On Wednesday, Apple unveiled the iPhone 16e, a low-cost option for its latest smartphone lineup with Apple Intelligence features.
The iPhone 16e is set to replace the iPhone SE, which was released in 2022 as a budget-friendly option for Apple’s mobile device. The new iPhone had a $599 starting price tag, significantly cheaper than the $800 standard iPhone 16, although still more than the $430 iPhone SE.
The new iPhone features the same A18 chips used in the standard iPhone 16. However, the 16e will only come with a four-core GPU, while the standard 16 went with a five-core. Otherwise, both phones have a six-core processing unit with two high-performance cores that can be boosted up to 4.04 GHz, and four 2.20 GHz cores for general tasks.
Furthermore, the iPhone 16e will only come with Wi-Fi 6 compared to Wi-Fi 7 in other iPhone 16 models, and it also lacks the 12-megapixel ultra-wide rear camera featured on the 16, but the main 48-megapixel sensor remains.
The iPhone 16e will come with the same OLED display as its more expensive counterpart, as well as a USB-C port, storage option, Face ID, and wireless charging.
Apple claimed that the iPhone 16e has the best battery life out of any 6.1-inch phone, including iPhone 16, it ever made. Boasting 26 hours of video playback, an 18% or 4-hour improvement from the standard model. Still, Apple has not disclosed the iPhone 16e exact battery life yet, but many have estimated it to be in iPhone 16’s 3,561 mAh range.
iPhone 16e will hit the shelves on 28 February, with pre-orders available through Apple and mobile operators on 21 February. Its three 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB variants will be sold at $599, $699, and $899 respectively.
