iPhone 16E Features and Critiques

The new iPhone SE 4 is here, but it's actually called the iPhone 16E. It also costs $599 instead of $499, which is what I believe to be the case, making it $170 more expensive than the iPhone SE 3. And if you're thinking of buying one, well, here are 20 things you need to know. 11 that are bad and 9 that are good. But let's start with the bad. Number one, there's no MagSafe at all on this. So if you have any MagSafe accessories like docks or car mounts, you would not be able to use those with the iPhone 16e. I've literally got no idea why Apple decided to do this. You can, however, buy cases that have MagSafe rings in them, so you can get MagSafe functionality that way, but the wireless charging speeds will actually be locked to 7.5 watts as opposed to 25 watts like we get on the iPhone 16s, which do have MagSafe. Something else that's missing is the ultra wideband chip, which means that if you've got an AirTag, you would not be able to use its precision. finding feature to precisely locate it, which really sucks. Then number three, we actually get weaker performance compared to the iPhone 16, despite the fact that they both have an Apple A18 chip inside with 8 gigabytes of RAM. And that's because it's got a 4-core GPU rather than a 5-core. The iPhone 16 Pros, for example, have a 6-core GPU, which means that the A18 chip inside the 16E is a double-bent chip with probably around... 20% less GPU performance than the iPhone 16. So I'm curious to see how the performance in AAA titles like Assassin's Creed Mirage will actually be on the 16E. And weirdly enough, it's only got Wi-Fi 6 instead of Wi-Fi 7. I'm also surprised that Apple didn't even give it Wi-Fi 6E and instead decided to go for an old Wi-Fi 6 modem, probably from some spare parts that it had from the iPhone 14s, which did have Wi-Fi 6 as well. But of course, the biggest thing that the iPhone 16e lacks compared to the iPhone 16 is that secondary camera module. We only have one camera module, which despite having the same 48 megapixel resolution as the main sensor on the iPhone 16, it actually lacks sensor shift stabilization and only has what Apple calls hybrid focus pixels as opposed to 100% focus pixels. There was even some discussion on Twitter that Apple is using a super tiny sensor here. One that's a third of the size of the one inside the iPhone 16 Pro, and of course, also smaller than the one in the iPhone 16. Now, it does have 2x sensor crop zoom, so at least you do get that, but compared to the regular 16, we do not have that ultrade module. And let's also not forget that its $599 phone still comes with a 60Hz display, which is just impossible to find in the Android space at its price point, as literally all of them have 120Hz panels now. Yes, I know, the iPhone 16 does also have a 60Hz display, but the iPhone 17 that's launching later this year is rumored to come with a 120Hz panel, which means that this new iPhone 16e will be left behind. It also lacks the camera control button that the iPhone 16 has, which, while yes, it is mostly a gimmick, I do quite like using it to quickly launch the camera. It does have an action button though, something that on our case model was only a mute switch, so I am really happy to see this. And it seems like Apple will also allow you to launch visual intelligence from it, something that on the iPhone 16s, you would normally hold the camera button for. Another thing that's worse on the 16E is its display. Not only are the bezels much thicker than the ones on the iPhone 16, but the brightness is also much lower, maxing out at 1200 nits in HDR as opposed to 1600, and only 800 nits outdoors as opposed to 2000. So yes, it does seem like Apple's reusing the same iPhone 14 panel here, as the iPhone 14 also had the same brightness numbers. Which means that we also get the same notch as the iPhone 14, whereas the iPhone 16s they all have the dynamic island which makes them look way more modern. And surprisingly it only comes in two colors, black and white, as opposed to the additional three vibrant colors that you can get if you go for the iPhone 16. Also since Apple has now stopped selling the iPhone 14 and the SE3 entirely, they actually have no product red color options on any of their products anymore. Product Red was of course a partnership with the Red Foundation, where parts of the profits would actually go towards it. So yeah, I'm really not sure if the partnership is dead or if it will come back at some point in the future. But really, the biggest negative of the iPhone 16E is that for just a tiny bit more, you can get yourself a refurbished iPhone 15 Pro. In the UK, for example, you can get one for £689 or just £90 more. And with that, you get two extra camera modules, you get a 120Hz ProMotion panel. With a much higher 2000 nits display brightness versus 800 outdoors, you also get the iMac Island and of course, MagSafe. Plus, you still get Apple Intelligence. But okay, now that I covered the bad, let's talk about the good. And speaking of good, you know what else is good? actually really good, our latest 8K packs from our app Wallpapers. As they not only have these super unique designs, but they're also available in a stunning 8K quality. This, for example, is Relentless Reflections by Michael. A beautiful Apple-inspired pack that makes any device look super premium. And if you use this pack on your smartphone, tablet, and desktop, the designs will pair so nicely. I'd definitely love to see what your setups would look like with this pack. Feel free to tweet me. at Zone of Tech. And then we've also got Glitzy Glasses by Honane, which has a similar premium vibe, but this one is a bit more nothing inspired with the pane glass effect behind them. And I think this looks super awesome as well. Check out both packs and more in our app Wallpapers, which you can download for free on iOS and Android. And we are dropping two new packs every single week. So use the links below to check it out. And now back to some of the good things about the iPhone 16E, such as this super long... battery life, which is 4 hours longer than the iPhone 16, which is definitely not something that I was expecting here. And the reason for this is apparently Apple's new C1 modem, which is their very first custom-designed 5G modem, the most power-efficient one in any iPhone. I do think that this is secretly the biggest announcement here, as future iPhone models will also support that C1 modem, resulting in more battery life improvements there as well. And eventually, this is rumored to also come to the Macs, giving us a 5G connection on the go, something that I'm definitely very excited for, especially with the power draw that the C1 chip or future chips will have. Another positive is that compared to the SE3, we are now getting literally double the amount of RAM, 8GB compared to 4. Now, I still wouldn't call Apple's RAM management the best, but compared to 6GB and 4GB iPhones, you should notice a major difference. And we also get double the storage from 64GB to 128GB, something that I predicted to be the case here as well. as 128GB was the minimum that the A18 chip supported on all the other A18 devices. I do however believe that this is also one of the main reasons why we saw such a big price increase compared to the SE3. Another positive is that now we do get Apple Intelligence as well, so personally I do find notification summaries and email summaries to be quite useful, but aside from that, I don't really use any of the features. Like with Genmoji, okay, I guess it's pretty cool being able to generate any emoji that you want, but I just don't use that. And with writing tools, I use them on my Mac when I write emails to proofread what I write, but almost never on my iPhone. Aside from that, I guess there's visual intelligence, which like I said, you can now use by just holding the action button on the 16E. I've used this like once or twice, but that was it. Same for cleanup. I've used it a few times, but I've never found it to work properly. Google's option that's built into Google Photos is just way better. So yeah, do you expect more Apple intelligence features to be available in the future? Until then, I guess it's nice to have, although not a major thing that you would probably consider buying this phone for. Now, I do really like that we do actually get the same front camera as on all the other iPhone 16s, like I believe to be the case. That means a larger and higher resolution 12MP sensor from the previous 7, and most importantly, one that can also autofocus. Another positive is that just like with all the other iPhone 16 models, we also get satellite connectivity, including the ability to send iMessages to your friends and family through satellite. which I think is huge when you're far out and you just want to inform your loved ones that you're fine. And we also get Find My through Satellite. So if you happen to lose your iPhone while hiking, as long as there's a satellite in range and the phone still has some battery life left, you'll be able to find it. And of course, we also get USB Type-C. And since Apple discontinued the 14s and the iPhone SE3, this means that every single Apple product that Apple sells right now comes with USB-C. And lastly, we've got the water resistance, which I was not expecting to be as good as on the iPhone 16s, but it is actually that good. 6 meters up to 30 minutes up from 1 meter on the iPhone SE 3. Although I guess it does kind of make sense as Apple is reusing the iPhone 14 body here and the iPhone 14 did also have a 6 meter water resistance. All in all, I'm not very impressed with the iPhone 16e at all. I think it simply costs way too much for what it is. Like $499 would have been passable. But $599 is just way too much, especially when you consider that you can get a refurbished iPhone 15 Pro for around the same price, like I mentioned before. But yeah, I would still love to hear your thoughts on it. And if you want to continue this conversation, feel free to do so on our free-to-join Discord that is linked down below, where we have competitions, we have loads of fun discussions about tech, and some other things as well. So yeah, feel free to join. And if you want to check out our app, Wallpapers, and get this wallpaper for free, That is also linked down below. I'm Daniel, this has been ZenofTech, and I'll see you guys in the next one. ZenofTech, signing out. Cheers.

So if you have any MagSafe accessories like docks or car mounts, you would not be able to use those with the iPhone 16e. I've literally got no idea why Apple decided to do this. You can, however, buy cases that have MagSafe rings in them, so you can get MagSafe functionality that way, but the wireless charging speeds will actually be locked to 7.5 watts as opposed to 25 watts like we get on the iPhone 16s, which do have MagSafe. Something else that's missing is the ultra wideband chip, which means that if you've got an AirTag, you would not be able to use its precision.

finding feature to precisely locate it, which really sucks. Then number three, we actually get weaker performance compared to the iPhone 16, despite the fact that they both have an Apple A18 chip inside with 8 gigabytes of RAM. And that's because it's got a 4-core GPU rather than a 5-core. The iPhone 16 Pros, for example, have a 6-core GPU, which means that the A18 chip inside the 16E is a double-bent chip with probably around...

20% less GPU performance than the iPhone 16. So I'm curious to see how the performance in AAA titles like Assassin's Creed Mirage will actually be on the 16E. And weirdly enough, it's only got Wi-Fi 6 instead of Wi-Fi 7. I'm also surprised that Apple didn't even give it Wi-Fi 6E and instead decided to go for an old Wi-Fi 6 modem, probably from some spare parts that it had from the iPhone 14s, which did have Wi-Fi 6 as well. But of course, the biggest thing that the iPhone 16e lacks compared to the iPhone 16 is that secondary camera module.

We only have one camera module, which despite having the same 48 megapixel resolution as the main sensor on the iPhone 16, it actually lacks sensor shift stabilization and only has what Apple calls hybrid focus pixels as opposed to 100% focus pixels. There was even some discussion on Twitter that Apple is using a super tiny sensor here. One that's a third of the size of the one inside the iPhone 16 Pro, and of course, also smaller than the one in the iPhone 16. Now, it does have 2x sensor crop zoom, so at least you do get that, but compared to the regular 16, we do not have that ultrade module. And let's also not forget that its $599 phone still comes with a 60Hz display, which is just impossible to find in the Android space at its price point, as literally all of them have 120Hz panels now. Yes, I know, the iPhone 16 does also have a 60Hz display, but the iPhone 17 that's launching later this year is rumored to come with a 120Hz panel, which means that this new iPhone 16e will be left behind.

It also lacks the camera control button that the iPhone 16 has, which, while yes, it is mostly a gimmick, I do quite like using it to quickly launch the camera. It does have an action button though, something that on our case model was only a mute switch, so I am really happy to see this. And it seems like Apple will also allow you to launch visual intelligence from it, something that on the iPhone 16s, you would normally hold the camera button for. Another thing that's worse on the 16E is its display.

Not only are the bezels much thicker than the ones on the iPhone 16, but the brightness is also much lower, maxing out at 1200 nits in HDR as opposed to 1600, and only 800 nits outdoors as opposed to 2000. So yes, it does seem like Apple's reusing the same iPhone 14 panel here, as the iPhone 14 also had the same brightness numbers. Which means that we also get the same notch as the iPhone 14, whereas the iPhone 16s they all have the dynamic island which makes them look way more modern. And surprisingly it only comes in two colors, black and white, as opposed to the additional three vibrant colors that you can get if you go for the iPhone 16. Also since Apple has now stopped selling the iPhone 14 and the SE3 entirely, they actually have no product red color options on any of their products anymore. Product Red was of course a partnership with the Red Foundation, where parts of the profits would actually go towards it.

So yeah, I'm really not sure if the partnership is dead or if it will come back at some point in the future. But really, the biggest negative of the iPhone 16E is that for just a tiny bit more, you can get yourself a refurbished iPhone 15 Pro. In the UK, for example, you can get one for £689 or just £90 more. And with that, you get two extra camera modules, you get a 120Hz ProMotion panel. With a much higher 2000 nits display brightness versus 800 outdoors, you also get the iMac Island and of course, MagSafe.

Plus, you still get Apple Intelligence. But okay, now that I covered the bad, let's talk about the good. And speaking of good, you know what else is good?

actually really good, our latest 8K packs from our app Wallpapers. As they not only have these super unique designs, but they're also available in a stunning 8K quality. This, for example, is Relentless Reflections by Michael.

A beautiful Apple-inspired pack that makes any device look super premium. And if you use this pack on your smartphone, tablet, and desktop, the designs will pair so nicely. I'd definitely love to see what your setups would look like with this pack. Feel free to tweet me. at Zone of Tech. And then we've also got Glitzy Glasses by Honane, which has a similar premium vibe, but this one is a bit more nothing inspired with the pane glass effect behind them.

And I think this looks super awesome as well. Check out both packs and more in our app Wallpapers, which you can download for free on iOS and Android. And we are dropping two new packs every single week.

So use the links below to check it out. And now back to some of the good things about the iPhone 16E, such as this super long... battery life, which is 4 hours longer than the iPhone 16, which is definitely not something that I was expecting here. And the reason for this is apparently Apple's new C1 modem, which is their very first custom-designed 5G modem, the most power-efficient one in any iPhone. I do think that this is secretly the biggest announcement here, as future iPhone models will also support that C1 modem, resulting in more battery life improvements there as well.

And eventually, this is rumored to also come to the Macs, giving us a 5G connection on the go, something that I'm definitely very excited for, especially with the power draw that the C1 chip or future chips will have. Another positive is that compared to the SE3, we are now getting literally double the amount of RAM, 8GB compared to 4. Now, I still wouldn't call Apple's RAM management the best, but compared to 6GB and 4GB iPhones, you should notice a major difference. And we also get double the storage from 64GB to 128GB, something that I predicted to be the case here as well.

as 128GB was the minimum that the A18 chip supported on all the other A18 devices. I do however believe that this is also one of the main reasons why we saw such a big price increase compared to the SE3. Another positive is that now we do get Apple Intelligence as well, so personally I do find notification summaries and email summaries to be quite useful, but aside from that, I don't really use any of the features.

Like with Genmoji, okay, I guess it's pretty cool being able to generate any emoji that you want, but I just don't use that. And with writing tools, I use them on my Mac when I write emails to proofread what I write, but almost never on my iPhone. Aside from that, I guess there's visual intelligence, which like I said, you can now use by just holding the action button on the 16E. I've used this like once or twice, but that was it. Same for cleanup.

I've used it a few times, but I've never found it to work properly. Google's option that's built into Google Photos is just way better. So yeah, do you expect more Apple intelligence features to be available in the future?

Until then, I guess it's nice to have, although not a major thing that you would probably consider buying this phone for. Now, I do really like that we do actually get the same front camera as on all the other iPhone 16s, like I believe to be the case. That means a larger and higher resolution 12MP sensor from the previous 7, and most importantly, one that can also autofocus. Another positive is that just like with all the other iPhone 16 models, we also get satellite connectivity, including the ability to send iMessages to your friends and family through satellite. which I think is huge when you're far out and you just want to inform your loved ones that you're fine.

And we also get Find My through Satellite. So if you happen to lose your iPhone while hiking, as long as there's a satellite in range and the phone still has some battery life left, you'll be able to find it. And of course, we also get USB Type-C.

And since Apple discontinued the 14s and the iPhone SE3, this means that every single Apple product that Apple sells right now comes with USB-C. And lastly, we've got the water resistance, which I was not expecting to be as good as on the iPhone 16s, but it is actually that good. 6 meters up to 30 minutes up from 1 meter on the iPhone SE 3. Although I guess it does kind of make sense as Apple is reusing the iPhone 14 body here and the iPhone 14 did also have a 6 meter water resistance. All in all, I'm not very impressed with the iPhone 16e at all.

I think it simply costs way too much for what it is. Like $499 would have been passable. But $599 is just way too much, especially when you consider that you can get a refurbished iPhone 15 Pro for around the same price, like I mentioned before.

But yeah, I would still love to hear your thoughts on it. And if you want to continue this conversation, feel free to do so on our free-to-join Discord that is linked down below, where we have competitions, we have loads of fun discussions about tech, and some other things as well. So yeah, feel free to join. And if you want to check out our app, Wallpapers, and get this wallpaper for free, That is also linked down below. I'm Daniel, this has been ZenofTech, and I'll see you guys in the next one.

ZenofTech, signing out. Cheers.

Transcript for:iPhone 16E Features and Critiques

Transcript for:
iPhone 16E Features and Critiques