{"id":1235770,"date":"2025-02-28T07:15:14","date_gmt":"2025-02-28T12:15:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1235770"},"modified":"2025-02-28T07:15:14","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T12:15:14","slug":"the-morning-after-our-verdict-on-the-iphone-16e","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1235770","title":{"rendered":"The Morning After: Our verdict on the iPhone 16e"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

First up, an apology. In Tuesday\u2019s newsletter, I laid out how to watch (and what to expect from) Amazon\u2019s Alexa press event. But aside from unveiling what Alexa+ will be capable of, there was no silly hardware and no upgraded Echos, but lots of demos<\/ins><\/a>. We learned Alexa+ will be included with an Amazon Prime subscription, and the company will also offer the enhanced digital assistant separately, for $20 per month. At the moment, Prime costs $15 per month in the US. So that’s weird.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Apple\u2019s new entry-level iPhone, the 16e<\/a>, launches online and in stores today. The $599 phone is arguably $100 too expensive<\/a>, but it packs a processor that can deliver Apple Intelligence to the masses. It has a gorgeous screen, with a notch \u2014 if not a Dynamic Island \u2014 and a long battery life. Thanks to that A18 chip, it is as powerful as iPhones, which cost several hundred dollars more.<\/p>\n

This is a phone for people who don\u2019t upgrade every year (or two). If you\u2019re coming from an older iPhone, say an iPhone 11 (like my mom), you\u2019ll be treated to a brighter screen, improved image processing and, heck, 5G. Apple says the newer process will ensure the 16e is 80 percent faster than the iPhone 11. You are going to see the difference. Oh, and you get an action button.<\/p>\n

Our biggest concern is the single-camera situation. It\u2019s a great camera, but we already miss the versatility of optical zoom that goes beyond the digital cropping that the iPhone 16e uses. Check out our full review right here. And if you\u2019re OK not staying with an iPhone, we\u2019re moving into the mid-range smartphone season \u2014 so stay tuned.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mat Smith<\/p>\n