Apple iPhone 17e vs iPhone 16e

79 out of 100
Apple iPhone 17e
VS
74 out of 100
Apple iPhone 16e

Here we compared two mid-range smartphones: the 6.1-inch Apple iPhone 17e (with Apple A19) that was released on March 2, 2026, against the Apple iPhone 16e, which is powered by Apple A18 and came out 1 year and 1 month before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

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Memory

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone 17e
  • 41% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (2272K versus 1612K)
  • The phone is 1 year and 1 month newer
  • 10% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 3595 and 3281 points

Review

Evaluation of Apple iPhone 17e and iPhone 16e crucial features
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (*) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation
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Value for money (Beta)

To get an accurate value-for-money index, update the default prices with actual prices from your country’s retailers (for the selected memory configs) and press the "Calculate" button.
Currency
8 / 256 GB
VS
8 / 128 GB
69.5
(Good)
Value Index
46.4
(Average)

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests

Display

Type OLED OLED
Size 6.1 inches 6.1 inches
Resolution 1170 x 2532 pixels 1170 x 2532 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 19.5:9
PPI 460 ppi 457 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No No
Max rated brightness 800 nits 800 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR 1200 nits 1200 nits
HDR support Yes, Dolby Vision Yes, Dolby Vision
Screen protection Ceramic Shield 2 Ceramic Shield
Screen-to-body ratio 87.1% 87.1%
Display features - DCI-P3 - DCI-P3
Display tests
RGB color space 99.8% 99.9%
PWM 60 Hz 60 Hz
Response time 4 ms 10 ms
Contrast ∞ Infinity ∞ Infinity
Peak brightness test (auto)
818 nits
836 nits
Sources: NotebookCheck [3], [4]

Design and build

Height 146.7 mm (5.78 inches) 146.7 mm (5.78 inches)
Width 71.5 mm (2.81 inches) 71.5 mm (2.81 inches)
Thickness 7.8 mm (0.31 inches) 7.8 mm (0.31 inches)
Weight 169 g (5.96 oz) 167 g (5.89 oz)
Waterproof IP68 IP68
Rear material Glass Glass
Frame material Metal Metal
Colors White, Black, Pink White, Black
Fingerprint scanner No No
Repairability Average (2.79/5) Average (2.79/5)
Drop resistance Very good (B) · 180 drops Good (C) · 90 drops
Screen-to-body ratio
87.1%
87.1%

Performance

Chipset specifications of Apple iPhone 17e and Apple iPhone 16e
SoC
Chipset Apple A19 Apple A18
Max clock 4260 MHz 4040 MHz
CPU cores 6 (2 + 4) 6 (2 + 4)
Architecture - 4 cores at 2.6 GHz:
- 2 cores at 4.26 GHz:
- 4 cores at 2.42 GHz: Sawtooth
- 2 cores at 4.05 GHz: Everest
Manufacturing TSMC TSMC
Lithography process 3 nanometers 3 nanometers
Neural processor (NPU) Neural Engine Neural Engine
GPU
Graphics 4 core Apple GPU 4 core Apple GPU
GPU shading units 640 640
GPU clock 1620 MHz 1490 MHz
FLOPS ~2073.6 GFLOPS ~1907 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Benchmark comparison of Apple iPhone 17e and Apple iPhone 16e
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
iPhone 17e +10%
3595
3281
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
iPhone 17e +15%
9245
8035
Compute Score (GPU)
iPhone 17e +32%
31620
24041
Compute Score (GPU) 31620 24041
Single-core score 3595 3281
Multi-core score 9245 8035
Sources: Geekbench [3], [4]
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
iPhone 17e +41%
2272175
1612788
CPU 694087 485100
GPU 750153 445832
Memory 238765 185536
UX 589170 496320
Total score 2272175 1612788
Samples [2 tests] [5 tests]
3DMark Steel Nomad Light
iPhone 17e +43%
1752
1226
Stability - 82%
Graphics test 13 FPS 9 FPS
Graphics score 1752 1226
3DMark Solar Bay
iPhone 17e +46%
8032
5507
Graphics test 31 FPS 21 FPS
Section 1 34 FPS 26 FPS
Section 2 31 FPS 21 FPS
Section 3 25 FPS 15 FPS
Graphics score 8032 5507
Sources: 3DMark [5], [6]

Recent User Tests

The latest benchmark tests that have been submitted by users
Apple iPhone 17e
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-09-14 (kpvas)AnTuTu 112134388
📘 2026-06-10 (Cocoon)AnTuTu 112272175
📘 2026-06-03 (Cosgun)AnTuTu 112060838
📘 2026-05-31 (Cosgun)Geekbench 6 CPU3595 / 9245
Apple iPhone 16e
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-03-11 (Matviy)AnTuTu 111600106
📘 2026-02-27 (iPhone user)AnTuTu 111591246
📘 2026-02-10 (Virtuose)AnTuTu 111721718
📘 2026-01-14 (Glib)AnTuTu 111656396
📘 2026-01-13 (киря)AnTuTu 111612788

Memory

RAM
RAM size 8 GB 8 GB
Memory type LPDDR5X LPDDR5X
Channels 4 4
Storage
Storage size 256 GB 128 GB
Storage type NVMe NVMe
Memory card No No

Software

Operating system iOS 26.3 (Can be upgraded to iOS 27) iOS 18.3 (Can be upgraded to iOS 27)
OS size 20 GB 24 GB
OS updates 7 years 7 years
Security updates 7 years 7 years

Battery

Capacity 4005 mAh 4005 mAh
Max charge power 25 W 25 W
Battery type Li-Ion Li-Ion
Replaceable No No
Wireless charging Yes (15 W) Yes (7.5 W)
Reverse charging - No
Bypass charging No No
Fast charging Yes (59% in 30 min) Yes (57% in 30 min)
Full charging time 1:34 hr 1:50 hr
Battery cycles 1000 cycles 1000 cycles
Battery life tests
Web browsing 11:40 hr 11:59 hr
Watching video 16:33 hr 15:01 hr
Gaming 06:37 hr 05:04 hr
Standby 135 hr 127 hr
General battery life
28:10 hr
26:44 hr
Smartphones With Long Battery Life (87th and 112th place)

Main camera

Matrix 48 megapixels 48 megapixels
Image resolution 8064 x 6048 8064 x 6048
Zoom Digital Digital
Flash Dual LED Dual LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K video recording No No
4K video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 60FPS
Slow motion 240 FPS (1080p) 240 FPS (1080p)
Lenses 1) Standard: 48 MP
1) Standard: 48 MP
Camera features - Bokeh mode - Bokeh mode
Standard lens
Image resolution 48 MP 48 MP
Aperture f/1.6 f/1.6
Focal length 26 mm 26 mm
Sensor - Sony IMX972
Sensor size 1/2.55" (≈ 0.39 inch) 1/2.55" (≈ 0.39 inch)
Pixel size 0.7 micron 0.7 micron
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus
Stabilization Optical Optical

Selfie camera

Megapixels 12 megapixels 12 megapixels
Image resolution 4032 x 3024 4032 x 3024
Aperture f/1.9 f/1.9
Focal length 23 mm 23 mm
Sensor CMOS Sony IMX714
Sensor size 1/3.6" (≈ 0.28 inch) 1/3.6" (≈ 0.28 inch)
Pixel size 1 micron 1 micron
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS
Depth sensor (TOF 3D) Yes Yes

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5.3 5.3
Bluetooth features LE LE
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 2
USB features - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
DisplayPort No No
GPS GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVIC GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVIC
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared port No No
Network
Number of SIM* 1 1
Type of SIM card Nano Nano
Multi SIM mode Standby Standby
eSIM support* Yes Yes
Hybrid slot No No
5G support Yes Yes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
Headphone audio jack No No
FM radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speakers test
Max loudness
88.5 dB
88.4 dB

Other

Category Mid-range Mid-range
Announced March 2026 February 2025
Release date March 2026 February 2025
Launch price (MSRP) $599 $599
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Face recognition sensor
- Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Face recognition sensor
Bundled charger Not included Not included
Further details
Notes on iPhone 16e:
    - The smartphone doesn’t have a cinematic mode like the higher-end models in the series.
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

These smartphones have a lot in common, but we would recommend the Apple iPhone 17e. It has a better display, performance, and gaming.

Cast your vote

So, which phone would you choose?
309 (70.2%)
131 (29.8%)
Total votes: 440

User opinions

You can share your opinion or ask a question in the comments below
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Avatar
Anon March 13, 2026 at 05:25 PM
Its a small upgrade, but at least the 17e had something that made the $599 price more justifyable, like 256gb base storage and magsafe.
+12 Reply
Avatar
thatoneguy March 3, 2026 at 01:57 PM
GARBAGE "upgrade". Don't buy this apple glazers.
+4 Reply
Avatar
Emmex March 18, 2026 at 11:18 PM
Your really gonna ignore the a19 chip, new portrait feature, longer os support, magsafe compatibility, 256 base storage and more things that I’ve forgotten all for the same price range. It’s not massive but it’s a W upgrade from the 16e fr
0 Reply
Artin March 20, 2026 at 05:33 AM
Emmex, No its not. The a19 is only around 10% faster, there is no new portati feature, only 1 year longer support. And for magsafe, just use a 3rd party magsafe case. And its more then 1 year newer. The iphone 17e is just an iphone 16e but with magnets and a minimal better processor. Not a good upgrade.
0 Reply