Comment: Is the iPhone 16e more of a "16meh"?

So here it is at last, the iPhone 16e, which we have been referring to as the iPhone SE 4 for the last few months. Apple's new entry-level smartphone can be ordered from today and will be available for the first time next Friday (February 28). But how does the new hardware fit into Apple's overall concept for the iPhone – or, better still, the entire cell phone market –? It's not that easy.

An entry-level model for 700 euros

Let's start with the price. Apple has raised this significantly. While you still paid 519 euros for the third-generation iPhone SE in 2022 (which quickly fell below 500 euros in retail), you now have to dig significantly deeper into your pocket at 699 euros for the start of the 16e world. Is this still an entry-level model? Not really in terms of price, but for Apple: yes. Because now that the iPhone 14 and SE 3 have been withdrawn from the market, there is no other iPhone that is cheaper. If you want the iPhone 16 as a standard version with more cameras, a Dynamic Island and other goodies, the price starts at 949 euros. Apple only sells the iPhone 15 from 2023, which is still available, from 849 euros.

In terms of design, the iPhone 16e is also more of an iPhone "16meh". In terms of form factor, it is an iPhone 14 with a camera notch plus an additional action button. Even the choice of color is uninspired: Apple only ships the model in black and white; the 16e only becomes colorful with a case. The manufacturer has omitted a meaningful "Product(RED)" edition like the previous model. The integrated 48-megapixel camera from the iPhone 16 is nice, but the single sensor naturally has massive shortcomings. You can forget about cinema mode, action mode or spatial shots.

The inner workings hopefully appease –

The really exciting thing about the 16e is its inner workings. The binned version of the A16 is sufficiently fast (one GPU core less), Apple Intelligence also runs thanks to 8 GB of RAM. The fact that Apple is now starting at 128 GB SSD size would be a matter of course in the Android world, but Apple fans will take it with good grace. A measly 64 GB are finally a thing of the past with the iPhone. The screen is now OLED, there is Face ID facial recognition – that was to be expected. The wireless sector is exciting: after years of research and development (also "made in Bavaria"), Apple has finally achieved a breakthrough against its previous supplier Qualcomm with the 5G wireless modem chip C1. Tests will have to show how well the thing works, I'm extremely curious, because despite the billions available to Apple, such a component is extremely difficult to design if it is to be really good.

The fact that Apple has simply left out MagSafe – without saying why – is just annoying at an entry-level price of 700 euros. The lack of a UWB chip (ultra-wideband), which would have made it possible to locate the iPhone to the nearest centimeter if you had misplaced it, is also simply an embarrassment. I would have expected it to possibly become part of the C1, but that obviously didn't work out technically or practically. Nevertheless, Apple's first wireless modem chip lays an exciting foundation. Would I now buy the 16e myself? Not at the moment. When the retail price drops in a few months, the model will become more attractive. Until then, I would rather look for a good deal on the iPhone 15 Pro, which resellers still have on offer. Ultimately, it has everything you currently need.

Empfohlener redaktioneller Inhalt

Mit Ihrer Zustimmung wird hier ein externer Preisvergleich (heise Preisvergleich) geladen.

Preisvergleiche immer laden Preisvergleich jetzt laden

Ich bin damit einverstanden, dass mir externe Inhalte angezeigt werden. Damit können personenbezogene Daten an Drittplattformen (heise Preisvergleich) übermittelt werden. Mehr dazu in unserer Datenschutzerklärung.

(bsc)