult to see in bright light (particularly outdoors). If you don’t often use your phone in sunny situations, you may not even notice.
- While it has an A18 chip, it’s slightly less powerful than the other A18 chips in Apple’s lineup, with a 4-core GPU rather than a 5-core (iPhone 16, 16 Plus) or 6-core (iPhone 16 Pro, 16 Pro Max). You may notice the difference if you spend a lot of time playing games, but the chip is still good enough for most of us.
- It doesn’t support MagSafe, so some iPhone accessories and chargers will not work with iPhone 16e. The phone supports Qi wireless charging up to 7.5w, which is slower than MagSafe. You can always charge via USB-C if you need to charge quickly.
- It doesn't have a Camera Control button to easily access your camera tools, though you can use the Action button for some camera features.
- It’s only available in black and white, which is a bit bland, but you can always add color with cases or skins.
- It has a notch rather than the Dynamic Island of newer iPhone models.
The iPhone 16e arrives just as Apple discontinues three older iPhone models: the iPhone SE Gen 2, iPhone 14, and iPhone 14 Plus. The iPhone SE Gen 2 was Apple’s previous budget model, and having launched in 2022, it was showing its age. The 16e is more expensive than the earlier iPhone SE models, which started at $429, but it also packs a lot of power for its price. One wonders if this will make room for another low-cost iPhone in the future, but for now the iPhone 16e is the least expensive iPhone you can buy.
So should you buy the iPhone 16e? If you have a newer model iPhone – iPhone 14 or later – it's probably not worth it. But if you're using an older smartphone, this is a big upgrade, offering many flagship phone features at a mid-range price – and it's the most economical way to get Apple Intelligence features.
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The iPhone 16e is available for pre-order starting on Friday, February 21, and ships on February 28. The phone starts at $599 for 128GB, $699 for 256GB, or $899 for 512GB.
[Image credit: Apple]
Elizabeth Harper is a writer and editor with more than a decade of experience covering consumer technology and entertainment. In addition to writing for Techlicious, she's Editorial Director of Blizzard Watch and is published on sites all over the web, including Time, CBS, Engadget, and DealNews.
