Apple iPhone 16e real-world review: should you get this or the iPhone 16?
Can the iPhone 16e – the latest cut-price iPhone experience – beat its siblings? I’ve been living with it to find out for my iPhone 16e review. Let’s get into it.
Luke Hopewell is a gadget veteran of over 10 years (and has attended multiple Apple launches to boot. If it goes beep in the night, Luke has tested it. Got a question for the author? Head to the comments, or email the author at [email protected].
What is it?
The newest tech is often the best tech. The iPhone 16e debuted in March 2025, around six months after the other devices in the line-up. But does newer mean better? I’ve been living with the iPhone 16e every day, and you do get some things that are better – like battery life. There are a couple of items you may find yourself wanting for, however.
It’s definitely an iPhone 16 on the surface. Same screen, same processor, same battery. It’s missing some of the more premium features – which we’ll get into – but for a few hundred dollars less, will you actually miss them?
Everything you need, but some things you’ll miss
As someone who switched from my iPhone 16 Pro Max to test the 16e, I’m thoroughly impressed. It isn’t doing a vain impression of an iPhone 16 device. It’s the iPhone 16 with only a few modern conveniences missing.
I’ve tested the iPhone 16 for a few months before switching to my 16 Pro Max full time. In testing the iPhone 16e, I found that there’s more that’s the same (or better in some places) that it doesn’t feel like a cut-price experience.
The iPhone 16e might not have the absolute fastest chip in the iPhone 16 lineup, but it’s still a massive leap over older devices. The A18 chip inside is 40% faster than the one in the iPhone SE (2022) and absolutely crushes anything older. Compared to the iPhone 11, it’s a staggering 70% faster in CPU performance and 80% in GPU power.
And you feel that difference. Apps load instantly, multitasking is seamless, and games or editing tools don’t stutter like they used to. It’s also built to handle Apple Intelligence when it rolls out, so you’re not buying into old tech.
Battery life is where the 16e really surprises. The Apple C1 modem is the secret weapon here—it’s 25% more power-efficient than the Qualcomm chips in the standard iPhone 16. That translates to the best battery life in any 6.1-inch iPhone to date. I usually carry a charger just in case, but with the 16e, I didn’t need it.
A full workday followed by a trip to pub trivia was no problem, and I still had juice left to call my Uber and watch TikTok on the way home without stressing. Even at 10% remaining, a quick switch to Low Power Mode or turning off mobile data got me home with charge to spare.
In the real-world, I found I could squeeze out 15 to 16 hours of life while using the device normally— outlasting the iPhone 16.
The processor is still stonkingly powerful and capable of anything you’d want to get done on a device this size – including a bit of gaming and video editing. The screen is exactly the same so your eyes don’t lose out. You don’t get the buttery-smooth effect of ProMotion (a 120Hz display mode, this screen is 60Hz), but unless you compare the 16 Pro and 16e side-by-side, your eyes quickly forget. The bezels are slightly larger on the 16e but you get used to it quicker than you’d think.
You can still charge it wirelessly (although there’s no MagSafe support for those faster wireless chargers), you still get iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence
I did notice a few things I have become used to on the more expensive models. For example, I’ve become reliant on the Camera Control button to launch my snapper from anywhere I’m at in the device. The 16e doesn’t have one, so I’ve relearned where to find it when I need to take a quick snap. Camera Control to launch your Camera app does save you a few seconds, and that’s honestly enough time for you to miss a key moment you might be looking to grab. If you prioritise the fastest possible pics, your gaze might have to wander up the lineup to a base model iPhone 16.
The camera still shoots gorgeous shots at 1x and having 2x digital zoom is okay in a pinch if you need to get a little closer to your subject. It’s faulty logic to compare iOS devices to Android these days – the experience is just too different to get a good comparison – but those who comparison shop on specs alone might wonder why they’d get a 16e over something like the Galaxy A56 series for example. If you’re just reading the specs, the A56 not only comes with that Ultra-Wide camera you miss out on with the 16e, but also a dedicated Macro camera too. Plus, it’s a few hundred bucks cheaper.
What’s different compared to the iPhone 16?
The iPhone 16e definitely does what it says on the tin. It’s a pared-back iPhone that will give you a pretty fair approximation of the iPhone 16 experience.
When you get your hands on it, however, you notice that a few more things are missing than you think. Especially compared to its more powerful iPhone 16 siblings.
As I mentioned briefly above, the camera in particular is missing a bunch of gear that the iPhone 16 has. For example, the iPhone 16e doesn’t have an ultra-wide mode. Instead you get the standard shooting mode and the 2x digital zoom mode.
Honestly, I prefer this selection of cameras if I’m being honest but some folks love ultra-wide. Also missing from the camera are things like the Camera Control button from the rest of the iPhone 16 family. I know I missed it.
And there’s no compatibility with Photographic Styles – which I’ve broken down in detail in my review – or even the latest version of Portrait Mode.
Elsewhere, the C1 modem might be great for battery but it’s missing a few things too. You don’t get the support for Ultra-Wideband, which is technology that allows for precision finding of stuff like AirTags or AirPods.
Closer to the surface, there’s no Dynamic Island so your notifications look a little weird and your Live Activities are nowhere to be found. And as mentioned in my launch coverage of the 16e, the screen doesn’t get nearly as bright as the iPhone 16. And on the back, it isn’t compatible with Apple’s-own MagSafe charging accessories. You do get wireless charging, but only at 7.5 watts. That’s half of what MagSafe gives you.
I understand why looking at the list of omissions does get some folks a little riled up. When you think about the hardware that’s missing and the fact that the device simply fits into the iPhone 16 shells Apple had already manufactured, you start to wonder why it isn’t even cheaper than it already is. The iPhone 16e’s bill of materials – that is, the cost of all the physical hardware that goes into the device – compared to the standard iPhone 16 is clearly cheaper. It’s what has consumers asking these sorts of questions.
Clearly, to make a cheaper iPhone, you’ve gotta leave a few things on the cutting room floor. That’s just economics. If you really want this stuff, you’re welcome to go and get yourself an iPhone 16 model instead of the 16e. If you want to make it even cheaper, dig through your drawers for an old device gathering dust you can sell second-hand. Or even trade-in your current phone to Apple for a bit of extra credit on your purchase to close the gap.
iPhone 16e vs iPhone SE: is it worth the extra money?
Many were expecting the iPhone 16e wouldn’t look the way it did when it was announced. Early reports pointed to a successor to the iPhone SE – the 5-inch, cut-price iPhone that was last updated in 2022. Not so (which is why you shouldn’t read too much into early product leaks!).
The iPhone SE (2022) is still for sale, but it’s barely a shade of what you can expect from the iPhone 16e for only a few extra hundred bucks.
The SE still has a tiny 4.7-inch LCD, thick bezels, and the old-school Home button. The 16e? A 6.1-inch OLED with Face ID and a sleeker design. It just looks and feels like a modern iPhone.
The performance gap is big. The SE runs on Apple’s A15 chip, which is solid but ageing. The 16e gets the A18, making everything faster and more efficient. Battery life is better, too. The SE struggles to last a day, while the 16e keeps going.
The camera is a huge upgrade. The SE has a single 12MP lens. The 16e jumps to 48MP with sharper details, better low-light shots, and 2x digital zoom. It’s missing ultra-wide, but for most people, this setup is way better.
Other perks? The SE still uses Lightning, while the 16e moves to USB-C. Wireless charging is there, but MagSafe isn’t—just standard 7.5W speeds. The screen on the 16e is brighter, and the speakers sound better. For a little more money, you get a phone that feels like it belongs in 2025, not 2017.
Should you buy it?
As mentioned above, there’s more than a bit of gear missing on this new, pared-back iPhone. It won’t give you the full iPhone 16 experience, but then again, you’re not paying for the full iPhone 16 experience. You’re paying for the 16e.
What you do get with the iPhone 16e is the same processor that’s in the base model iPhone 16, the same support for Apple Intelligence, a decent camera that will perform admirably and – as I’ve found in my testing – better battery life. That last one alone is surely enough to make a device that’s already $400 cheaper even more compelling?
You should always buy the best tech you can afford so you don’t end up having to spend more money replacing it early. The iPhone’s processing power and ability to run all the new software features puts it in the “buy” category for me.
It isn’t for power users, but it is for everyone else. This is the phone I would recommend that everyone’s parents buy.
