Pros & Cons
-
- Superb performance
- Long battery life
- Vibrant screen
- Roomy 256GB base storage
- Camera takes sharp photos
- MagSafe charging
-
- Limited camera system
- Older Bluetooth and Wi-Fi radios
Apple iPhone 17e Specs
| Battery Life (As Tested) | 22 hours, 2 minutes |
| Camera Resolution (Rear; Front-Facing) | 48MP; 12MP |
| CPU | Apple A19 |
| Dimensions | 5.78 by 2.82 by 0.32 inches |
| Operating System | iOS 26 |
| Screen Resolution | 2,532 by 1,170 pixels |
| Screen Size | 6.1 |
The $599 Apple iPhone 17e is an excellent follow-up to last year's already-good iPhone 16e. For the same price, you get a faster A19 processor, quicker MagSafe charging, improved camera processing, more efficient 5G radio performance, and double the base storage (256GB). It's a great option for first-time phone users, those who want a basic smartphone, and those upgrading from older models, like the iPhone 11 or iPhone 12. Seasoned iPhone users who want more than the basics, will likely want to pay the extra $200 for the iPhone 17's more flexible camera system, longer battery life, better display, and faster wireless speeds. It remains our Editors' Choice, and the best iPhone for most people.
Design: As Simple As It Gets
The iPhone 17e represents Apple's simplest design. It's a clean, elegant phone with straight lines and flat surfaces. It looks basically the same as the 16e and is close in appearance to the iPhone 17 ($799). It features an aluminum frame, a glass front, and a glass back. The phone comes in a new shade of soft pink, white, or black, all with a matte finish on the rear panel and frame. I'm sure some people would prefer a wider color palette, but you can always choose a case that suits your personality. The phone is assembled with Apple's typical level of perfection, and the materials all feel top-notch.
The handset measures 5.78 by 2.82 by 0.31 inches (HWD), identical dimensions to the 16e, and weighs 5.96 ounces, which is 0.08 ounces more. The iPhone 17, in comparison, measures 5.89 by 2.81 by 0.31 inches and weighs 6.24 ounces, while the $499 Google Pixel 10a is a touch bigger and heavier at 6.10 by 2.90 by 0.40 inches and 6.50 ounces. All of these devices are about as compact as modern phones get, making them ideal for those with smaller hands.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The only significant upgrade Apple made to the outside compared with the 16e is the cover glass, which is Ceramic Shield 2 and offers 3x the scratch resistance of the 16e's first-generation Ceramic Shield. The 17e carries over the IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, which the iPhone 17 and Pixel 10a also share.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)Functional elements are spread around the outer frame. The combined power and screen lock button is on the right edge, while the programmable Action Button and separate volume keys are on the left. All the buttons have top-tier action. The USB-C port (v2.0) is on the bottom edge, as is the down-firing speaker and one of the microphones. The iPhone 17e doesn't have the dedicated camera button that the rest of the iPhone 17 family shares.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)You won't find a SIM card tray on the US model of the iPhone 17e (or the iPhone 16e or 17). Apple removed physical SIM support from the iPhone several generations ago. Instead, the phone supports up to two active SIMs via eSIM (it can store up to eight eSIMs). In fact, iPhones sold in the US, Canada, Japan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico are eSIM only. Most other international iPhone 17e models continue to include a physical SIM tray. The Pixel 10a supports eSIM and physical SIMs.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The lone camera is a single round lens that protrudes from the upper-left corner of the rear panel. You can spy a small microphone next to it, along with the flash. I appreciate the simplicity here, as many flagship phones have overwrought camera module designs to accommodate more lenses.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The iPhone 17e is a fine piece of hardware. Some might call it boring, but I call it refined. And honestly, simplicity goes a long way these days.
Display: Solid, Even If Last Year's Tech
Other than the cover glass, the 17e uses the same display as the 16e. That means it's a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED panel with a resolution of 2,532 by 1,170 pixels and a density of 460 pixels per inch. This is plenty sharp for all your needs. It delivers a typical brightness of 800 nits and a peak of 1,200 nits. It sticks with the 16e's 60Hz refresh rate, which means it doesn't support the Always-On display that the rest of the iPhone 17 family includes. The 17e features a notch at the top that houses the TrueDepth camera and Face ID components. The phone's Face ID feature works like a charm every time.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)On its own, it's a fine screen. It's sharp, colorful, and bright enough to see indoors and out most of the time. The glass appears to have a bit more glare than other iPhones, however, which can make it a challenge to view under direct sunlight.
The iPhone 17's screen is far superior. It measures 6.3 inches, has a resolution of 2,622 by 1,206 pixels at 460ppi, and peaks at 3,000 nits. It also includes Apple's Dynamic Island with Face ID, a variable refresh rate for much smoother scrolling, and the Always-On display.
Meanwhile, the Pixel 10a has a 6.3-inch OLED screen with a resolution of 2,424 by 1,080 at 422ppi. It has a refresh rate of 60-120Hz, with a typical brightness of 2,000 nits and a peak of 3,000 nits. It also supports HDR content, 24-bit depth, and 16 million colors. It's protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 7i. The 10a's screen is less sharp, but more than twice as bright and much smoother than the 17e's.
Performance: An iPhone 17-Matching Upgrade
One of the 17e's key improvements over the 16e is the processor. It jumps from the A18 chip to the A19 processor found in the iPhone 17. The A18 has a six-core CPU, a four-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine. The A19 has the same base number of cores but adds Neural Accelerators to the GPU, which assist with artificial intelligence tasks. The A19 in the iPhone 17 has one more GPU core than the A19 in the 17e.
Apple doesn't share how much memory the phone has, but early benchmarking suggests it has the same 8GB as the 16e and 17. Apple also doubled the base storage from 128GB to 256GB ($599) and doubled the upgrade option from 256GB to 512GB ($799). That's a big deal and much appreciated.
(Credit: 3DMark/AnTuTu/Geekbench/PCMag)In terms of speed, the 17e beats the 16e and mostly matches the iPhone 17, which is great. We don't have benchmark scores for the Pixel 10a yet for comparison, but it runs the same Tensor G4 processor as the 2025-era Pixel 9a.
To quantify performance, I ran a series of third-party benchmarking apps. Geekbench 6 measures the CPU's performance on basic computing tasks. In this test, the 17e scored 3,514 on the single-core test and 9,092 on the multi-core test. In comparison, the 16e scored 3,441 and 8,362, and the 17 scored 3,653 and 9,264, respectively.
Switching to 3DMark, which tallies graphics performance, the iPhone 17e ran 4,211 frames at an average of 25.2fps. The 16e scored 3,041 frames at an average of 18.2fps, and the 17 scored 4,884 frames at 27.4fps. This result makes sense give that the iPhone 17 has an extra GPU core.
Last, I ran AnTuTu, which is a challenging test that covers everything. The iPhone 17e scored 2,262,704, where the 17 scored 2,221,350. It's notable that the 17e did a little better here.
Of course, in everyday use, the device performs well. It runs smoothly with no stuttering, hiccups, or crashes. It runs Apple Intelligence just as aptly as other current iPhones without issue. Moreover, it's great for gaming on the go.
Battery and Charging: MagSafe for the Win
Apple doesn't say how large the iPhone 17e's battery is, but offers guidelines for how long it should last. Apple's spec sheet says the iPhone 17e can play up to 26 hours of locally stored video or 21 hours of streamed video. These are the same figures Apple quotes for the 16e.
Similar Products
Our Current Picks for The Best Small Phones for 2026
Our battery test involves cranking the screen's brightness to the maximum and streaming video over Wi-Fi until the battery gives out. Under these conditions, the 17e ran for 22 hours and 2 minutes—an improvement of just 23 minutes over the 16e (21 hours, 39 minutes). Compared with the iPhone 17, which lasts 24 hours and 31 minutes in the same test, the 17e falls a little short.
Although battery life doesn't improve significantly year over year, Apple gives the iPhone 17e a huge advantage over the 16e and Pixel 10a: it supports MagSafe charging. The 16e and 10a support Qi wireless charging at 7.5W, but they don't snap to magnetic chargers. Not only does the 17e support faster 15W Qi2 wireless charging, but it magnetically adheres to MagSafe chargers, which align the charging coils and keep the phone attached during charging; it's a nice upgrade. The Pixel 10a supports Qi2 but not Google's magnetic charging, called Pixelsnap.
With a 20W charging brick or higher, it can recharge to 50% in 30 minutes. In testing, it took a bit longer at 32 minutes. A full recharge required 1 hour and 13 minutes.
Connectivity: Small Upgrades Leave It Slightly Behind
The 17e receives a minor connectivity upgrade. It has Apple's C1X modem (the same as the iPhone Air), an improvement over last year's C1 modem in the 16e. Apple says the newer modem works more efficiently with the A19 processor than the C1 does with the A18, which allows it to double wireless performance. The C1X supports LTE 4G and sub-6GHz/C-band 5G, but not mmWave 5G. This means it can't access the absolute fastest wireless speeds offered by US carriers, but it still connects to most 5G networks and performs well in testing.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)On AT&T's network, tested across New Jersey, it reached peak speeds of 419Mbps down and 33.4Mbps up. The slower upload speed shows that AT&T's network is still non-standalone 5G (NSA) in the area I tested (meaning it still uses LTE 4G for uploads rather than 5G). Still, 419Mbps is a solid result in an area outside a major city. Unfortunately, I did not have access to another AT&T-equipped phone for a direct comparison.
As for Wi-Fi, the phone sticks with the same Wi-Fi 6 radio as last year. The rest of the iPhone 17 family has Wi-Fi 7. In testing, the 17e reached a peak of 608Mbps down and 249Mbps up with the Wi-Fi 6 router in my home. An iPhone 17 Pro Max hit 629Mbps down and 252Mbps up from the same spot. When I moved the phones to the edge of my Wi-Fi network, speeds slowed, but not by much. The 17e hit 307Mbps down and 117Mbps up, while the 17 Pro Max hit 299Mbps down and 131Mbps up.
The 17e carries over the Bluetooth 5.3 radio from the 16e. That's not the latest spec (Bluetooth 6.0), but it's still recent enough to connect with your Apple Watch or AirPods. The 17e lacks the Ultra Wideband, Thread, and dual-band GPS radios offered by the rest of the iPhone 17 family. The Pixel 10a has Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 6.0.
Audio: Good Enough for Most
The iPhone 17e is a fine voice phone. The earpiece speaker is visible as a slit in the glass at the top near the frame. It produces clean, clear audio that I could hear in multiple locations, including near a large intersection with heavy traffic. The earpiece speaker reaches a max volume of 79.2dB, which is plenty loud. The speakerphone improves the volume to 88.5dB. Both these readings are a touch higher than those of the 16e. You can make calls via Wi-Fi as long as your carrier supports it.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)The earpiece works in tandem with the down-firing speaker to produce stereo sound. I was pleased with the clarity of our test track, The Knife's "Silent Shout." The bass notes weren't punchy, but they were audible, which is more than I can say of most phones. Highs come across with sharpness that doesn't stray toward annoying, and the mids are surprisingly full. You'll be better off with your favorite pair of wireless headphones, but the 17e does well in a pinch.
Camera: One Lens Feels a Bit Limiting
Most $600 phones have at least two cameras on the back, but the iPhone 17e sticks with one. It's Apple's 48MP Fusion camera, available across iPhone 17 models. The 48MP sensor takes full-resolution shots and combines them with binned 12MP captures to create a final 24MP image. The photos benefit from the full sensor's detail and the additional light capture from the binned effect. You can achieve 2x "optical zoom" by cropping to the sensor's central 12MP area. You can pinch-to-zoom up to 10x, but it's done digitally. There are no ultra-wide 0.5x shots, and no optical telephoto 4x or 5x shots.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)Is anything improved? Apple says the A19 processor and its ISP give the 17e more computational power for generating images. This includes Apple's next-generation portrait mode with Focus and Depth Control, which can be applied to your photos after the fact if you want to change the point of focus. As it was on the 16e, the 17e's number of Photography Styles is limited to five, where the rest of the iPhone 17 family has access to 16 styles, in addition to the style control pad.
Simple snaps you take while out and about look great. There's no doubt about that. The camera app is dead simple to use, fires up quickly via the Action Button or lock screen shortcut, and works well. The images I captured are sharp, with accurate color, good white balance, and a fair amount of detail. If all you care about is taking shots of your friends and surroundings on the go, you'll be plenty satisfied.
Without the ultra-wide or telephoto lenses, you do lose some flexibility. Your shots are limited to 1x or 2x at high quality, and though you can zoom up to 10x digitally, those shots lose detail, exhibit lower contrast, and have muted colors. They're fine photos, but not as good as the results you'll get from the other iPhone 17 models. For example, the iPhone 17 at least adds an ultra-wide camera for super-wide 0.5 photos, which can be fun or even necessary when in tight quarters.
The selfie camera is the same 12MP True Depth camera from the iPhone 16e. It supports the same improved processing for next-generation portraits as the main camera and does a fine job. The iPhone 17 and above have a better 18MP selfie camera with a square format that lets you take two sizes of tall and wide photos—something few other phones can do.
The 17e mostly has the same video powers as the 16e. It maxes out at 4K with Dolby Vision at 60fps. It can handle slow-motion in 1080p at up to 240fps, and includes optical image stabilization, wind noise reduction, and spatial and stereo audio capture.
The 4K60 footage I shot looks very good. I liked the good color and white balance, and the phone does a decent job of capturing detail.
There's no question that the iPhone 17e is a fine camera and video camera for those with basic needs. If you're a creative person who wants a little more firepower, the additional lenses, greater computational power, and advanced features of the more expensive iPhone 17 models might be more your speed. Similarly, the Pixel 10a has two rear cameras, including a main and ultra-wide that grant it a bit more flexibility.
Software: iOS 26 and Apple Intelligence
The phone boots with iOS 26.3 already installed, which is a few steps ahead of the iOS 26 system that arrived last fall. It includes the Liquid Glass design language, for good or ill. Apple has since loaded iOS 26 with features that let you tone down Liquid Glass. Apple doesn't specify how many software updates the iPhone 17e will receive, but you can bet on at least five years of updates. For reference, iOS 26 is compatible with devices as old as 10 years (iPhone SE 2 and iPhone 11). Google and Samsung make more specific commitments to their devices, with phones like the Pixel 10a and Galaxy S26 set to receive seven years of updates.
In addition to iOS 26, the phone includes all the latest features of Apple Intelligence, like Visual Intelligence for photo-based searches and Live Translation for instant conversations with people speaking a different language. The Image Playground is on board for creating AI-based drawings, and the Photos app is totally changed, with new editing powers.
What's most important is that the platform runs smoothly on the iPhone 17e. There are no slowdowns, no speedbumps, and no issues running the toughest apps on the app store—and you can expect years of new features.