Don’t buy the iPhone 16E now. And here’s why

A year ago, Apple revealed… iPhone 16ewhich replaced iPhone SE As the most “affordable” phone in the company’s lineup, it includes some (but not all) features iPhone 16 series At a slight discount. If you’re looking for a cheaper iPhone with enough bells and whistles, then… iPhone 16e Still good – but don’t buy one just yet.

This is because the new version, iPhone 17eIt could be just around the corner – as early as next month, according to rumours. Because the iPhone 16E was Strange settlementHowever, it’s worth waiting to see what features Apple will include (and remove) to keep it as a low-cost iPhone option.

As new price iPhone It crept up over the years, peaking at $829 iPhone 17 (Price not included air, Pro and Pro Max models), the humble iPhone SE remains an affordable option; The last update in 2022 left the price at $429. Despite the presence of a small 4.7-inch display surrounded by thick bezels on the top and bottom, which appeared first on iPhone 6The phone’s modern internal hardware means it can keep up with the latest apps.

The iPhone 16E was a redesigned upgrade with a 6.1-inch display that spanned the entire front of the phone and enough RAM to boot Apple intelligence. But these upgrades raised the price to $600. However, Apple has excluded many popular perks that appear at its higher price iPhone 16 Brothers of the time, such as the ultra-wide camera or the telephoto camera; The 16E has a single 48-megapixel camera. It also lacks MagSafe and charges with the slow Qi standard of 7.5W wirelessly. The USB-C 2.0 port charges at a low speed of 20W.

It was clear that Apple left out some cool features to keep the price down — or to look at it another way, justify why the price of the standard iPhone 16 was $200 higher, the same cost as the current iPhone 17.

But that may not be the case with the rumored iPhone 17E. It’s possible that Apple will be more generous with its second-generation modern “budget” phone. For example, Apple chose to stick with a camera similar to the iPhone 16E’s 48-megapixel camera in the more expensive iPhone Air, but that model is limited by the tight space inside the body; The iPhone 17E won’t need to make that compromise and can share the same two cameras (wide and ultrawide) as the iPhone 17. It helps that Apple manufactures and sells so many iPhone 17 models that it makes more financial sense for them to share common components between the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17E.

However, the limitations of the iPhone 16E show that Apple will strip features and keep the price of the entry-level iPhone low. Even if you’re skeptical about Apple introducing new features in the iPhone 17E, it’s worth waiting a month or two until it launches to find out for sure.

And if you’re not a fan of Apple’s new device when it arrives, and decide to buy the iPhone 16E anyway, you’ll still want to wait: the company regularly discounts older iPhones (and refurbished models) once newer models replace them. Even if Apple opts to replace the entire iPhone 16E in its lineup and stops selling it, third-party retailers will continue to stock it and will likely lower its price to clear inventory.

So, if you can wait until the iPhone 17E debuts, you should try to stick around for the next month or so. You’ll either save money or make a more informed purchase, both of which are smart reasons to be patient.