Apple has unveiled the latest iteration of its iPhone 16 range, the first generation of iPhones to be powered by Apple Intelligence.
The iPhone 16e has the same processor, the same A18 chip and many of the same capabilities as the larger iPhone 16 but at a more affordable price.
The name is also clearly a nod to Apple’s iPhone SE series, which was released from 2016 to 2022 at a similarly lower price than other iPhone models in that period. The iPhone 16e will debut at £599, £200 less than the flagship model, and can be pre-ordered from 21 February, before becoming available on 28 February.
IPhone 16e is “built for Apple intelligence”, according to the tech giant and its CEO Tim Cook promised Apple fans that it features “the performance, intelligence and privacy” they have come to “expect” from the firm.
“[It has a] powerful intelligence system with features that help you save time, quickly get things done and express yourself in new ways. With iPhone 16e, we’re able to bring Apple Intelligence to even more people,” he added.
Apple Intelligence, initially launched in September 2024 with the iPhone 16, is Apple’s response to the likes of Google Gemini and Microsoft Copilot.
It includes tools for writing and also incorporates OpenAI’s ChatGPT into Siri. In its release of the new model, Apple also pointed to its image Clean Up tool and emoji generator.
Roll-out of Apple Intelligence has been anything but smooth, however. Last month the company was forced to suspend its AI-generated news and entertainment notification summaries due to making repeated mistakes.
It now also presents all its summaries in italics.
Mixed reaction to the launch
Although other manufacturers have similar features on their latest devices, the iPhone 16e offers access to AI at a much cheaper price on an Apple handset.
However, news of the AI integration was met with a lukewarm response from consumers as iPhone sales slipped by about 1%, to $69.1bn, compared with the previous year.
Its latest attempt to push the technology has also left many underwhelmed.
Responding to Cook’s launch on X, one user lamented the lack of “groundbreaking” product launches and said that he misses “the days of Apple being the leader in innovation”.
apple is losing it's mojo. no new groundbreaking product launches since vision pro, which obviously wasn't the success we had all hoped for. no apple car. no apple television. ipads and laptops are stagnant. i miss the days of apple being the leader in innovation.
— Marc Blitstein (@marcblitstein) February 19, 2025
Another said: “So it’s just a less powerful iPhone? That wasn’t worth announcing like this. You could have just made a post and saved us all some time and heartbreak.”
Amid the scepticism from Apple fans, there is some positivity from industry insiders.
Analyst Paolo Pescatore told the BBC that the move “should help accelerate adoption and especially its foray into AI with Apple intelligence.
He added: “Apple’s trust and credibility is critical – this alone will help drive sales and lure users from rival devices and platforms.”
