The iPhone 16e has been out for a number of weeks now, and now that the mud is settling round Apple’s new cheaper handset, it looks like a great time to replicate on how our expectations for this new iPhone matched as much as the real-life product.
After all, we right here at TechRadar had been greater than excited for the discharge of Apple’s newest budget-conscious handset, which we beforehand anticipated can be referred to as the iPhone SE 4.
However, sitting with that pleasure was additionally a contact of fear a few potential value hike – and when the iPhone 16e was revealed on February 19, these fears had been sadly realized – now, a brand new survey suggests the overall phone-buying public had been pondering on related strains.
Before the iPhone 16e launched, I wrote that I didn’t assume it could be price shopping for at a value increased than $500 / £500 / AU$800 – which was absolutely the most I believed the cellphone would value.
The iPhone 16e prices $599 / £599 / AU$999 for the bottom mannequin with 128GB of storage – up from $429 / £429 / AU$719 for the third-generation iPhone SE, launched in 2022.
However, a brand new survey of greater than 3,500 Apple customers by pre-owned cellphone market SellCell has me feeling vindicated. The knowledge gathered means that greater than 9 in 10 folks assume that the iPhone 16e is simply too costly for a “funds” cellphone.
That’s a heck of a statistic, however understand that the iPhone 16e can also be referred to – together with by TechRadar – as a mid-range cellphone. The time period “funds” is a bit nebulous and might both seek advice from low-cost telephones or telephones designed for extra budget-conscious consumers trying to keep away from the excessive value of flagship telephones.
However, the survey does serve up an unmitigated blow by suggesting that greater than 7 in 10 Apple customers are “unimpressed” with the iPhone 16e – regardless of Apple equipping the cellphone with the A18 chipset, 8GB of RAM, and the complete Apple Intelligence toolkit.
An nearly equal proportion – 72.7% of individuals surveyed – would relatively see the iPhone 16e listed at $500 than its present value.
As our full iPhone 16e evaluation particulars, Apple’s newest handset is a little bit of an oddball. It’s a good bit cheaper than the mainline iPhone 16, which begins at $799 / £799 / AU$1,399, however is considerably dearer than related gadgets from different cellphone makers, just like the Google Pixel 8a ($499 / £499 / AU$849) and Nothing Phone 3a Pro ($459 / £449 / AU$849).
The SellCell survey means that this increased value is proving an excessive amount of to recover from for patrons – which I actually do get, contemplating that the iPhone 16e’s single digicam and notched, 60hz show already threaten to make it really feel outdated. The survey additionally helps this, discovering that greater than half of customers (52.6%) wouldn’t think about the iPhone 16e because of the lack of a second digicam.
Other causes to swerve the brand new handset included merely wanting the highest-end mannequin potential (34%), and the controversial lack of MagSafe assist (16.1%).
I’ll grant Apple the truth that the iPhone 16e and that iPhone SE are, as their names recommend, technically two totally different product strains, however each serve (or served, within the case of the now discontinued SE) the identical objective as Apple’s most cost-effective immediately obtainable cellphone. In that context, a value enhance of $170 / £170 / AU$280 within the span of simply two years is remarkably steep.
And although this is only one survey with restricted scope, it’s nonetheless good to know that even Apple’s present consumer base is aware of when to show down a foul deal – the iPhone 16e is perhaps probably the most accessible approach to get into the iOS ecosystem, however should you ask the me the common iPhone 16 provides a lot better worth for cash.
That stated, each seem on our record of the very best iPhones, so neither will allow you to down for the day-to-day fundamentals.
In any case, these are the ideas of three,500 Apple customers – tell us what you assume within the feedback beneath.
