Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: A surprising outcome

When Tim Cook said to expect a new member of the family, he really meant it. February 19 saw the reveal of an entirely new breed of iPhone — the “e” variant. The newest iPhone on the block is the Apple iPhone 16e, slotting neatly into financial place beneath the iPhone 15, and replacing the now-defunct iPhone SE 3 as the least expensive iPhone you can buy. It may not be an iPhone SE, but it continues the spirit of that model, sporting a top-of-the-line flagship processor, paired with the looks of an older iPhone. In this case, the iPhone 16e proudly bears the notched display we thought had died with the iPhone 14, while also rocking the A18 processor of the iPhone 16. It’s a powerful blast from the past that’s hoping to rule the $600 market.

Another major benefit of the iPhone 16e is that it supports Apple Intelligence: something that isn’t true of the next iPhone up the totem pole, the iPhone 15. With a more modern style and more camera lenses, but an older processor and no AI, can the $700 iPhone 15 stand against the newest kid on the block? If the iPhone 15 is your current phone, should you be thinking of trading it in for the chance to get AI? Or should you ignore the iPhone 16e, and go on without AI? It’s still early days as far as the iPhone 16e is concerned, but we still found our conclusion surprising.

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: specs

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: design

Good looks have always been near the top of Apple’s agenda when it comes to designing iPhones, so it’s no surprise to say both of these are well designed smartphones. The iPhone 15 is arguably the more modern of the two, eschewing the divisive notch, and being the first of the basic iPhones to have the new Dynamic Island — a cutout at the top of the display that houses the front-facing camera and sensors, and expands and contracts to show contextual information. It’s a neat use of space that would otherwise be wasted, and it’s definitely a step up from the notch found on previous iPhones. Speak of the notch, it’s here on the iPhone 16e, as the newest iPhone is now the only iPhone to come with the once iconic cutout. It’s hard to argue it’s anything but aged, though some may like the look, and while we can’t go as far as to call it “retro”, its previous status as the iPhone’s silhouette means some will love it.

Durability-wise, you’re looking at a similar story. Both phones have an IP68-rating for dust and water-resistance, so either will survive an accidental dunk in the pool. Just don’t take them in on purpose; it’s insurance, not a feature. In terms of drops, well, try not to drop either of them. Smartphone durability is a lot better than it used to be, but glass is still glass, and it’ll only take so many accidents before it breaks. Slap an iPhone 15 or iPhone 16e case on whichever one you buy, and keep it safe.

Beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, but for us, the iPhone 15 is the better looking of the two. We were never really fans of the notch, so to see it come back in the iPhone 16e is unfortunate.

Winner: Apple iPhone 15

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: display

There are some small differences separating these two panels, but ultimately, these are largely identical displays, and there’s really not much to differentiate them. The iPhone 15 has a tiny amount of extra pixels, thanks largely to change from a notch to the Dynamic Island, but it’s so miniscule that it’s not worth mentioning, except as an fun little detail. Unfortunately, that lack of difference also extends to the refresh rate, which remains trapped at 60Hz. This is by far the worst part of Apple’s recent iPhones, as every iPhone not classified as a “Pro” doesn’t get the boost in refresh rate that almost every Android phone now gets. Admittedly, in this context it means little, because both phones have the same weakness — but it’s worth keeping this in mind when looking to purchase either of these.

The only major difference is the Dynamic Island that we’ve mentioned before, and since we’ve already taken that into account in the Design section, we can’t really cite it again here. However, the iPhone 15 does have an ace in the hole that’s worth pointing out: Brightness. The older iPhone has a higher peak brightness than the newer phone, especially where outdoors is concerned. This means it’s objectively easier to view things on the iPhone 15 when it’s bright out, and honestly, that’s a massive deal. It wins, even if it’s a slim win.

Winner: Apple iPhone 15

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: performance

Here’s where we see some differences, but again, it’s relatively minor. The most immediate and obvious difference is the upgrade from the A16 processor in the iPhone 15 to the A18 in the iPhone 16e. On paper, the iPhone 16e is the more powerful of the two, right? Well, sort of. While the A18 is the newer of the two of the chips, the 16e’s chip is a slighty pared-down version of the processor you’ll find in the iPhone 16. More specifically, it drops from five GPU cores to four, mean it has one less GPU core than the iPhone 15’s A16. The A18 will still likely have stronger benchmarks, but it probably won’t mean much where your day-to-day use is concerned. Both are stupendously powerful, and will easily manage any app or game you throw at them.

Storage options are the same; both start at 128GB, with 256GB and 512GB options available. The iPhone 16e bumps its RAM up to 8GB, but that’s to allow for its Apple Intelligence features more than anything else, and you probably won’t notice a huge difference based on RAM alone.

We’ll admit we need to spend time with the iPhone 16e to finalize this outcome, but at the moment, it’s not looking like this will be anything other than a tie.

Winner: Tie

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: battery and charging

Battery life is tough to judge, as there’s really not too much to go on. Unlike other manufacturers, Apple doesn’t release the capacity of its batteries, so we can’t immediately make educated guesses about how the iPhone 16e will fare. Apple does list the Phone 16e as having a longer lasting battery than the iPhone 15, so at the very least we can say Apple is confident about it. The iPhone 15 was a solidly one-day smartphone, so any improvement on this will be a very good thing. Until we’ve had chance to play with it though, it’s hard to make a call.

We have more to go on where charging is concerned. Both have a USB-C port, marking the official end of the Lightning port. Apple isn’t clear about how fast wired charging is on either phone, but they both hit similar speeds of around 20W, which is low for a flagship phone. There’s a big gulf in wireless charging speed though. The iPhone 15 has up to 15W fast wireless charging, as well as support for MagSafe and Qi2 charging. The iPhone 16e simply … doesn’t. It limps along at a 7.5W wireless charge rate, with no Qi2 support, and oddly, no MagSafe either. If you’ve invested heavily in MagSafe accessories, then the iPhone 16e is one to miss.

It’s hard for us to make a call based on the battery lives of the two phones, since we haven’t tested the 16e yet. However, the iPhone 15 has a big advantage where wireless charging and MagSafe is concerned. It wins out here.

Winner: Apple iPhone 15

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: cameras

As above, since we haven’t had time with the iPhone 16e yet, it’s hard to make this call. However, we can speculate about how well the phone might perform, given its pedigree.

We’ll start with the iPhone 15. It’s equipped with a dual-lens setup on the back of the phone, comprising a 48-megapixel main lens and a 12MP ultrawide sensor. As ever with Apple, it’s excellent. It takes fantastic shots across a range of situations, and it’ll rarely let you down. The iPhone 16e inherits this phone’s excellent 48MP main lens, but adds Fusion branding to it. In real use, this might not add too much, as the much trumpeted “two-in-one” effect is essentially Apple cropping a 48MP image to create a 2x zoom at 12MP, and was available on the iPhone 15 too. We expect the 16e’s main lens will be just as good as the one on the iPhone 15. The new iPhone does lose a lens though, and that’s a bit of a problem. The iPhone 16e also loses some of the additional focus controls for Portrait mode that the iPhone 15 got — another big loss for many snappers. The iPhone 16e does get Visual Intelligence as part of Apple Intelligence, but we’ll be covering that later, so we won’t let the newer phone lean on it here.

It’s another predicted win for the iPhone 15. This may change after we’ve had time with the iPhone 16e, of course, but for now, the iPhone 15 seems to its match, and has a few additional features on top, and another lens entirely.

Winner: Apple iPhone 15

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: software and updates

There are no surprises where the software is concerned; you’ll get the latest version of iOS 18 on both of these phones, and will likely get it for a long time too. Apple doesn’t state an upper limit for its software updates, but history shows us it is capable and willing to continue supporting a phone for long after most other manufacturers have given up. Recent changes to Samsung’s and Google’s guarantees have closed this gap significantly, but Apple is still the king of updates. The iPhone 16e will get more updates than the 15, entirely because it’s younger, but it’s not something we’d worry too much about.

But the iPhone 16e really sets itself apart where AI is concerned. It’s the least expensive iPhone to get access to Apple Intelligence, and as you might expect, that’s a big selling point. Buying the iPhone 16e will give you access to Siri’s combo with ChatGPT, tone suggestions that change the feeling of your writing, alterations and edits to photos, and lots more. There’s a lot of question as to how useful most of these AI features actually are, but if you’re excited about trying out Apple’s twist on AI, then the iPhone 16e is the entryway to that world. The iPhone 15 simply can’t compete with the newer phone, and it wins this category neatly as a result.

Winner: Apple iPhone 16e

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: price and availability

The Apple iPhone 16e is currently available for pre-order, and will release on February 28. Prices start from $599, and rise to $699 for the upgrade to 256GB, and $899 for 512GB of storage. As it’s an iPhone, it’ll be available in most retailers where phones are sold, and from Apple itself.

The iPhone 15 is currently available, and has had some price drops since its initial release. You can find it from $699, and you’ll pay $100 extra for 256GB, or $300 extra for 512GB of storage. Again, it’s available in most places.

Apple iPhone 16e vs. iPhone 15: verdict

While it’s worth keeping in mind that we still have to have hands-on time with the iPhone 16e, these initial comparisons don’t seem to be coming out well for the iPhone 16e. The older iPhone 15 won in most of the categories, with the only exceptions being in Performance and Software. Really, what this shows is that the iPhone 16e, far from being the successor to the iPhone SE line, is a vehicle for Apple Intelligence. Looking at the stats, specs, and throwing in a healthy dose of experience and speculation, the iPhone 15 is simply the stronger phone in almost every way. In fact, if the iPhone 15 had access to Apple Intelligence, we’d be questioning what the point of the iPhone 16e actually is. Sure, you save $100, but it hardly seems worth it when you look at what you lose: an extra camera lens, MagSafe support, faster charging, and the Dynamic Island.

This may all change when we’ve had time to play with the iPhone 16e a bit. After all, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and Apple knows how to serve a truly sumptuous dessert. But for now, keep a hold of your iPhone 15 and don’t succumb to pre-order madness. Or, if you’re looking to buy a whole new phone, wait until the iPhone 16e’s reviews are in, because this is not a clear-cut verdict by any means.