Apple iPhone 16e review

A single 48MP camera

So, the cheapest iPhone has a single camera - only this time the cheapest iPhone isn't exactly cheap. Also, just because this one single camera may sound like the one used as the main camera on the 'big' iPhone 16, delving a little deeper reveals that the hardware is actually not quite on the same level. But it just might still take nice pictures - let's see what we actually have here.

Apple doesn't make a big deal of the camera's specs, so it's clear that they don't have stuff to brag about. The focal length and aperture that are listed clearly indicate that it's not the same 48MP main camera that you'd find on the iPhone 16 Pros (of course).

The focal length and aperture are a match for the regular 16's main camera, but the type of focusing isn't - the 16 uses '100% Focus Pixels', while the 16e makes do with 'Hybrid Focus Pixels', and the 16 has sensor-shift stabilization, while the 16e's is lens-based.

All this points to the 16e using the same sensor as the one found on the 16 Pro's ultrawide camera - a 48MP imager with 'Hybrid Focus Pixels'. Through the power of deduction, we arrived at a 1/2.55" optical format for that sensor back when we reviewed the 16 Pros, coming from its nominal resolution and 0.7µm pixel size. Here, however, it's paired with a 26mm-equivalent focal length lens as opposed to the 13mm one on the Pros' ultrawides. It checks out, plus it's typical Apple to reuse and repurpose already available bits.

The selfie camera is also reused, seemingly, though in such a way that you'd probably feel better about the 16e - all the numbers and specs point to that being the same module as on the iPhone 16, with only minor omissions in the feature-set (like Cinematic mode).

• Wide: 48MP (1/2.55", 0.7µm-1.4µm, f/1.6, 26mm, PDAF (8.5cm - ∞); 4K@60fps
• Front camera: 12MP (1/3.6", 1.0µm, f/1.9, 23mm, PDAF; 4K@60fps

Speaking of software omissions, you won't be getting the latest-generation Photographic Styles that were kind of a big deal on the iPhone 16 generation (much to our dismay). The 'regular' Photographic Styles are still here, though. Other buzzwords like Photonic Engine, Deep Fusion, and Smart HDR 5 are accounted for as well.

Obviously, there's no Camera Control on the 16e - only the proper iPhone 16 gets that. The Action key remains, so there's that.

Daylight photo quality

As with other iPhones that have 48MP main cameras, the 16e can capture photos in 24MP or 12MP (plus a full-res 48MP). We like megapixels, so we embraced the 24MP mode as default. In bright daylight, shots taken at 1x zoom are good without setting the standard for anything. The level of detail is very good, but there's a bit of a digital jagged quality to random textures plus some graininess in out-of-focus areas. Dropping the light levels, even during the day, does easily result in lower quality.

Colors are actually quite pleasingly vibrant, which doesn't sound like an iPhone, but here we are. Dynamic range is quite wide, to the point where some high-contrast scenes can almost look a little washed out and in need of a contrast boost. Overall though, we're liking these shots more than we'd have expected - with the caveat that we didn't have particularly high expectations to begin with.

The 16e's camera can focus quite close, by the way - down to about 8.5cm. That means you do stand a chance to get some reasonable closeups, which is also your best bet for getting some optical background blur - the sensor/lens combo has a pretty deep depth of field otherwise.

Daylight samples, 1x, 24MP

Here are the 12MP counterparts to the above shots. In all fairness, we'd struggle to find a significant detail penalty to shooting at 12MP. So while 24MP might make sense for not missing out on quality, perhaps it adds unnecessary strain on your storage in day-to-day scenarios. You can choose the right balance for yourselves and your subject matter, but we'd still probably stick with 24MP.

Daylight samples, 1x, 12MP

Circling back to the depth of field subject, regular photos of people will be lacking in subject separation. You'd be better off resorting to portrait mode for some bokeh. Skin tones do look great, regardless of mode, though once again, dim lighting will be your enemy.

Daylight samples, 1x, Photo mode

Daylight samples, 1x, Portrait mode

The 48MP full-res mode isn't as nice as on other current iPhones with 48MP cameras. Even so, it's not your typical re-upscaled 12MP quality we're looking at, either - we're fairly convinced we're seeing better definition in fine texts, among other things.

Daylight samples, 1x, 48MP

At 2x zoom, the iPhone 16e's shots are somewhere between acceptable and decent. It's nowhere near the 'wow' quality we're getting from some high-end cameraphones at 2x from their main cameras, which is to be expected. It's also not on the same level as the 16 Pros though the plain 16s are well within reach.

Daylight samples, 2x

The people shots at 2x are at a similarly okayish level.

Daylight samples, 2x, Photo mode

Daylight samples, 2x, Portrait mode

Low-light photo quality

In the dark, the 16e's main camera still holds up well - once again, without bringing much excitement. Detail is alright where there's enough light, but shadows are consistently soft. There's also somewhat of a tendency towards overexposure, resulting in unusually bright shadows, plus some harsh highlight clipping in some scenes. Colors remain accurate in the dark, and maintain very pleasing saturation levels too.

Low-light samples, 1x

At 2x zoom, the photos continue to look unusually bright, with clipped highlights and boosted shadows, and all that. They're also far from what we'd call sharp. And having said all that, somehow Apple has managed to extract passable quality out of hardware that doesn't seem capable of it. Try not to read this as praise though - it's just that things aren't quite as bad as we expected.

Low-light samples, 2x

Selfies

The 16e's selfies are pretty great, once again almost despite the hardware - the tiny 1/3.6" camera continues to surprise us. We are enjoying the skin tones and dynamic range, and detail is generally very good, though there can be a little bit of pixelation on facial hair every now and then. The autofocusing capability for selfies is also most welcome.

Selfie samples

Video recording

The iPhone 16e can record video up to 4K60 with all... well, both of its cameras. 30fps and 24fps modes are also on the menu, of course. There's no 4K120 like you'd find on the 16 Pros. Our EU spec unit also has a 25fps PAL option. If you want to capture in 4K60, you must do so in the 'high-efficiency' HEVC/h.265 format, while for lesser modes you can choose between that and the AVC/h.264 option. Dolby Vision recording is also on the menu (requires HEVC too).

One feature shared with the real 16s is spatial audio recording. If you enable it, the phone will record two audio tracks - stereo AAC and four-channel APAC. You can also set it to simple stereo, or mono.

Stabilization is always On in all modes - you can't turn it off even if you had other means of ensuring stable footage.

You can check out the playlist below, which includes multiple video samples.

Video sample playlist

Video quality is pretty great, especially considering the hardware. During the day, detail is very good at 1x and alright at 2x. Colors are accurate and reasonably vivid, and contrast and dynamic range are excellent. Stabilization is truly great, too.

In the dark, things aren't looking nearly as awesome. Even at 1x, there's a prevailing softness to the whole image, shadows and highlights alike, though dynamic range is nicely wide, for what that's worth. The 2x clips are borderline unusable, though.