Apple Launched the iPhone 16E. Here’s What You Get for $599

A new iPhone in February?! Apple launched the iPhone 16E on its site Wednesday, expanding the iPhone 16 line while also bringing a much-needed overhaul to the 2022 iPhone SE with an all-new name, design, processor and Apple Intelligence features.

The iPhone 16E starts at $599 (£599, AU$999), which is $170 more than the previous SE’s $429 starting price. By contrast, the regular iPhone 16 starts at $799. The price puts the phone towards the higher end of the affordable phone market, between rivals like the $499 Google Pixel 8A and Samsung’s Galaxy S24 FE, which starts at $650.

At a time when phone-makers have bet their success on implementing custom artificial intelligence features into their devices faster than their rivals, Apple makes it clear that its AI isn’t limited to its expensive flagship devices. Powering the iPhone 16E is Apple’s A18 chip (the same one found in the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus) so it can run Apple Intelligence. This makes the new Apple phone a rarity: a sub-$600 device that can run the same AI features as its more expensive siblings.

Otherwise, the iPhone 16E has a curious value proposition. On paper it seems like an upgrade in nearly every way to the iPhone SE. But it lacks the iPhone SE’s main appeals: a low price and a small design. That’s not to say that the iPhone 16E isn’t worth its $600 starting price, which will no doubt be lower with carrier deals and discounts at launch. But like the old iPhone SE, you have to wonder how long will this phone be relevant for?

The iPhone 16E will be available to preorder this Friday, Feb. 21, and will go on sale on Friday, Feb. 28.

iPhone 16E design

The iPhone 16E’s design is based on the iPhone 14’s aluminum body. The back glass is matte, which should help keep fingerprints from accumulating. In lieu of a mute switch, there’s an Action button for activating a shortcut. Since the iPhone 16E lacks a Camera Control button, you’ll be able to trigger Visual Intelligence searches with the Action button. The phone has a USB-C port for charging (instead of the iPhone 14’s Lightning port).

The iPhone 16E marks the end of Apple selling a phone with a home button, which defined the first decade of iPhone designs, dating back to the original one. The iPhone 16E also has a 6.1-inch screen, which means that Apple no longer sells a truly small iPhone option. But the screen, locked at a 60Hz refresh rate, seems like a miss by Apple when the majority of budget Android handsets sport high refresh-rate displays starting at 90Hz. Also, note that the iPhone 16E has a screen notch and lacks a Dynamic Island cutout.

Oddly the iPhone 16E doesn’t come in a color: only black or white.

The original iPhone SE launched in 2016 and its design was based on the iPhone 5S. SE stood for “special edition,” though over the years some of us have referred to it as “small edition.” In 2020, Apple launched the second-generation iPhone SE with a design based on the iPhone 8 but with the A13 Bionic processor from the iPhone 11 series. In 2022, the third-generation iPhone SE launched. Its design was largely similar to the 2020 version but had the A15 Bionic chip from the iPhone 13 series.

The iPhone 16E’s C1 modem and battery

The iPhone 16E also has something no other iPhone has: an Apple-designed 5G modem. It’s called the C1 chip, and in a launch video on Apple’s site, the company claims that it is the “most power-efficient modem ever in an iPhone.”

The C1 modem supports 5G, but not the fast millimeter-wave 5G found in places like stadiums. It will be interesting testing phone calls and data speeds once we get our hands on the iPhone 16E.

Apple also says that the combination of the A18 and C1 chip raises the efficiency and adds up to a longer battery life. There are two ways for a phone-maker to gain customers: lower a phone’s price and lengthen its battery life. While Apple didn’t give us a lower price than the SE, its battery life might be the best feature. Again, I look forward to testing the 16E.

The new iPhone also lacks support for MagSafe charging and accessories. No MagSafe is a bit of a bummer, since that means you can’t use magnetic accessories and can only wirelessly charge the phone at a slow 7.5-watt speed. (It can charge wired at 20 watts, though.)

iPhone 16E cameras

The iPhone 16E sports a single rear camera with a 48-megapixel sensor. While you don’t get even an ultrawide option, the main camera has a high enough resolution to do sensor cropping to offer a 2x magnification – not quite the same as having a second camera, but possibly close.

Around the front is a 12-megapixel camera that supports Face ID and has autofocus for selfies.

iPhone 16E final thoughts for now

In one sense the iPhone 16E carries the mantle of the SE series and how Apple uses parts of old iPhones to create an affordable one. But that name change also represents a symbolic change from Apple having a cheap phone to Apple having an affordable iPhone 16 — much like how Samsung has its Galaxy FE models.

With the name change to iPhone 16E, it will be curious to see how Apple handles upgrades. As opposed to the multiple years between iPhone SE releases, will this be a phone that Apple updates yearly? Will there be an iPhone 17E? All this remains to be seen. I am excited to test the iPhone 16E, so keep an eye out for more coverage on the phone at CNET and our review coming soon.