Is the iPhone 16e good enough to be your 2025 iPhone? Apple’s take on its new Galaxy FE rival is surely interesting, even though the company is making its cheapest phone a lot more expensive than it used to be. Still, if you plan to pre-order this device this Friday, you should be aware that it lacks some of the features available with the iPhone 16 lineup and even last year’s iPhone 15, which is still available.
That said, even though the iPhone 16e has Apple Intelligence, an Action Button, and other perks of the newer phones, it also lacks some features you might have taken for granted. These are 17 missing features on the iPhone 16e that all prospective buyers should be aware of.
Lack of colors: The iPhone 16e is only available in Black and White. Apple offers five different colors for the regular iPhone 16 models, while the Pro phones have four options in total. So, if you care about your iPhone’s color, you won’t have many options for this new device.
No fancy display tech: The iPhone 17 models are all rumored to feature ProMotion and Always-On display technology. Unfortunately, the iPhone 16e follows the iPhone 16 and lacks Promotion and Always-On display.
Less efficient A18 chip: Even though the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16e share the A18 chip, the latter has a compromise: Instead of a 5-core GPU, the A18 available with the iPhone 16e only has a 4-core GPU. With that, graphics might not be as smooth as on the more premium offerings.
No Camera Control: The new Camera Control technology isn’t available on the iPhone 16e. Still, this device has a tweak that no iPhone has: Visual Search in the Action Button.
Fancy camera features: With only a single camera, the iPhone 16e lacks macro photography, spatial photos and videos, and the latest generation Photographic Styles. This possibly means it offers the version available with the other iPhones, not the iPhone 16 options. It also doesn’t feature Cinematic Mode or Action mode.
No new design: The iPhone 16e is a Frankenstein because it has an iPhone 14-like body with an Action Button, Apple Intelligence, and a single camera. With that, those looking for a device with Dynamic Island need to purchase an iPhone 15 or iPhone 16 device.
Ceramic Shield: Apple says this device features a “Ceramic Shield front” instead of the “latest-generation Ceramic Shield front,” which means it’s not as good as the one available with the iPhone 16 devices.
MagSafe: While all mainline iPhone models since the iPhone 12 have featured MagSafe, Apple chose not to include this technology on the latest iPhone 16e. With that, it only offers Qi wireless charging up to 7.5W. That said, it’s not compatible with MagSafe cases, wallets, or wireless chargers with that technology.
Lacking connectivity features: The iPhone 16e has a new connectivity chip called C1. While this Wi-Fi modem helps make the battery last longer, it only supports Wi-Fi 6 technology. Besides that, this device doesn’t support DC-HSDPA or the ultra-wideband chip for Precision Find and Thread networking technology.
