AmberNeely

respone said:

To address the finer points, ignoring the ample logomachy:
1. 'It doesn't need the latest chip.' That's what the SE model gets each time: the latest chip in a retired chassis.
2. 'It doesn't need AI.' AI is automatic with the latest chip and its included 8GB RAM, so this point's redundant.
3. 'It could've just used a single camera.' It does. "2-in-1" is a marketing phrase. It's one. https://www.techradar.com/phones/iphone/whats-so-fusion-about-the-iphone-16s-48mp-camera
4. 'It doesn't have the latest display.' It has the display of the model that's been retired, as usual.
5. 'It's too close to the iPhone 15.' Perhaps, only until the 15 is pushed out of the lineup, presumably within a year from now.
6. 'They'll refresh it every year now.' Based on what evidence? The name? Did the 5c get refreshed every year? Did the XR?
7. '$599 is too much.' The original iPhone, starting at $499, would be over $750 in today's money. Does the 16e offer more value than the original? If the price increase is too much, can't you buy a used iPhone?
8. 'No MagSafe.' I cannot imagine how MagSafe would ever be useful, but wouldn't it certainly *increase* the price? Is it possible that some people don't desire MagSafe or even UWB and don't want to pay more for them, and this is now the only perfect phone in the lineup for them?
9. 'This is supposed to be the common man's phone. Think of the children and the elderly!' This is deflection from the facts that weaken your argument.
10. 'It doesn't come in red.' The horror.
11. 'If only we had a new Mini.' Like the Mini 13 that started at $699 which would be over $800 in today's money? Is $599 too much or not? Also, the $429 SE 3 in 2022 would now be $480 with inflation. The price complaints don't add up.
12. 'It's a big phone.' For you, maybe, but the average customer disagrees. Once again, it's the size of the retired model it's repurposing.

To conclude: you do not get double the memory, double the storage, a much-needed major camera upgrade, the latest chip, bigger brighter screen, much better battery - all for the same $429 price from 2022 (before inflation). Between the boosted value of more modern features, and the decreased buying power of the dollar, we're lucky it starts at only $599. The dollar is not worth what it was in 2016 or whatever iPhone release year you want to compare prices from. This phone is much nicer than whatever model from years ago. The price should be higher by comparison. And yet it's still cheaper than the original 4GB 2007 model in 2025 dollars.

You make some fair points and I'm not going to argue against all of them.

7: Apple is a nearly four trillion dollar company. They didn't get there by pricing their products fairly. Especially not in 2025. They're fully aware that everyone has to have a smartphone. Everything is insanely expensive right now. Most people's pay has not kept up, so getting squeezed for the "budget" iPhone just feels like another kick in the stomach. A $480 SE would have been great. Instead, the 16e probably lies right in the price window of "I don't have $600 to spend but need a phone and I'm bought into the Apple Ecosystem enough that switching to an Android would be inconvenient and expensive, so I guess I'm spending $600." So yeah, they'll get money. I didn't argue that they wouldn't sell them. I just said I wasn't going to buy one.

8: A ton of people in this very forum post said that no MagSafe and no UWB are dealbreakers and they'll stick with older models. It's the main complaint on reddit too. Even Marques Brownlee is like "but why tho."

10: dang, dude, I'll be sure to let my girlfriend know that you didn't like her opinion.

11. At no point did I say Apple needed to bring back the mini. I just said I haven't upgraded because I like the mini. A lot of people who own minis are saying the same thing.

12. Yeah. Yes. Correct. It is a big phone for me, the author of the piece who was explaining why she wouldn't be buying the iPhone 16e.

I dunno. Its an opinion piece. As of right now, there are a lot of people who share the same opinions as I do. You don't have to agree with them. You can argue inflation or market trends or anything. Go ahead and buy a 16e. Buy ten of them. I'm sure they're fine phones. A lot of people just think they suck. A lot of people don't want Apple Intelligence. A lot of people do want MagSafe.

Apple missed out on those people. Are they the majority? I don't know, and neither do you. I assume that like the SE, the 16e is going to be snatched up by enterprise companies which will bolster the sales numbers the same way they bolstered the SE sales numbers. 

Ultimately, I was asked to write an opinion piece on the 16e because I had said "I would have have bought the phone if it had x, y, z, but that's missing, so I'm gonna pass." I was asked because I don't upgrade my phone every year, because I don't bleed six colors, and because I tend to share the same opinion as a lot of people in my target demographic. 

muthuk_vanalingam said:

AmberNeely said:

Marvin said:

After using larger displays for a while, the 5.4" mini display felt cramped, especially when typing in portrait but the 5.8" on the iPhone X felt like the largest usable single-handed size. 

I'd be super-duper curious if dudes were the primary people polled for that. My iPhone 11 was 6.1 on the diagonal and it hurt my hands to use one-handed. I get that I have tiny little baby hands (I'm only 5'2!) but I feel like the mini audience was predominantly (but not exclusively) female.

I noticed that the "below 6" option came in as the second highest choice, though, so. 

If they bring the mini back for the 17 (this is extremely wishful thinking) I will definitely snag it the day it goes up for preorder.

Also, Apple directly compares the iPhone 16e and iPhone 11/12 on the 16e splash page. I really think its geared toward those folks (of which there are still a ton), but I do agree that they're probably also targeting iPhone 14 owners a bit.

Even people with tiny hands can use the larger phones without any issues. In my view, comfort of handling a phone with single hand is not as important as people make it out to be. Size (and even weight) is not an issue when you use both the hands to use the phone. It is just a mental adjustment that people need to make.

In the Android world, there does not exist a decent phone with size similar to iPhone mini series (12/13) in the last 5 years. Apple has not launched successor to iPhone 13 mini for 3 years already. And SE is gone as well. So, the writing is on the wall when it comes to availability of compact phones for users. They are becoming extinct due to market forces. Sooner the people get used to the larger phones, the better for them when it comes to options to choose.

It's not an adjustment. It's preference. I would prefer not to use a phone that is 6.1 inches or bigger. They don't fit in my pocket (which is not a mental adjustment, that's just how pants work), and I don't like the way they feel in my hand. I hate the fact that I, a person who doesn't really carry purses or bags around -- I'm a wallet in the pocket kinda gal -- has to suddenly bring a purse to carry my phone so I don't wind up with it swandiving out of my pocket and onto the ground.

I have had larger phones than the mini (see above). I had my iPhone 11 for years and never liked it, purely because of the size. When I got the mini, suddenly toting my phone around felt natural. And here's something to blow your mind -- I use my mini two handed. Because that's the most comfortable. I can use it one-handed, but I'm a "using BOTH thumbs to text" kind of girl. My hands fit comfortably two handed on a 5.4" phone. Again, my hands are small. Like way smaller than average. My length from base of palm to middle finger is just under 5.8" -- a full inch shorter than the average American woman's hand. Width wise my hand is about 2.75", again, about a quarter inch shorter than the average American woman's hand. 

I absolutely hate the idea of phones encroaching on phablet sizes. Some of us actually just use our phones as -- and I know this is going to sound crazy -- phones. My #1 thing that my phone does is call my sister, best friend, and mom. The #2 thing it does is play microsoft solitare. I text on it a moderate amount, probably way less than the average person, but it's comfortable to text on. My iPhone 11 never was.

When it comes to watching content, I don't actually see that much of a difference between a 5.4-inch screen and a 6.1-inch screen. They're both too tiny for me, personally, to enjoy watching a YouTube video, or god forbid something longer like a movie. I own a 24" imac, a 42" television, and a 100" projector connected to an Apple TV. Why am I going to give myself myopia to watch something on an inferior screen?

Data shows that the iPhone Plus lineup is widely disliked. The only difference between a base-model iPhone and an iPhone Plus is the size. A lot of people -- I'd argue probably the majority -- don't want a big phone. The fact of the matter is that's not necessarily what the market wants. The market probably doesn't actually care about a phone being bigger, just that it's better. The bigger screen is just a byproduct.

And, I suppose ultimately it's not even that I expect Apple to tailor specifically to me. The iPhone SE 4 would have been bigger than an iPhone mini. It would have been a compromise for me anyway. The point is that there are a lot of people, including tons of them on this very forum post, who are like "Aw, I was expecting the SE4. This sucks. Oh well. Guess I'll hold onto my phone for another year or two." I'm in that camp. I'll keep my mini and see what happens down the line.

I dunno, it was an opinion piece.

People are gonna like what they like. You can like a bigger phone, I don't begrudge you. I'm happy if you've found something that works for you. The rest of us are going to have to compromise. And we'll get over it, but I mean, we're allowed to be disappointed.

Marvin said:

After using larger displays for a while, the 5.4" mini display felt cramped, especially when typing in portrait but the 5.8" on the iPhone X felt like the largest usable single-handed size. 

I'd be super-duper curious if dudes were the primary people polled for that. My iPhone 11 was 6.1 on the diagonal and it hurt my hands to use one-handed. I get that I have tiny little baby hands (I'm only 5'2!) but I feel like the mini audience was predominantly (but not exclusively) female.

I noticed that the "below 6" option came in as the second highest choice, though, so. 

If they bring the mini back for the 17 (this is extremely wishful thinking) I will definitely snag it the day it goes up for preorder.

Also, Apple directly compares the iPhone 16e and iPhone 11/12 on the 16e splash page. I really think its geared toward those folks (of which there are still a ton), but I do agree that they're probably also targeting iPhone 14 owners a bit.

charlesn said:

Here's what's interesting: in the midst of ALL the press that the iPhone Slim has gotten as the rumored replacement for the iPhone Plus, no one is lamenting the demise of the Plus for a phone which--if rumors prove--will be very diifferent, less well-featured AND more expensive. Generally, everyone seems to understand that the Plus has not sold well for Apple and that's why it's being replaced. (As opposed to the Slim being sold in addition to the Plus.)

Well, guess what? According to the sales rankings, the Plus is a better seller than the SE. The SE is the worst selling model in the iPhone lineup, which is the last thing you want to see in an aggressively low-priced phone that doesn't deliver the profit-margins of more expensive models. At the very least, it needs to deliver volume sales and the SE failed to do that. This isnt so much a case of Apple killing the SE as it is a case of customers voting with their wallets that their preference is for more expensive, more feature-rich iPhones. 

I'm not surprised that SE fans aren't finding a lot to like in the 16e. The 16e isn't just a new model, it's the end of a genuinely low-priced phone in the lineup. It's like the demise of the iPhone Mini after just two years or (for me) the end of the Macbook 12" Retina--products beloved by their fanbase, but that fanbase wasn't large enough for Apple to continue making it. In April, when Apple reports the quarter that closes March 31, we'll hear the first general indications from Apple as to how the 16e is doing. 

I will say that for the first time since I've been working at AppleInsider, which has been since 2019, this is the first time I've never seen a shipment date get pushed back.

edit: Thinking back on it, I think that potentially some models of SE 3 didn't have delivery date pushbacks, actually. Which would make sense. The SE 3 was a big enterprise phone so places were snatching up the lower end models in bulk. I doubt they're gonna do the same with the 16e until they get time with it.

ITGUYINSD said:

This article is way too long just to tell us readers why she doesn't like the 16e.  Where is the AI story summary button?   Do writers still get paid by the word?

Nah, I just talk too much. Thanks for taking time out of your day to click through and comment, though.