Apple to gimp the iPhone 17e so that it doesn't overshadow the base iPhone 17 says insider

Apple is set to launch its new cheaper iPhone 17e smartphone in the first half of 2026, but it won't make the same mistake it did with the iPhone 16e, but why? Let's dive in.

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The launch of the iPhone 16e was an important step for Apple as it was the first use of its new in-house C1 5G modem at the time, with its new ultra-thin iPhone Air sporting its new second-gen C1X 5G modem. The iPhone 16e was meant to be a cheaper, cut-down version of the iPhone 16 base model, but it was a little too powerful and specced well against the more expensive base iPhone 16.

Apple's iPhone 16e was an iPhone 14-inspired handset with thin bezels, a 6.1-inch OLED Super Retina XDR display, a smaller notch that featured the front-facing camera and Face ID technology, which was a departure from Touch ID that was in previous iPhones.

• Read more: Apple's new A19 Pro vs A19 comparison: iPhone 17 chips have major differences
• Read more: iPhone 17 Pro starts at $1049, $50 more than iPhone 16 Pro
• Read more: iPhone Air has iPhone 17 Pro perf: binned A19 Pro has less GPU cores, lower gaming FPS

The iPhone 16e did have compromises over the more powerful (and more expensive) iPhone 16 smartphones with its aluminum frame with a glass back not being color-infused, the A18 chip had a 4-core GPU versus the 5-core GPU in the base iPhone 16, and a single-lens camera instead of the dual-lens cameras in the full iPhone 16 models.

However, the iPhone 16e wasn't handicapped enough to make it a "cheaper" less-specced offering than the base iPhone 16, and Apple won't be making that mistake again with its new iPhone 17e in 2026.

• Read more: Apple rumored to launch iPhone 17e in 2026 with same OLED panel as iPhone 16e
• Read more: iPhone 16e sports the company's first in-house 5G modem, made on TSMC 4nm + 7nm

But in his new Power On newsletter, Bloomberg writer Mark Gurman says that the next-gen iPhone 17e will be gimped enough that the base iPhone 17 will be a much better smartphone. How? The new iPhone 17e won't have the higher-end ProMotion display technology that provides support for up to 120Hz refresh rate, with the budget-focused iPhone 17e to sport just a 60Hz display.

Not only that, but we should expect the same single-lens camera setup that both the iPhone 16e and new iPhone Air sport, so it will be gimped just enough to make the base iPhone 17 stand out against the cheaper iPhone 17e. We should expect the new iPhone 17e smartphone to be powered by Apple's latest in-house A19 processor, but once again, it should be gimped with a lesser CPU + GPU core count than the base iPhone 17 and ultra-thin iPhone Air smartphones.

Gurman explained in his PowerOn newsletter: "The other big items to look out for in the first half of next year are the iPhone 17e, a new low-end iPad and an updated iPad Air. The 17e, in particular, should help bring some clarity to Apple's product lineup. Currently, there's not too much difference between a regular iPhone 16 and the budget 16e - making it hard to justify the $200 gap between them. This time around, the 17 is going to be significantly better than the 17e. That should make the different iPhone tiers a bit easier for consumers to grasp".