Gregory Robinson
Feb 20, 2025
iPhone 16e release with AI features shakes up Apple's launch strategy
Straight Arrow News / VideoElephant
Apple announced their brand new, lower-priced iPhone16e model but one feature has left some fans feeling quite disappointed.
With a starting price of £599, it’s an upgraded version of its so-called “budget” model, the iPhone SE. It has the same A18 chip found on the more expensive iPhone 16, which is on sale with prices starting from £799. It also has the same 6.1 inch Super Retina XDR OLED display and support for Apple Intelligence, the company’s AI system that helps you, “write, express yourself and get things done effortlessly".
Outside the phone’s shell users will notice that the home button is officially gone and the most noticeable physical difference between it and other iPhone 16 models is that it has just one camera on the back but it has an impressive 48MP Fusion camera that "has the capabilities of two cameras in one," per Apple.
However, the feature that has startled some potential customers is the lack of colour options. The iPhone 16e is available in just two finishes - matte black and matte white - with a glass back and aluminium frame.
Sure, you can’t go wrong with these standard colours, and the iPhone 16 is also available in black and white, but the more expensive iPhone 16 is available to buy in vibrant pink, teal or ultramarine.
The iPhone 16e is available in just two coloursApple
The lack of colour did not go unnoticed among the Apple fandom who immediately critiqued the iPhone 16e announcement on social media.
One Reddit thread, titled “iPhone 16e colors are insanely boring” shows the colour picking option on the Apple website, with just white and black on offer.
“It’s Apple’s budget phone (budget in the Apple world anyway). To reduce manufacturing costs, they reduce the number of different components they make for the device,” one fan argued back.
Another person claimed: “It’s a budget phone, what did you expect.”
A third wrote: “In what world is $600 a ‘budget’ phone? Not the real world, that’s for sure. Entry level ≠ budget.”
“The phone is boring to begin with,” a Reddit user proclaimed.
“I actually kinda appreciate the minimalist options,” another fan reasoned. “Apple hasn’t offered a simple black/white option since the iPhone 5.”
“If you’re going to put [it] into a case, who cares really?” someone else wrote.
Read more initial reactions below:
"iPhone 16e why not in fun colours?" one wrote.
Others were more positive, saying they liked the simpler colour selection.
Others, though, disagreed.
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