The MacRumors Show: iPhone 16e Announced!

[Big_D]

My company has a mobile device benefit. And I have stats on the composition. And while there is a mixed bag for sure bigger is better.

Ours are purely for business, no personal data or apps allowed on the devices, so people just use them for calls and email, so something small that doesn’t bulk up pockets or bags, when carrying 2 devices, is more important for many.

 

[I7guy]

Ours are purely for business, no personal data or apps allowed on the devices, so people just use them for calls and email, so something small that doesn’t bulk up pockets or bags, when carrying 2 devices, is more important for many.

MDM takes care of security and confidentiality. I like only having one phone with a paid benefit and having a large phone at that.

 

[TallManNY]

How many times do these guys need to hear from consumers that battery life is important to the point where they won't just gloss over the battery life gains of this phone? They hit the point, but then moved on with nearly a shrug. The 16e is going to tank the sales of 15 and the 16 and probably cut into 16 Pro sales significantly. It will also probably have "acceptable" battery life for its typical users well into its third year over ownership and maybe into four years of ownership. That is going to make it a great value proposition.

 

[TallManNY]

I feel personnally insulted by the offering. I have an iPhone 11 with 128GB with 4GB or Ram.
I see no reason to "upgrade", as my 11 from 2019 has UW1, ultrawide angle and works "fine".

There is no reason for this "new" phone to not have UW1, two cameras. Other iphones were the cheaper option for years, like the 12, the 13, the 14 and they had all basic features, will be OK for another half a decade.

This is the iPhone Apple wants you to have, at the price it wants you to pay, NOT the best value it could offer.

Apple is scaling back quality on purpose because it wants to give value to the real base iPhone.
This product is made to let you say "wow, this is ****" and upgrade to a 16.
And, for suckers who will be deluded they are getting a bargain, the overpriced device will make a huge buck for Apple.

It's literrally an abusive relationship at this point, but Apple's been doing that since 2017 and the worst iPad ever, then the worst watch ever, etc.

People will notice. I've noticed.

You bought a phone in 2019 and nearly 6 years later it still works fine and your analysis from this fact is that Apple makes bad and overpriced products? You paid $749 for that iPhone version in 2019, which in 2025 adjusted for inflation would be $923. But from this you conclude that a $599 phone should have no compromises from the higher price point model you bought in 2019. I'm sure you've noticed things, but I'm not sure what you notice is really tied too closely to reality.

Don't upgrade dude. I've got an XS that works fine (obviously it has had its battery replaced) that I won't be replacing with the 16e. But I think the 16e is going to be a workhorse phone that is going to last its buyers for years (and then have years of life on the secondary market after the first user moves on).

 

[Compote]

You bought a phone in 2019 and nearly 6 years later it still works fine and your analysis from this fact is that Apple makes bad and overpriced products? You paid $749 for that iPhone version in 2019, which in 2025 adjusted for inflation would be $923. But from this you conclude that a $599 phone should have no compromises from the higher price point model you bought in 2019. I'm sure you've noticed things, but I'm not sure what you notice is really tied too closely to reality.

Don't upgrade dude. I've got an XS that works fine (obviously it has had its battery replaced) that I won't be replacing with the 16e. But I think the 16e is going to be a workhorse phone that is going to last its buyers for years (and then have years of life on the secondary market after the first user moves on).

Questioning people's discernment as to what's real isn't a good look (it's called gaslighting).

First, the iPhone 16e is a ****** product not because of quality but because of offering. I wouldn't call out an untested product on build and durability.
The iPhone 16e is way overpriced, if only because former iPhones did better for less, and I don't care about the chip, that makes no difference.
- It doesn't have 90Hz.
- It doesn't have a second camera
- It doesn't have physical stabilisation
- It doesn't have Magsafe.
- It doesn't have the UW1 band, which I rely on daily.
Save for the OLED screen and the chip, the 11 is better in every way, or the 11 missed the same stuff and sucked all the way back to 2019 for it, so why should a 2025 phone get a pass???

I didn't pay 749 dollars, as I'm not an American. I paid 879 euros. I bought that iphone 11 in october 2019, it hasn't been 6 years yet. You're trying to compare Apples and Oranges, the 11 was a base model, not an SE-e "bargain" phone, so the argument for inflation would work comparing similar offerings, namely the 256 GB iPhone 16, that is equivalent in price.

The fact you thought 16e and 11 were comparable (and they are) in price, shows how overprice that 16e turd sandwich is and you've made my case.

Next, about quality. My original iPhone 11 failed at the level of the Lighting connector in spring 2022, not 3 years after I had bought it.

I had to throw a fit at the call line cause the store didn't want me to get it fixed, again not 3 years after it went on sale, and offered me the PRIVILEGE or BUYING A NEW ONE and tried to sweet talk me into paying full price for a "replacement" which was just the iPhone 12's price. I managed to say "right to repair" and that's the magic word, meaning I was ready to sue them through a consumer association I was a part of for not repairing my 900 euro phone after 3 years of normal use and no visible damage.

After 3 years, the replacement unit is showing the same signs of wear at the same point of failure.
And the reason why it's "fine" is because the whole device got replaced mid-way and it has a newer battery.

I wish I had been able to upgrade, but Apple's greed means each new unit is 300 euros more expensive than the last by the time I can afford another one.

The iPhone 11 was bad and overpriced in terms of offering in 2019 with no 5G, no OLED, no telephoto, not 90Hz, and it came without a defining feature of all iphones : no 3D Touch. It was the iPhone I could afford, but it wasn't the one I wanted. Even so, the fact it had the same internals and a slightly worse screen meant it had better battery, which was a real argument, unlike the argument made by the 16e, since the 16e is worse and weaker than the 16 in almost every way : binned chip, less ram, less screen light.

Adjusted for inflation, next, I can't get the same premium for the same price of 923 you've quoted, even if I wanted a base 16. The memory upgraded equivalent of my 128GB 11 is the upgraded 256gb 16, and that's 1100euros.

It's therefore a reasonable thing, that I find the 16e overpriced, because it is, and notice it's worse in many ways and even slightly worse than even iPhone 11.

The 16e is bad product, and overpriced at that. Your advice to not upgrade is no advice at all, as the 16e is NOT an upgrade compared to the 11.

 

[Compote]

It’s up to you (the royal you) to decide if the price value ratio is to your liking. If not don’t buy. We will see how successful this phone is in coming fiscal quarters.

Wow you don't say.

 

[Big_D]

MDM takes care of security and confidentiality. I like only having one phone with a paid benefit and having a large phone at that.

We use InTune and AppTec, but it is still company policy, no private data on company devices and no company data on private devices.

It also makes it simple to shut off at the end of the day, you put the company phone in the desk drawer before leaving the office.

 

[theorist9]

The biggest problem I am hearing from our users (company fleet of around 50 iPhones) is that the iPhone 15 (our current default phone) is too big and people go for the SE instead. Now, going forward, that option of a small device is no longer there.

That said, until now we have used the phones only for email and calls and everybody has a private smartphone, so few want an all-singing-all-dancing iPhone, they just want something that can be tucked into a pocket for emergencies.

Is this preference for a smaller phone just because this is a 2nd phone they need to carry just for work (and is being used for emails and calls only)? I.e., when it comes to their private phones, do they also prefer a smaller phone, or for that do they prefer the larger devices?

 

[Big_D]

Is this preference for a smaller phone just because this is a 2nd phone they need to carry just for work (and is being used for emails and calls only)? I.e., when it comes to their private phones, do they also prefer a smaller phone, or for that do they prefer the larger devices?

Most have something like a Samsung Galaxy S2n Plus, Xaiomi Red or iPhone (standard, Plus or Max) phones for their private use, so "normal" sized to phablet sized phones, they just don't want to lug around a second, big phone.

I have a 14 for work and a 16 Pro private, my colleagues here have either SE or mini for work and S24 Ultra, 15 Pro, 15, Xiaomi Red 2, outside the IT Android is prevalent and most have large phones, but 70% of the company phones are SEs and a couple of minis. Even one of our co-CEOs has a 12 mini as a company phone and a 15 as a private phone.

 

[notmyemail]

When discussing the AI feature to erase things in photos, Hartley admitted that he has no idea how much better Samsung does it as he has not seen it as he has never used Android. He has stated in the past about his complete lack of Android experience.

Hartley .... you lose a lot of credibility as you have no idea or personal experience what Apples competitors are doing. You keep stating that you are a "tech enthusiast" but that is BS. Based on your actions, you are simply an Apple enthusiast.

You have a lot of potential but you have to explore other platforms so you can speak with more concrete knowledge.

1. This is not a ratings/comparison website. It's an Apple rumors/products website. You're welcome to wander lost on YouTube among the clickbaiters any time.
2. Please don't use the word 'competition' in a sentence about anything Google-related.
3. Dan gives plenty of airtime to non-Apple tech, and thus often relies on Hartley's detailed memory and understanding of Apple tech. They make a good team for that reason.
4. Your comment "You have a lot of potential but you have to explore other platforms so you can speak with more concrete knowledge" sounds like an insecure school teacher damning the report card of a talented pupil.

 

[KennyJr]

Dan,
Very distracting and impolite to Hartley when you keep gazing off to your right. A cute bartender over there perhaps.

Agreed! For that matter it's impolite for all of us who are watching. Imagine talking to someone who looks away mid-conversation - message sent: I find what you are saying to be boring and unimportant.

 

[CharlieBoyWoof]

unwatchable nonsense