The names of our smartphonesmatter . Too clumsy and we forget , too windy and we do n’t remember , or too bizarre and we wo n’t say it . They do n’t have to mean anything at all , but they need to fit . The newiPhone 16e’sname conniption , far more so than the expect alternatives , and it was one of Apple ’s beneficial decisions with the telephone set . But there ’s another name I would have preferred even more .
You’re family now
Since rumour began more than a year ago , it was arrogate the iPhone 16e would be address the iPhone SE 4 , or the iPhone SE ( 2025 ) , which mostly follow the drift of former devices in the chain . The originaliPhone SEwas followed by theiPhone SE ( 2020 ) , then theiPhone SE ( 2022 ) , so either name was a coherent path for Apple to take .
Except the SE name is , well , a number slaphappy . It ’s not a Special Edition , as SE is supposed to stand for . It ’s aniPhone , and all the SE suffix did was turn Apple ’s entry speech sound into an outlier . It ’s entirely disjoined to the mark ’s top phone , and if you decide to buy one , you ’re notreallyjoining the club . It ’s like making a $ 1 toast on a Kickstarter project . for certain , you ’ve contributed , but you ’re hardly a penis of the inner round and you wo n’t be getting any of the benefits .
When Tim Cookteased the iPhone 16e ’s launch , he used the phrasal idiom “ meet the newest member of the family unit , ” and with the raw name , that ’s what we ’ve done . The iPhone 16e ’s name add it into the family line , where it can sit at the big tabular array with theiPhone 16,iPhone 16 Plus , and the twoiPhone 16 Promodels too . Sure , the old SE models were all iPhones , but they did n’t have the proper number attach , and it set them asunder from the latest versions . When people buy an iPhone , they require the latest , and with the iPhone 16e , that ’s what they ’re getting .
Family forever
The iPhone 16e has been embraced by the family , and this could make a deviation in the future tense too , should Apple decide to shift aside from the vague multi - year update agenda it has maintained with the SE series . It could , realistically , announce a new atomic number 99 - series iPhone every year , and insure it stay a “ current ” iPhone by adopt the same number strategy . An iPhone 17e would follow the 16e in 2026 , for exercise .
The SE series did show Apple does n’t feel the need to update its entry - grade phone very often though , but it ’s the outlier in the industriousness . New entree - degree speech sound come from practically every other manufacturer on an annual ( and sometimes even sooner ) groundwork , and giving the e - serial an one-year bump , however low , would keep it brisk and exciting for buyers who do n’t require to pay for a number - series phone .
While the iPhone 16e ’s name fits in with my personal lovemaking of logical system and order , the continued world of theiPhone 15andiPhone 15 Plusin Apple ’s range take it less great than it could be , but I can forgive it because the pricing structure makes up for it . The iPhone 16e starts at $ 599 , the iPhone 15 at $ 699 , the iPhone 16 at $ 799 , and the 16 Pro at $ 999 . The iPhone 14 has gone , which will dun some due to some less than idealistic spec differences , but it could n’t exist alongside the 16e .
E is good, but C is better
During word with colleague after the iPhone 16e was foretell , I abide more or less alone as someone who liked the new name . Detractors compared it to how Motorola has name some of itslowliest budget phone , and also recollect how Samsung used an einsteinium suffix on the budgetGalaxy S10e . Others are questioning what the E stand up for . Entry - level ? Economy ? indispensable ?
It ’s an peculiar one , and ultimately does n’t need to stand for anything at all , but it ’s not a letter tied to Apple ’s mobile division . Using S , as it has done in the past tense for some unexampled models , does n’t seem correct either , as those headphone were impound to fairly major annual updates . What ’s interesting is the S suffix was easy to tie into new feature on the twist itself , standing for thing like Speed and Siri , and this is where Apple may have lack a legerdemain with the iPhone 16e .
It ’s a surprise ( and perhaps a missed chance for the marketing squad ) Apple did n’t resurrect the alphabetic character C. call it the iPhone 16c would have fit right in as a lower cost , but still premium iPhone , just as the oldiPhone 5cdid in 2013 . Plus , it would have join ( no pun intended ) the phone with the debut of the new C1 modem — which is a expectant dealthan Apple made it seem — for some cute , geeky trade name synergy .
Namesdomatter , and I wish them to fit . I wo n’t escape the honest-to-goodness SE name , but willremember it fondly for other reasons , and love that with a simple-minded rename the iPhone 16e has become a genuine member of the menage . However , for the ultimate in nerdy satisfaction , I ’d have really liked to link the dots between the young headphone and the new C1 modem , if Apple had settle to call it the iPhone 16c rather .
