iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16: How the two Apple phones stack up

"iPhone 16e joins the iPhone 16 lineup, featuring the fast performance of the A18 chip, Apple Intelligence, extraordinary battery life, and a 48-megapixel 2-in-1 camera system -- all at an incredible value," says Apple in a press release.

With its palatable price tag, the all-new iPhone 16e appears to offer pretty great value on the surface. Here's the lowdown on how Apple's latest mid-range handset compares with the existing base iPhone 16, which released back in September of last year.

Price, specs, and availability

The essentials

• 	Apple iPhone 16e	Apple iPhone 16
  Brand	Apple	Apple
  SoC	A18 (3nm)	A18 (3nm)
  Display	6.1-inch 2352 x 1170 pixel resolution Super Retina XDR, 1,200 nits, 60Hz	6.1-inch 2556 x 1179 pixel resolution Super Retina XDR, 2000 nits, 60Hz
  Storage	128GB, 256GB, 512GB	128GB, 256GB, 512GB
  Ports	USB-C	USB-C
  Front camera	12-megapixel (wide)	12-megapixel, f/1.9, 23mm (wide), 1/3.6", PDAF
  RAM	8GB	8GB
  Operating System	iOS 18	iOS 18
  Rear camera	48-megapixel (wide)	48-megapixel, f/1.6, 26mm (wide), 1/1.56", 1.0µm, dual pixel PDAF, sensor-shift OIS 12-megapixel, f/2.2, 13mm, 120˚ (ultra-wide), 0.7µm, dual pixel PDAF
  Others	Action Button	Camera Control, Action Button, MagSafe
  Dimensions	2.81 x 5.78 x 0.31-inches (71.5 x 146.7 x 7.8mm)	5.81 x 2.82 x 0.31-inches (147.6 x 71.6 x 7.8mm)
  Colors	Black, White	Black, White, Pink, Teal, Ultramarine
  Display type	OLED	OLED
  Weight	5.88 oz (167g)	6 oz (170g)
  IP Rating	IP68	IP68
  Price	$600	$800
  Release	February 28, 2025	September 20, 2024

Apple launched the standard iPhone 16 alongside the rest of the iPhone 16 lineup -- the 16 Plus, the 16 Pro, and the 16 Pro Max -- back in September of last year. Serving as the entry model of the flagship series, the iPhone 16 is priced at an MSRP of $800, and ships with a 128GB base storage configuration.

The all-new iPhone 16e, meanwhile, is priced at $600 for an equivalent 128GB of base storage, which is a full $200 less expensive than its non-lettered sibling. Both devices are configurable in 256GB and 512GB internal storage SKUs, with no option for 1TB on either of the two handsets.

In terms of availability, both devices are on equal footing in the US. Once the iPhone 16e hits the market on February 16, both devices will be readily available for purchase across major wireless carrier stores, big box retailers, and e-commerce sites like Amazon.

Design and build

Both handsets clearly share design DNA

Physically speaking, the iPhone 16e and the iPhone 16 share a similar design language and bill of materials. Both handsets feature aluminum side rails, soft-touch glass rear panels, glossy front-facing display panels, IP68 water and dust resistance, and an overall angular look and feel.

The iPhone 16e is available only in basic black and white colorways, which is disappointing.

Peering a little closer, there are some subtler design differences worth noting. The iPhone 16e's rear is flanked by a single camera sensor, in contrast to the 16's dual-lens array. The 16e's front side features the tried-and-true 'notch' design for housing the selfie camera and Face ID sensors, whereas the vanilla 16 employs the sleeker Dynamic Island and features moderately thinner display bezels.

The iPhone 16e is available only in basic black and white colorways, which is disappointing -- the regular iPhone 16 can be had in the much more exciting flavors of pink, teal, and ultramarine.

Display

There's a lot of feature parity on the screen tech front, but neither panel is particularly impressive

Apple has outfitted both the iPhone 16e and the iPhone 16 with relatively similar displays. Both handsets ship with panels that measure 6.1-inches diagonally, utilize OLED tech, and run at (an impressively lousy) 60Hz refresh rate.

The iPhone 16's 2556 x 1179 pixel resolution slightly bests that of the 16e's 2532 x 1170 screen, and the former's 2,000 nits of peak brightness outshines the 1,200 nits of the latter device by a fairly small degree.

Unfortunately, Apple has neglected to incorporate always-on display tech into either unit -- you'll need to pony up for an iPhone Pro model for the luxury of an always-running Standby Mode experience.

Internals

Both models are powerhouses capable of on-device AI processing

Apple has been at the top of its game when it comes to computational performance for several generations now, and both the iPhone 16e and the iPhone 16 benefit from excellent silicon under the hood. Both handsets are powered by the same A18 chipset, supplemented with 8GB of RAM.

In short, this means that regardless of which model you spring for, you'll be getting an iPhone that's capable of advanced on-device artificial intelligence processing, generative AI tools, and other Apple Intelligence features.

...both the iPhone 16e and the iPhone 16 benefit from excellent silicon under the hood.

One small hardware consideration that's of note is the iPhone 16e's lack of MagSafe compatibility. In an effort to reduce costs, Apple has removed the dedicated ring of magnets that allow the regular iPhone 16 to connect to peripherals and floating charging stands.

Other iPhone 16 hardware features that are stripped out of the 16e include Ultra Wideband, Wi-Fi 7, and mmWave 5G radio antennas. While having these cutting-edge connectivity options is a nice perk in terms of future-proofing a device, they don't fundamentally change the user experience in a meaningful way at this point in time.

Cameras

A choice between a single rear or a dual rear camera setup

Both the iPhone 16e and the iPhone 16 offer solid 12-megapixel front-facing cameras, though f/stop, pixel and aperture size, and other variables are yet to be confirmed. On the rear side, the 16e features a single 48-megapixel wide angle shooter that's capable of recording video at up to 4K at 60fps.

The iPhone 16, on the other hand, offers both a 48-megapixel wide angle shooter and an additional 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens, which provides an extra focal length for squeezing in more into your photo scenes. Both of the iPhone 16's rear cameras are also capable of recording video at up to 4K at 60fps.

Notably, the iPhone 16e lacks the dedicated Camera Control button that flanks the side of the standard 16 model -- aside from serving as a dedicated shutter button, Camera Control offers quick access to Apple's Visual Intelligence feature for making search inquiries via your camera viewfinder.

Verdict: How does the new iPhone 16e stack up to the existing iPhone 16?

The iPhone 16e isn't without its flaws, but it sure makes the regular iPhone 16 a difficult purchase to justify

Overall, both the new iPhone 16e and the existing iPhone 16 are solid smartphone packages. Both feature high-powered Apple Silicon, access to Apple Intelligence AI features, an all-screen design sans home button, and IP68 resistance for peace of mind while stuck out in the rain.

Both iPhone models are also letdowns in some respects -- they share slow 60Hz display refresh rates, they lack always-on technology, and they both arguably fail to deliver on Apple's hype of an AI-driven future.

While I don't believe that you can go wrong with either device, I feel that the iPhone 16e offers the better bang-for-your-buck. It's unfortunate that the 16e lacks niceties like MagSafe charging or the Camera Control interface, but for $200 less than the 16, you're getting a well-built product with the same silicon powering Apple's more expensive handsets.