Total Wireless and Straight Talk are offering iPhone 16e $360 with one month included. Automatic unlocked in 60 days!
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPhone 16e Reviews: Is It Worth $599?
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Gonna be honest, while I would love MagSafe support, that Apple can't be bothered to offer colors does not make this phone for me exciting or personal. Even the Pixel a series and part of the Galaxy A series offers at least one or two additional colors next to white and black.
This must be through your carrier because I have absolutely never had this experience.
To start with, every refurbished product I’ve purchased through Apple has offered AppleCare. Every single one of them.
If they *don’t* offer you AppleCare, call and complain because they are supposed to.
Same goes for the battery, every refurbished unit I’ve ever bought has had a brand new battery in it. If you are getting refurbished units with old used batteries, call and complain. That is not normal.
The specs over the SE include a much larger size, twice the base storage, increased RAM, better camera setup, better chip, better modem, better battery, increased max brightness, super retina XDR display, Apple Intelligence, emergency SOS via satellite, roadside assistance via satellite, Messages via satellite, crash detection, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, ceramic shield, greater water resistance, etc. You think all of this is only worth $70 over the SE's price?
The way Apple prices phones in general, the size increase (+$100) and increased storage (+$50) over the SE alone would bring the price to $579.
The $215.64 ($5.99/month x 36 months) price requires an AT&T unlimited plan which start at $65.99/month for 1 line and sticking with that carrier/plan for at least 36 months to get the full savings/discount.
There are cheaper plan options out there.
That is the problem. The increased storage does not cost in the slightest what Apple charges. Even though I like Apple, Apple is always good to sell yesteryears tech for tomorrow's prices.
Everywhere? The Apple price is $829, the AT&T price is $829.99, the T-Mobile price is $829.99, the Verizon price is $829.99, and so on. Yes, there can be carrier "deals" with certain plans but the same is true for the 16e and other iPhones. The article is comparing retail prices not prices tied to certain carriers requiring certain commitments, minimum plan prices, etc.
That may be but is not unique to the 16e, SE, etc. Even ignoring the storage size/price component, the 16e specs over the SE include much larger display size, increased RAM, better camera setup, better chip, better modem, better battery, increased max brightness, super retina XDR display, Apple Intelligence, emergency SOS via satellite, roadside assistance via satellite, Messages via satellite, crash detection, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, ceramic shield, greater water resistance, etc. All of that is worth more than just $70 over the SE IMO.
I am gonna wait for the Amazon Spring Sales and hope it gets a 50 Euros discount.
For me I could get a good iPhone that would run for many years for significantly less. (iPhone14)
I could get a significantly better iPhone for not much more (iPhone 15 or 16)
It’s an OK device but it isn’t for me. For $599 it’s both not enough and too much.
I could get a significantly better iPhone for not much more (iPhone 15 or 16)
It’s an OK device but it isn’t for me. For $599 it’s both not enough and too much.
A perfect summary of the situation
It sort of exists in no mans land at $599 and with this feature set
Apple seems to know that there is a market. I own an 12 mini and for me this is gonna be huge upgrade.
I am for sure ordering the 16E. After watching some of the reviews on YouTube someone suggested to check out the refurbished 15 Pro for the same price but that's not accurate at all. The 16E is 700 Euros and the refurbished 15 Pro is 950 Euros. Nope! LOL!
I don't need a macro camera. I don't need magsafe. Never used them once in the four years of owning my iPhone 12 mini. So I don't mind the 16E not having them. Why can't you see that not everybody has the same needs as you?
Dude a magsafe sticker is 5 Euros! LOL! If its such a dealbreaker buy yourself a sticker or a case with magsafe.
Ok you mean an Apple refurb unit, which I agree, are all excellent and just as good as buying new.
The refurb prices that people are giving here for the iPhone 15 pro is nowhere near the price that Apple offers, so my message was: 'buyer beware of 3rd party refurbs'.
Any phone at all would be perfect for them
Thanks for clarification. So for customers not using much mobile data this seems like an overkill. I know I shouldn't compare prices between countries but man, in Europe I pay ~$12 for 120 gigs.
Yes. A perfect summary for the poster quoted. It’s not a perfect summary for my situation.
But yet, will Apple allow the iPhone 16e to sell at a discount at third-party retailers like Best Buy? We forget that the iPhone 16e is much less expensive to produce than the iPhone 16 6.1" model, and that could allow Best Buy to sell the iPhone 16e for $449 128 GB and $549 256 GB "unlocked" with Apple's blessing.
Apple's entry-level iPhone 16e launches this Friday. Ahead of time, the first reviews of the device have been shared by select media outlets and YouTube channels.
iPhone 16e features include a 6.1-inch OLED display with a notch, Face ID, an A18 chip, Apple Intelligence support, a USB-C port, an Action button, and a single 48-megapixel rear camera that offers 2x zoom with optical-like quality. The device is also equipped with the Apple-designed C1 modem for 5G and LTE connectivity.
The power-efficient C1 modem and a larger battery contribute to the iPhone 16e offering the longest battery life of any 6.1-inch iPhone model ever, according to Apple. The company's tech specs state that the iPhone 16e offers up to 26 hours of battery life for offline video playback, compared to up to 22 hours for the regular iPhone 16.
Unfortunately, the iPhone 16e does not support MagSafe. It also lacks an Ultra Wideband chip, which powers the Precision Finding feature in the Find My app. In addition, the A18 chip in the iPhone 16e has a 4-core GPU, versus a 5-core GPU in the regular iPhone 16.
In the U.S., the iPhone 16e starts at $599. Is it worth it? Many reviewers think so, but the lack of MagSafe on the device is surprising and disappointing. There are a few reasons you might want to consider purchasing a regular iPhone 16 for $799 instead, including MagSafe, the Dynamic Island, an Ultra Wide camera, and Wi-Fi 7 support instead of Wi-Fi 6, but otherwise the iPhone 16e still offers many modern features at a more modest price. For the average customer, the iPhone 16e is a perfectly fine choice.
Many of the iPhone 16e's features already existed, so our review roundup focuses on new and notable aspects, including the C1 modem, battery life, the graphics performance of the A18 chip with a reduced 4-core GPU, and the lack of MagSafe.
Review Highlights
C1 Modem
Apple wants to move away from Qualcomm modems in iPhones, and that transition starts with its custom-designed C1 modem in the iPhone 16e.
The Verge's Allison Johnson said she "didn't see any consistent difference in performance" between the C1 modem and a regular iPhone 16 with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X71 modem:Tom's Guide's John Velasco didn't seem to notice any major difference either:Apple says the C1 is already the most power-efficient iPhone modem ever.
Apple has repeatedly said the C1 modem is just the start. In a press release this week, focused on U.S. manufacturing commitments, Apple heavily implied that it will release additional devices with custom 5G modems in the future. Those devices could include the iPhone 17 Air, the iPad 11, future Mac and Vision Pro models, and more.
Battery Life
Apple says the iPhone 16e offers the longest battery life of any 6.1-inch iPhone model ever.
Tom's Guide put it to the test:According to Dave Lee of the YouTube channel Dave2D, the iPhone 16e is equipped with a 3,961 mAh battery. That is an 11% increase in capacity compared to the regular iPhone 16's 3,561 mAh battery.
A18 Chip With 4-Core GPU
In the iPhone 16e, the A18 chip has a 4-core GPU. In the iPhone 16, it has a 5-core GPU.
This is not a massive concern, but it seems to make a difference.
CNET's Patrick Holland:Lack of MagSafe
The lack of MagSafe on the iPhone 16e is surprising and disappointing.
CNET's Patrick Holland:Introduced on all iPhone 12 models, the MagSafe system lets you magnetically attach a charger, battery pack, and other accessories to the back of the iPhone. A set of magnets inside the iPhone securely hold these accessories in place.
Apple has not explained why the feature is missing on the iPhone 16e, although it did confirm that the lack of MagSafe is unrelated to the C1 modem.
The only other iPhone model without MagSafe since 2020 was the third-generation iPhone SE, but that devi... Click here to read rest of article
Article Link: iPhone 16e Reviews: Is It Worth $599?
As the poster above said, it's already available for $299 at Straight Talk and Total wireless, with a port-in. They unlock automatically in 60 days and then you can do as you wish.
My company currently only offers the SE. They will be issuing the 16e going forward, and people on the 2020 SE are getting an upgrade.
It seems like the perfect corporate phone! Everyone is complaining about specs, but corporation have different priorities, and how may cameras it has or what the refresh rate is, isn't one of them.
Last edited:
So why does Apple include MagSafe at all instead of just selling stickers and cases? Apparently that wouldn’t be any loss.