On the Android side of things, picking a phone is an extremely complicated decision. Unless you are brand-loyal, there are tonnes of features to be accounted for before one arrives at a decision. And this is because they come in all shapes and sizes, with varying hardware configurations and even different software experiences, even though they are all based on Google’s Android. On the iOS side of things, well… not so much.
If your old trusty iPhone 12 went under a bus, and Apple Care won’t cover it officially, you have four new and recent iPhones to choose from. Or, you go down that slippery slope where you need to start weighing the pros and cons of older hardware running on newer and more demanding software. And then there’s the fact that the older your iPhone is, the less software support you will get.
Until last month, the iPhone 16 and the iPhone 15, along with their Plus-sized counterparts, were the only iPhones to choose from for non-Pro iPhone users. Apple has now introduced a new iPhone model called the iPhone 16e. It’s got some new hardware bits inside but comes in an old shell. It also cuts down on features many associate an iPhone with. It’s priced from Rs. 59,999 in India (for the base 128GB variant), which is relatively high given the hardware on offer. But after using it for a week, it really made me question — what makes an iPhone today.
Apple iPhone 16e Design: Notch a good idea!
- Dimensions – 146.7mm x 71.5mm x 7.8mm
- Weight – 167g
- Durability – IP68
In an age where Android smartphone manufacturers are trying to make the selfie camera disappear (or appear only when needed), Apple has launched a premium iPhone in 2025 with a sink-shaped notch. It’s not just the notch but also the thick borders surrounding the display that instantly make it look like an iPhone launched at least two years ago.
The iPhone 16e looks like an iPhone SE (2022/2020), and an iPhone 14 (2022) had a baby.
While this may be a turn-off for many, comparing it with the iPhone 15 Pro Max I reviewed earlier made me appreciate the abomination that is Dynamic Island introduced with the iPhone 14 Pro series.
I have always felt that Dynamic Island was a step backwards for Apple instead of a step forward. Two years in, Dynamic Island still gets in the way of viewing content, not just on Pro models but even on smaller displays like the iPhone 15 and the iPhone 16, along with their Plus-sized counterparts. Heck, it even expands and contracts, which makes it even more distracting on a smaller display.
The iPhone 16e’s thick display borders and old-school notch left me wanting the capsule-shaped Dynamic Island
But one look at the iPhone 16e, and I was instantly sold on how neater and smaller Dynamic Island appears compared to the old notch. At the same time, the notch on the 16e did make me appreciate the “simple life”, where my phone does not need to relay every live activity (from various apps) to me at the top of the display all the time. This is more so because I can already access the same activity by reaching for the Notifications Centre or the lock screen.
Given that this phone is priced between Rs. 59,900 and Rs. 89,900, it is a bit shocking that Apple hasn’t bothered to offer any colour options. It hints that if you need some colour in your life, you need to pony up and upgrade to an iPhone 15/16.
An IP68 rating offers good protection against the elements, but do keep in mind that “Liquid damage is not covered under warranty.”
A simple rear camera setup results in a slimmer overall design
Apple iPhone 16e Display: Is 60Hz still “smooth”?
- Display size – 6.1-inch, 1,170 x 2,532 pixels, 460ppi
- Display type – OLED, 60Hz
- Display protection – Ceramic Shield
Apple fans continue to give in and buy iPhones at abnormally high prices, allowing the company to comfortably gatekeep such features until something exciting shows up for the Pro models. Partially, this could be down to the fact that if you haven’t used ProMotion on an iPhone, you will never know what it feels like.
Having used 120Hz displays even on entry-level (sub-Rs. 10,000) Android smartphones, switching to the 60Hz panel did take some getting used to. My mind had to adapt to the slightly choppy frame rate and slightly sluggish responsiveness. I would want to tell you that’s it’s not a big difference, but it really hard to get your brain cells to work with a 60Hz panel once you have used a 120Hz display.
Did I miss a high-refresh-rate panel? Yes! Did I need it? Not really.
Apart from the slightly choppy appearance, the display (which seems to be borrowed from the iPhone 14) is a good one. Colours appeared natural, and the 460PPI meant that both text and images appeared tack sharp. The display is also bright (though not as bright as the Pro models). And so using it outdoors was not a problem. It also supports Dolby Vision, and the content appeared as expected.
Apple iPhone 16e Software: BAU
- Software version – iOS 18.3
- Software commitment – 5 years
After experiencing an official demo by Apple in a controlled environment, I was not too convinced about Apple Intelligence and its usefulness when stacked against what Samsung’s Galaxy and Google’s Pixel smartphones are capable of these days.
The only feature that caught my attention was Visual Intelligence, which can be triggered by the Action Button to learn about your surroundings. Tap the ‘Ask’ button to get details about an object in front of you, and it delivers a quick summary using ChatGPT.
Apple’s iOS desperately needs an overhaul, and the latest reports indicate that there is a major one in the works
On-device processing with Visual Intelligence is only used for summarising text (like on a banner or display), quickly recognising and tagging objects (“this could be a carnation”) and in the Image Playground app for generating cartoon-like imagery but nothing beyond. Slightly complex requests, including content formatting, are usually handled by ChatGPT.
Be it image editing or image generation, Apple sure has a long way to go before it can match up to what the other two smartphone brands are capable of today. And so, even if Apple Intelligence (AI) does come to India (scheduled for an April 2024 release), I still don’t see it as being remotely useful or capable.
In short, it’s not a factor to base your purchasing decisions on, and news of Apple delaying many AI features to the coming year instead of delivering them this year (as promised last year) is a good enough indicator that it is not ready yet and should not be taken seriously.
As customisable as the Action Button is, those upgrading from the older iPhone models may not find the new button as appealing as the iconic switch
From a feature standpoint, compared to the regular iPhone 16 or even the iPhone 15, Dynamic Island and its notifications are the only missing features. The Action Button is the only modern iPhone feature that makes it to the 16e. Users stuck on the abovementioned phones will also get access to Car Crash Detection.
Apple iPhone 16e Performance: Punches above its weight
- Processor – Apple A18 (with 4 core GPU), 4.02GHz, 3nm
- RAM – 8GB
- Storage – 128/256/512GB
Performance is an area where the Apple iPhone 16e does shine, both against Android rivals and older iPhones. However, the new chipset isn’t identical to the one in the latest iPhone 16. The A18 is a binned chipset with one GPU core disabled, meaning it won’t perform as well as the Apple A18 SoC inside the iPhone 16 Plus we reviewed last year. I have also included benchmark results from a similarly priced Android competitor in the table below for comparison.
| Benchmarks | iPhone 16e | iPhone 16 Plus | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chipset | A18 (3nm) Binned | A18 (3nm) | Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm) |
| Display resolution | Near 1.5K | Near 1.5K | QHD+ |
| AnTuTu v10 | 13,86,440 | 15,78,189 | 22,59,761 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 | NA | NA | 14,431 |
| Geekbench 6 Single | 3,229 | 3,203 | 2,964 |
| Geekbench 6 Multi | 7,888 | 7,846 | 9,081 |
| GFXB T-rex | 59 | 60 | 60 |
| GFXB Manhattan 3.1 | 59 | 60 | 60 |
| GFXB Car Chase | 59 | 60 | 60 |
| 3DM Slingshot Extreme OpenGL | NA | 3,922 | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Slingshot | NA | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life Unlimited | 13,146 | NA | 25,490 |
When using the iPhone 16e as my daily driver, I did not notice any slowdowns or any performance problems. Be it running apps or playing games; the 60Hz display refresh rate made things appear a bit sluggish even though the phone is performing just fine underneath.
Regarding that new Apple C1 modem, I did not notice any real-world differences when using the iPhone 16e out and about in Mumbai on Jio’s 5G network. Even at crowded conferences, I faced no connectivity issues. And so, I can conclude that Apple’s C1 modem does perform as expected, which is impressive given this is its first go at it.
The audio quality is pretty good too. The loudspeakers deliver rich audio quality with good balance, making for an immersive experience while streaming video or playing games.
Apple iPhone 16e Cameras: A bit below the mark
- Primary camera – 48-megapixel, f/1.6 aperture, OIS, AF
- Selfie camera – 12-megapixel, f/1.9 aperture, AF
Compared to most smartphones at this price point, Apple has given its iPhone 16e just one rear-facing camera. This camera is also in charge of digital zoom duties, as the viewfinder also shows a default 2X magnification level apart from the standard 1X. Since some of Apple’s camera features rely on more than one rear camera, you will find a few usual features missing if you own or have owned a recent iPhone model with two rear cameras.
The camera app lacks Cinematic Video, which lets one add a shallow depth-of-field effect to videos. While this wasn’t a deal breaker for me, the lack of a proper Portrait mode is. You see, the iPhone 16e’s single camera system instantly reminded me of the iPhone XR (from 2018), as its Portrait mode only works on human subjects and nothing else. Indeed, I was expecting some AI (Apple Intelligence) magic to help out here. But clearly this isn’t the case.
Need an ultra-wide camera? You will have to take several steps back
Another detail to keep in mind is that Apple has not used the primary camera from the new iPhone 16, the iPhone 15, or the iPhone 14 before it. This primary camera even lacks Apple’s sensor-shift tech and goes with a more basic lens-based OIS system instead.
Apple iPhone 16e primary camera samples (tap images to expand)
Photos from the primary camera pack a surprising amount of detail when capturing images in daylight, but I did notice some slightly dithered textures upon zooming into these high-resolution images (24 megapixels by default), which I found a bit weird.
The capture frame of the 1X primary camera also feels a bit constrained and not wide enough. Apple should have gone with a wider lens, given that this phone has no dedicated ultra-wide camera either.
Apple iPhone 16e low-light camera samples (tap images to expand)
For some reason, the low-light photos aren’t the best I have seen at this price point. The camera often struggles to capture low-light images despite the bright f/1.6 aperture and OIS, taking twice as long to snap a photo in slightly dimmer lighting conditions. This results in flatter textures, which is quite the contrast to the daylight shots. The iPhone 16e also tends to overdo HDR in low light, resulting in an over-processed look, which only adds to its texture problem.
Apple iPhone 16e 2X (digital zoom) camera samples (tap images to expand)
The 2X magnification is just a digital crop of the primary camera. These photos appear a bit soft and naturally pack in less detail. They are usable provided you don’t pixel peep, but it’s nowhere near as good as a smartphone with a dedicated 2X or 3X zoom camera. In low light, the 2X zoom captures show flat textures, appear soft and don’t pack much detail overall.
Apple iPhone 16e primary Portrait mode camera samples (tap to expand images)
Portrait photos using the primary camera come out well in perfectly lit shooting scenarios. Introduce some backlight, and the edge detection goes for a toss, or the entire image appears soft or flat. The same goes for low-light shooting, where the camera even fails to focus properly in this mode.
Apple iPhone 16e low-light selfie camera sample (tap image to expand)
It’s business as usual for the selfie camera. Decent photos with accurate skin tones in daylight, but the system takes a U-turn in low light, with mostly unusable images, as can be seen from the camera sample above.
Video quality is more Android-like, in the sense that even at 4K 30 fps, it’s not as smooth as one would expect from a modern-day iPhone 15 or 16. Thankfully, the colours and dynamic range are accurate, but the overall clarity is lacking. Low-light video quality is blurry and quite noisy, and it appears soft in general.
Apple iPhone 16e Battery: Impressive
- Battery capacity – 4,005mAh
- Wired charging – Around 18-20W
- Wireless charging – 7.5W
- Charger in box – No
Apple’s marketing strategy for the iPhone 16e heavily emphasises battery life. Apple states that a lot of this is down to the use of a larger battery (because there’s just one camera). Apple also states that its C1 modem is much more efficient than the one used in an iPhone 15. All of the above, combined with the A18 processor and a standard 60Hz refresh-rate display, should deliver some impressive battery figures.
Everyone’s smartphone usage differs and, so it’s hard to give an estimate of battery life. However, there was a day when I covered a conference shooting about 70 1080p video clips (about 30-60 seconds long) along with 5G uploads for 70 percent of them, and my phone had drained to 50 percent by noon, which is very good. More so for a compact smartphone!
In our HD video loop test, which keeps running a video file in a loop until the battery runs out, the iPhone 16e managed 21 hours and 50 minutes, which isn’t the best we have seen at this price point. Even Google’s Pixel 9, with a (not so efficient) Tensor G4 inside, managed a slightly better 25 hours and 6 minutes. Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Plus we tested managed a much better 27 hours and 20 minutes.
The best way to charge an iPhone 16e
Apple has not released any official figures, so I plugged it into a 100W GaN charger (which also supports PD) to see what this compact phone is capable of. The iPhone 16e delivered an impressive 58 percent charge in 30 minutes but then slowed down, managing 86 percent in 60 minutes. The device completed the charge in 1 hour and 34 minutes, which is still faster than the iPhone 16 Plus we tested earlier, but disappointingly slow compared to most Android devices available at this price point.
Apple iPhone 16e Verdict
Reviewing the iPhone 16e indeed got me thinking about what an iPhone experience really stands for today.
- Do you need a ProMotion display?
- Do you need the latest processor?
- Do you need fast wireless charging?
- Do you need a capable set of cameras?
- And do you need MagSafe and all of its accessories?
Indeed, your personal requirements will see you picking or ignoring the iPhone 16e. In my case, I could tolerate the 60Hz display, the slower charging and everything else, but the camera was indeed the deal breaker for me, especially considering this phone’s price tag.
The elephant in the room is iPhone 15 (Review). It sells at around the same price as iPhone 16e during festive sales and, so it makes little sense to pick up an iPhone 16e unless you prioritise battery life and nothing else.
And that leaves the iPhone 16e for the “I just need an iPhone crowd”. Those who aren’t bothered by AI are fine with decent camera quality. These are users who aren’t aware, haven’t experienced and don’t care about MagSafe and Dynamic Island.
Those who are still using an iPhone SE (2020/2022), the iPhone 7 series or an iPhone 8 series and are on a tight budget, can also comfortably upgrade to the 16e. They will be more than happy to embrace features like USB-C charging, 5G connectivity and Car Crash Detection. They will also experience better battery life and slightly better cameras versus what they have been using on their older devices.
Everyone else, including Android users switching over to iOS for the first time, can just reach out for an iPhone 15 or a 15 Plus.
