Then buy something else because Apple clearly doesn't see it's worth their time to make a toddler phone.
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iPhone 16e Has Apparently 'Failed' Just Like iPhone Air
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Not having Magsafe was dumb, but Apple completely messed up their lineup when they increased base storage to 256 GB on the iPhone 17, and didn’t update the rest of the lineup to align with it.
Current 256 GB iPhone prices
iPhone Pro: $1099
iPhone Air: $999
iPhone 17: $799
iPhone 16: $799* (128 GB is $699, thus if sold 256 GB would be $799)
iPhone 16e: $699
The problem is obvious, I don’t understand how Apple walked right into it. That said, the 256 GB iPhone is the best value iPhone Apple’s offered in years, so it’s a win for anyone looking for that phone.
Current 256 GB iPhone prices
iPhone Pro: $1099
iPhone Air: $999
iPhone 17: $799
iPhone 16: $799* (128 GB is $699, thus if sold 256 GB would be $799)
iPhone 16e: $699
The problem is obvious, I don’t understand how Apple walked right into it. That said, the 256 GB iPhone is the best value iPhone Apple’s offered in years, so it’s a win for anyone looking for that phone.
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The product line up is bloated and stupid. It makes no sense and they don’t offer an actual budget phone.
Look at Google. They know how to do it.
Look at Google. They know how to do it.
The current line up makes no sense price wise. A 256GB 16 would be the same price as a base 17.
If Apple had reduced the 16 by $200, the 16e by $100 and debuted the Air at $899 all 3 devices would like be selling better.
If Apple had gone that route these would be 256GB prices
iPhone Pro: $1099
iPhone Air: $899
iPhone 17: $799
iPhone 16: $699
iPhone 16e: $599
What doesn't help the Air as well is Apple hasn't really bothered advertising it. I've seen loads of Pro model adverts and a few for the base 17 but none for the Air.
If Apple had reduced the 16 by $200, the 16e by $100 and debuted the Air at $899 all 3 devices would like be selling better.
If Apple had gone that route these would be 256GB prices
iPhone Pro: $1099
iPhone Air: $899
iPhone 17: $799
iPhone 16: $699
iPhone 16e: $599
What doesn't help the Air as well is Apple hasn't really bothered advertising it. I've seen loads of Pro model adverts and a few for the base 17 but none for the Air.
The problem is here that none of these devices are really "failing" (except the Air).
It's that Tim Apple can't see the value of anything that isn't plowing 10 figures. It doesn't help that pricing the devices so high that, in this economy, many would have to take out a loan to purchase. Tim's claim to fame was that he was a good money guy and a great economics of scale guy, but he's having Jony Ive vibes of thinness becoming anorexia epidemic, but to production.
The Mini didn't sell poorly; it just didn't lubricate his money printer hard enough. Same with the "e" models.
It's that Tim Apple can't see the value of anything that isn't plowing 10 figures. It doesn't help that pricing the devices so high that, in this economy, many would have to take out a loan to purchase. Tim's claim to fame was that he was a good money guy and a great economics of scale guy, but he's having Jony Ive vibes of thinness becoming anorexia epidemic, but to production.
The Mini didn't sell poorly; it just didn't lubricate his money printer hard enough. Same with the "e" models.
1000% this.
Apple's pricing for their lineup is ALL messed up because the iPhone 17 is REALLY GOOD. (And also the 16e is too highly priced.)
Here in the US:
The 17 is $799 for 256GB for storage.
The 16e is $699 for 256GB of storage.
The 16 is also $699 but for 128GB. (they don't even sell the 256GB version anymore)
Compared to the 16e, the 17 (For $100 more for the same 256GB storage tier) has: 120Hz display, second rear camera lens, better selfie cam, A19, dual frequency GPS, BT6, wifi7, camera control button, dynamic island, magsafe, and the UWB chip.
The 16 vs 17 for $100 more has: double the storage, 120Hz display, better selfie cam, A19, dual frequency GPS, BT6, wifi7.
The 16 and 16e are an absolutely **** value proposition. I can't imagine anyone who actually takes the time to compare the iPhone lineup post 17 series launch would actually buy it unless it's got a really great sale going on.
Why would anyone want to change their phone every year if all they do is make calls and occasionally send text messages? If you're a photographer, you'd invest in a proper camera. If not, a 4–5-year-old phone will suffice for basic tasks. This is one of the reasons why new phones struggle to find buyers. Another reason is that phone manufacturers often lack significant areas to enhance their devices enough to entice buyers.
Just make a new mini for people who want useful mobile devices.
This post explains all these stories ... the 16e, the Air, the Mini phones.
We've got to get away from this belief that EVERY iPhone model needs to sell ZILLIONS of units.
It's nuts and totally unrealistic.
If it were up to me, I'll cut the "4th iPhone" (air/plus) and make the e/SE slot the mini size slot
Your interpretation is not correct. The problem is losing money because they can’t sell phones in that segment, since maaaaany people won’t spend flagship money on phones.
unless somehow they manage to sell it so the distribution is perfectly split among all the models, one of them is going to sell "worse" than all others
Failure is relative, especially when it comes to Apple.
In this case the 16e is apparently the #12/#13 best selling phone worldwide.
In this case the 16e is apparently the #12/#13 best selling phone worldwide.
This needed to be priced like the old SE’s.
Apple’s idea of “budget” is “expensive”.
Apple’s idea of “budget” is “expensive”.
I bought it and I truly regret it. I'll change it when the new iPhone 17e or something else will be available. It's half as good as my previous iPhone 13.
What do you miss?
Can you tell us more?
I thought folks were pretty happy with the 16e, just not the price so much.
I don’t believe any of these phones are failures, they serve a purpose to Apple to divert people to the more expensive models. The mini was created to push the base price up, which worked. The 16e used old(ish) tech to direct people to the main base models, or even a Pro model. Apple have so much data and analysts, this is all premeditated and intentional. Of course the 16e sales would slump when the 17 came out. The Air was a test run for fold and maybe even thinner iPad Pro’s? If they wanted a new mini, it really would not take much more than getting the new camera and battery tech and chips into the existing casing, that the production line already has all the details to make the shells again.
Next year’s updates will be the most interesting yet, especially for the base models, what else can they do?
Next year’s updates will be the most interesting yet, especially for the base models, what else can they do?
I think the Mini was created for those who still prefer a smaller device.
Even I'm not so cynical to think that EVERYthing is done to push up prices, at least not as a primary goal.
There was some flawed analysis that it was doing well. Pragmatically, the 16e replaced both the SE and the iPhone n-2 ( iPhone 14 in this case). So to do well it would need to outsell both categories combined. What appeared in a couple of 'happy talk' stories on Mac Rumors was that the 16e was outselling the SE. Or outselling the iPhone 14. Or measured the initial demand bubble of the first 1-3 months.
The problem is that the increase price cut off folks from the bottom (~25+ % ) of the old SE market. You have budget cellphone service vendors selling the iPhone 13/14 for less money than the 16e. ( two cameras instead of one, etc.)
For example.
"iPhone 13 $199 , iPhone 14 $199. iPhone 16e $239 .."
Buy Smartphones & Cell Phones | Cricket Wireless
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[ similar issues at totalwireless $49. , $149. , $299.
https://www.totalwireless.com/phones/apple ]
[ there is no discount at Boost mobile and very probably selling like crap. ]
Maybe if Apple Intelligence had been a 'thing' that folks wanted to pay a lot more money for that might work, but folks on a tight budget are just going to pick the less expensive phone. Period. Used market phones versus 16e ... same issues (e.g., Amazon seems to have a rash of 16e Renewal models for far less than list price) . Apple increasing the price by $200 was not going to buy/retain more customers over time once the discounts settled in for the alternatives.
Inflation , consumer tightening at the sub 50% income levels ,etc. Horrible timing for a 40% price increase.
NOTE: the Air has somewhat similar problems with several carriers with TV ads for "get iPhone 17 Pro" for 'free'. (when lock into a higher priced cell phone plan .but 'free' sells better than > $1K. )
That isn't going to fix pricing them past what the market wants to pay. And also dropping all the sales increntives onto the other phones.
Every thread ends up becoming a chance to relitigate the mini or the SE or jeez, the 5c as if it had a special place in iPhone lore. It didn't. It was colorful, plastic, and ultimately a doomed experiment. Much as I loved the mini, it too failed. It didn't have a large enough battery in the 12 and the 13 mini versions, and the form factor would not yield a big enough battery *now* with the prevailing battery tech. By now we should be conditioned to the idea that the further down you go in Apple's price tiering structure, the more corners will be cut, the 16e being a prime example. And no, Apple is not going to drop the price $100 to make it a better buy for you, because there aren't enough of *you* to make it worthwhile. Apple isn't in the business of making loss leaders, especially iPhones. They're fine selling good enough products to enterprise by the hundreds and thousands. That said, sometimes the combination of tech provided and price comes together to make a great value, like the base 17 and the M4 MacBook Air. That can't happen every year and shouldn't be expected. Even Android manufacturers are having trouble grinding out compelling mid-tier phones. If Apple is having trouble figuring this out as well, it sure isn't going to be solved by a bunch of fantasy CEOs on a message board.
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Is there no one at this site with any journalistic integrity? Why don’t you question the motivation for all these “leakers” to trash the Air from day one of its release? The readers would also be interested in knowing who writing here is invested in Apple stock. There is a reason why the investor class prefers some products to succeed and some products to fail. The Air clearly has lower margins at this point than any of the existing lineup of phones. It is bizarre for there to be such a reaction to a phone I’ve never seen any product smeared like this since New Coke which DESERVED to be trashed because it was not good. I hope no one is making purchasing decisions based on what you’re reading. Go to an Apple Store and try the phones out yourself. You have 14 days to return it no questions asked if you’re not happy with it.
