Apple has introduced its first new product of 2025: the iPhone 16E. The new iPhone replaces the iPhone SE from Apple’s lineup—the company’s entry-level, budget iPhone. But the iPhone 16E is more than just a minor spec update to the existing third-generation iPhone SE, which debuted nearly three years ago.
As its name suggests, Apple’s new entry-level device has more in common with its flagship iPhone 16 series, introduced last year, than the now-discontinued iPhone SE of old. Here are five major changes Apple has made and who, exactly, the new iPhone 16E is for.
A new design with a 6.1-inch display
The most noticeable thing about the iPhone 16E is that in design, it more closely resembles modern-day iPhones, such as the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16, the latter from which it derives its name.
The iPhone SE that the iPhone 16E replaced retained the same design as the iPhone 8 back in 2017. That design included a thick “forehead” and “chin” squeezing the tiny, 4.7-inch display from the top and bottom. With the elimination of the top and bottom bumpers around the display, Apple has been able to grow the size of the 16E’s screen by 1.4 inches. Yet, because Apple has done this by eliminating those ugly bumpers, Apple managed to only grow the physical size of the entire device by a few millimeters on all sides.
But most importantly about the iPhone 16E’s new design is that Apple’s entry-level iPhone now more closely resembles all other modern-day, entry-level phones—including Android ones. Consumers are used to smartphones having near edge-to-edge displays and the fact that the iPhone SE never had this turned many off the device.
Face ID replaces Touch ID
Another big change with the iPhone 16E is that it adopts Face ID, Apple’s biometric authentication system. This means that with the introduction of the iPhone 16E, Apple no longer sells a phone with the company’s groundbreaking Touch ID biometric authentication system it first introduced in 2013.
Not only does the elimination of Touch ID mean the iPhone’s once-iconic physical home button is now a thing of the past, but it also means that the iPhone 16E is more secure than the iPhone SE ever was. That’s because Face ID has a false-positive rate of one in a million, whereas Touch ID has a false-positive rate of just one in 50,000. That’s a 20x improvement in biometric security.
Bye-bye Lightning port, hello USB-C
But for many people with multiple modern devices, the most welcome change to the iPhone 16E is that Apple has finally replaced the archaic Lightning port on its entry-level iPhone. Instead of Lightning, the iPhone 16E now features a universal USB-C port, which means that you no longer need to rely on proprietary cables to charge your iPhone.
The iPhone 16E, like other modern iPhones and Android phones, can now be charged with any USB-C cable, even if that cable is the one that came with your MacBook Pro or your Samsung Galaxy device.
A18 chip and an Apple-built 5G modem
Internally, Apple has given the iPhone 16E a massive performance boost over the iPhone SE it replaces. The new iPhone 16E now features the same A18 chip that is found in the iPhone 16 (a huge improvement over the A15 in the previous iPhone SE). Additionally, the iPhone 16E has also received a RAM boost to 8GB (from the 4GB found in the SE).
There’s a reason for the generous chip and RAM upgrades, which I’ll get to next. But first, it’s also worth mentioning that the iPhone 16E has a first for any iPhone: It’s the first Apple device to use Apple’s new custom 5G modem.
Apple didn’t give many details about its new custom cellular modem, dubbed the Apple C1, beyond saying that the modem is the “most power-efficient modem ever on an iPhone.”
Apple Intelligence built-in
But getting back to that A18 chips boost and doubling of the RAM to 8GB. There’s a reason Apple has done that. It allows the new iPhone 16E to run Apple Intelligence, Apple’s new AI platform introduced with iOS 18.1.
Apple sees Apple Intelligence as a potential major driver of iPhone sales in the short and long term. Given that Apple usually only updates its entry-level iPhone once every three or so years, the company wants to make sure that the iPhone 16E will be able to run Apple Intelligence for the foreseeable future—making it appealing to cost-conscious and AI-curious consumers, no matter if they buy the device this year or next.
Who is the iPhone 16E for?
Apple is positioning the iPhone 16E as the company’s new low-cost iPhone. However, in some regards, the iPhone 16E is a better choice than the iPhone 15, which Apple continues to sell.
To be sure, the iPhone 15 still offers some better features, including a dual-lens rear camera setup (versus the single-lens camera found on the iPhone 16E). But the iPhone 15 lacks the necessary chipset and RAM to run Apple Intelligence.
That’s why if you are looking for the lowest-cost iPhone that is built for today’s AI world, the iPhone 16E is a better choice than the iPhone 15. However, if you are looking for the lowest-cost iPhone with a more modern camera system, the iPhone 15, with its dual-lens setup, is better than the iPhone 16E.
The iPhone 15 also sports the Dynamic Island, which the iPhone 16E lacks (yes, the iPhone 16E has the notch). Another minus for the iPhone 16E is its lack of MagSafe, the iPhone feature that lets you magnetically attach devices like power banks to your iPhone to charge the device.
But while the iPhone 16E offers several benefits over the iPhone SE it replaces, there is one drawback the device has gained—a price rise. The previous iPhone SE started at just $429. The new iPhone 16E starts at $599—a staggering $170 more than the SE. This high price means it’s debatable as to whether Apple actually offers a “budget” iPhone any longer.
Preorders for the iPhone 16E begin this Friday, February 21. The device will go on sale to the public a week later on Friday, February 28.
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