iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: which mannequin is best for you?

The arrival of the iPhone 16e marks the tip of an period. No longer will Apple’s entry-level smartphone take its cues from an historical era of gadgets, as was the case with earlier iPhone SE fashions.

That raises an all-new and intriguing conundrum for Apple. Why ought to it count on its prospects to spend extra on the iPhone 16 when you have got a cellphone that gives a broadly related expertise within the iPhone 16e?

To make it easier to reply that query, we’ve damaged down the important thing similarities and variations between the iPhone 16e and iPhone 16, paying specific consideration to areas like design, show, cameras, and efficiency.

Both telephones fared properly in our iPhone 16e assessment and iPhone 16 assessment, however which do you have to purchase? Read on for our definitive verdict.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: specs comparability

Before we dive additional right into a comparability of how these telephones match up, let’s run by means of the core specs for each fashions. There are lots of similarities right here straight off the bat.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: value and availability

The iPhone 16e was introduced on February 19 and started transport on February 28, 5 months after the launch of the iPhone 16, which landed on September 20, 2024.

Pricing for Apple’s new entry-level mannequin begins at $599 / £599 / AU$999 for 128GB, transferring as much as $699 / £699 / AU$1,199 for 256GB. The range-topping 512GB variant prices $899 / £899 / AU$1,549.

That represents a substantial value bump over its predecessor, the iPhone SE (2022), which began at $429 / £419 / AU$719. However, it’s nonetheless markedly cheaper than the iPhone 16.

Apple’s present base-level smartphone begins at $799 / £799 / AU$1,399 for 128GB of storage, with that value rising to $899 / £899 / AU$1,599 for 256GB of storage, and topping out at $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,949 for 512GB of storage.

So, you’re paying round a $200 / £200 / AU$400 premium for the iPhone 16. Is it price it? Let’s discover out.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: design

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With the iPhone 16e, Apple has lastly deserted the previous iPhone 6-through–8 design of the iPhone SE (2022) and iPhone SE (2020) and introduced it according to the remainder of the present vary.

This inevitably signifies that the iPhone 16e appears rather a lot just like the iPhone 16. Indeed, at 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.8mm, the iPhone 16e is nearly precisely the identical measurement, whereas its 167g weight makes it solely 3g lighter than the iPhone 16.

Both telephones have that signature flat-edged, curved nook design that each different producer appears to be copying as of late. You noticed it right here first – or relatively, with the iPhone 12 in 2020.

Apple hasn’t compromised on construct high quality for its new cheaper mannequin, both. It too is product of aluminum and glass, with a Ceramic Shield overlaying the show, whereas each telephones are IP68 licensed.

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What the iPhone 16e doesn’t have are the identical colour-infused finishes because the iPhone 16. It solely is available in Black or White, whereas the iPhone 16 is available in Black, White, Pink, Teal, and Ultramarine.

Perhaps the largest design distinction between the 2 telephones pertains to the look of their respective digital camera modules. The iPhone 16e solely has one, whereas the iPhone 16 has two.

The selfie cameras are additionally completely different in look, with the 16e going again to the previous Face ID notch and the iPhone 16 getting Apple’s Dynamic Island cutout. The latter takes up much less house on the show and includes a neat animated widget system that gives delicate heads-up info for issues like timers and music playback.

There’s additionally a notable distinction on the right-hand edge of those two telephones. While each have a remappable Action Button (rather than the previous alert change), solely the iPhone 16 has a devoted Camara Control button for fast and tactile entry to core digital camera capabilities.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: show

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Both the iPhone 16e and iPhone 16 pack a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED show with a barely disappointing 60Hz most refresh. There are, nonetheless, some delicate factors of distinction between these two panels.

For one factor, the iPhone 16 will get a barely increased pixel density than the 16e, which may be attributed to that smaller Dynamic Island part, although it is barely consequential (460ppi for the iPhone 16, 457ppi for the iPhone 16e).

The extra necessary distinction pertains to brightness. While the iPhone 16e can hit 800 nits in typical use and 1200 nits in excessive brightness mode, the iPhone 16 can go properly past these figures to 1000 nits and 2000 nits respectively.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: cameras

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As we talked about within the design part, the iPhone 16e solely has one rear digital camera to the iPhone 16’s two. Apple has, nonetheless, upgraded that single digital camera because the days of the iPhone SE.

It’s now a 48MP Fusion lens, very similar to the primary digital camera on the iPhone 16. They’re alike, however they’re not similar – the iPhone 16 additionally offers you a sophisticated sensor-shift OIS system, which is able to retaining photographs steadier. This mainly means it might probably take superior nighttime photographs and smoother movies.

The iPhone 16’s further digital camera is a 12MP ultra-wide, which opens out a complete number of panorama images choices that the iPhone 16e merely doesn’t grant entry to. It additionally helps the iPhone 16 seize higher portrait photographs, as it might probably use the 2 cameras for superior depth calculations, to not point out macro photographs.

Spatial photographs and movies are additionally solely obtainable on the iPhone 16, once more because of the availability of these two cameras.

Both telephones function a 12MP selfie digital camera on the entrance, with autofocus for locked-on selfies and integration with Apple’s sensible Face ID system.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: efficiency and software program

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On the efficiency entrance, there actually isn’t a lot between the iPhone 16e and iPhone 16. Both run on Apple’s speedy A18 chipset and are backed by the identical 8GB of RAM.

But that’s to not say that they’re internally similar. The iPhone 16e runs on a ‘binned’ model of the A18 chipset, with a 4-core GPU to the iPhone 16’s 5-core GPU.

In sensible phrases, it’s extremely unlikely that anybody will discover this distinction in efficiency – particularly since each telephones share the identical 6-core CPU – however on paper, the iPhone 16 has the slight edge for high-end video games.

With such related {hardware}, mixed with Apple’s in depth help for all of its gadgets, the software program provision for each telephones is nigh-on similar.

Both run on the very newest model of iOS (at the moment iOS 18), and the iPhone 16e additionally helps Apple Intelligence, identical to the iPhone 16. That’s important since you don’t get Apple Intelligence on the iPhone 15, which is definitely dearer than the iPhone 16e.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: battery

Apple by no means confirms the dimensions of the batteries in its smartphones, however a number of third events have now confirmed that the iPhone 16e has a 3,961mAh battery, whereas the iPhone 16 has a barely smaller 3,561mAh battery.

The bigger measurement of the 16e’s battery may be attributed to 2 issues: the absence of a second digital camera, and the inclusion of a brand new, smaller C1 modem.

Apple says this do-it-yourself modem is “essentially the most power-efficient modem ever on an iPhone”, and whereas it’s positively smaller than the Qualcomm modem used within the iPhone 16, our testing confirmed that the battery life on the 2 telephones is basically comparable.

Apple charges the iPhone 16e for 26 hours of video playback, which is about 4 hours greater than the iPhone 16. In testing, we obtained round 24 hours of video playback, and generally as little as 12 hours when utilizing the 16e extra intensively.

So, it actually depends upon how you intend to make use of your smartphone. Both the iPhone 16e and iPhone 16 boast first rate battery life, and whereas the newer mannequin may final barely longer, we wouldn’t recommend you purchase it for that motive alone.

On the charging entrance, the iPhone 16 fares barely higher than the 16e. Both telephones appear to help 25W wired charging, however in relation to wi-fi charging, the 16e solely will get 7.5W whereas the 16 helps 15W MagSafe charging.

In reality, the 16e doesn’t help MagSafe, interval, so that you’ll have to select up a MagSafe case if you wish to use the cellphone with MagSafe equipment you already personal.

iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: verdict

So, the place does all that depart us?

On paper, the hole between Apple’s two most inexpensive telephones has by no means been narrower. The iPhone 16e and iPhone 16 look very related, and so they carry out at the same degree too.

The iPhone 16 does, nonetheless, proceed to carry the sting in a few methods. It’s obtained a brighter show, a Dynamic Island notch, superior digital camera stabilization, and a devoted ultra-wide lens. It additionally includes a barely sooner model of the A18 chipset, in addition to help for MagSafe wi-fi charging.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 16e holds two benefits. Firstly, you’ll get barely higher battery life from that Apple-made modem, however the second, extra important benefit is that the iPhone 16e is a good quantity cheaper.

It’s nonetheless not low-cost, however it’s actually a powerful various to the iPhone 16 in case you’re on the lookout for a no-frills iPhone that’ll final you simply so long as Apple’s pricier fashions.

In reality, we wouldn’t be shocked to see Apple up its sport with the iPhone 17 to raised justify the upper asking value of its base fashions.

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