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Technologies

Apple iPhone 16E Specs vs. iPhone 15 Pro: New Entry-Level or Last Year’s Pro

Both iPhone models offer a lot of features while saving money over more-expensive options.

One of the biggest selling points of Apple’s $599 iPhone 16E is that it offers excellent bang for the buck. It is Apple’s most affordable iPhone, but it still has many of the same features as the $799 iPhone 16, such as the latest A18 chip and Apple Intelligence, which introduces generative emoji, smarter notifications and, eventually, an improved Siri. 

Yet, it might be worth looking at the company’s older iPhones, such as the iPhone 15 Pro. It might not be as cheap as the iPhone 16E, but it has much better features, such as a nicer camera and better charging capabilities. Those extra features might be worth the higher price. Plus, you can potentially get it at a lower price than the iPhone 16 if you buy it refurbished. 

How do these phones compare? We’ve outlined a few features for you to find out which one is the best iPhone for you. 

Display 

The iPhone 16E and the iPhone 15 Pro feature the same 6.1-inch size screen at a similar display resolution, but there are still a few differences. The iPhone 16E runs at a 60Hz refresh rate — similar to all of the non-Pro iPhone models — and it can reach a 1,200-nit peak brightness. It also has a similar display notch to the iPhone 14, and does not support the Dynamic Island that serves up contextual information on other iPhone 15 and 16 models. It’s functional and should work fine whether you are using the phone indoors or outdoors, but the Pro’s screen has several additional perks.

The iPhone 15 Pro’s display can run at a variable refresh rate between 10Hz and 120Hz, changing based on what activity you are doing. You can expect to see the smoother 120Hz refresh rate when scrolling through websites, playing games and other applications that benefit from smoother animations. According to Apple, it will hit the lower end of that range to conserve battery life when you aren’t using the phone. The display also hits a higher 2,000 nits of peak brightness (outdoors) and includes the Dynamic Island that shows information like the music player or countdowns around the space of the front-facing camera’s display cutout. 

Processor

The iPhone 15 Pro has the A17 Pro chip, which is a six-core CPU with two performance and four efficiency cores that makes it great for graphics and gaming. The iPhone 16E, on the other hand, ships with the latest A18 chip, which gives it a touch more power and speed. In practice, the A17 Pro is still a very capable chip that will serve you well for years to come. The A18 chip, however, will likely receive software and new feature updates for a slightly longer period of time. Both processors are capable of running Apple Intelligence and more advanced iPhone games like Resident Evil 4 Remake and Death Stranding.

Apple Intelligence

One of the iPhone 16E’s biggest highlights is that it supports Apple Intelligence, which was previously only available in Apple’s high-end offerings like the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 16. Apple Intelligence offers plenty of benefits such as smart writing tools, a Clean Up tool that removes unwanted elements from photos and a potentially smarter Siri on a future update. The iPhone 15 Pro, as mentioned, has had this from the start, so the two are fairly equal in this department.

Camera

The biggest visual difference between the iPhone 16E and the iPhone 15 Pro is that the latter has three cameras instead of one. The iPhone 15 Pro has a 48-megapixel wide lens, a 12-megapixel ultrawide lens and a 12-megapixel telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom. It also has a large 48-megapixel sensor that helps immensely in low light. The iPhone 16E, on the other hand, only has a single 48-megapixel rear camera. It has to rely on sensor-cropping for improved zoomed-in shots. Both have 12-megapixel front-facing cameras. 

Charging

Another downside to the iPhone 16E is that it lacks support for MagSafe wireless charging, and is only compatible with Qi charging capped at 7.5W. The iPhone 15 Pro, on the other hand, supports 15W MagSafe charging. Not only can it wireless charge at twice the speed, it also supports a whole range of magnetic accessories that the iPhone 16E won’t be able to use unless it has a third-party MagSafe-compatible case. 

Both phones use USB-C for wired charging, with Apple citing that both can recharge their battery to 50% in 30 minutes when connected to a 20W adapter. In CNET’s review testing for the iPhone 16E and iPhone 15 Pro, both phones tested slightly better than this. The iPhone 16E recharged from 0% to 59% in 30 minutes, and the 15 Pro recharged from 0% to 62% after being updated to iOS 17.0.3.

Pricing (and a note on buying refurbished)

Obviously, the iPhone 16E offers the lower price as it retails for just $599. Apple, however, is now officially selling a refurbished version of the 15 Pro for just $759, which is cheaper than the $799 iPhone 16. Sure, that’s more expensive than the 16E, but the Pro’s extra features might be worth a higher price for you. Additionally, while buying phones in a secondary market has its issues (the phone might not always be in great shape), Apple’s official refurbished program has an excellent reputation that is akin to buying the product new. 

Check out the following chart to see how the iPhone 16E and the iPhone 15 Pro stack up in other aspects.

Apple iPhone 16E vs. Apple iPhone 15 Pro

Apple iPhone 16E Apple iPhone 15 Pro
Display size, resolution 6.1-inch OLED display; 2,532×1,170 pixels; 60Hz refresh rate 6.1-inch OLED; 2,556×1,179 pixels; 120Hz adaptive
Pixel density 460 ppi 460 ppi
Dimensions (inches) 5.78 x 2.82 x 0.31 in. 5.77 x 2.78 x 0.32 in
Dimensions (millimeters) 146.7 x 71.5 x 7.8 mm 146.6 x 70.6 x 8.25 mm
Weight (ounces, grams) 167g (5.88 oz.) 187g (6.6 oz)
Mobile software iOS 18 iOS 17
Camera 48-megapixel (wide) 48-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), 12-megapixel (3x telephoto)
Front-facing camera 12-megapixel 12-megapixel
Video capture 4K 4K
Processor Apple A18 A17 Pro
RAM/Storage RAM unknown + 128GB, 256GB, 512GB 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB
Expandable storage None None
Battery/Charger Up to 26 hours video playback, 21 hours streamed video playback, 90 hours of audio playback. 20W wired charging, 7.5W Qi wireless charging Undisclosed; Apple claims up to 23 hours of video playback (20 hours streamed)
Fingerprint sensor None, Face ID None (Face ID)
Connector USB-C USB-C (USB 3.0)
Headphone jack None None
Special features Action button, Apple C1 5G modem, Apple Intelligence, Ceramic Shield, Emergency SOS, satellite connectivity, IP68 resistance 5G (mmw/Sub6), Action Button, Always-On display, IP68 rating, MagSafe, Dynamic Island, 5x optical zoom (120mm equivalent),satellite connectivity, eSIM, Thread networking technology
Price off-contract (USD) $599 (128GB) $999 (128GB, $1,099 (256GB), $1,299 (512GB), $1,499 (1TB)
Price (GBP) £599 (128GB) £999 (128GB), £1,099 (256GB), £1,299 (512GB), £1,499 (1TB)
Price (AUD) AU$999 (128GB) AU$1,849 (128GB), AU$2,049 (256GB), AU$2,399 (512GB), AU$2,749 (1TB)

Technologies

See Ya, Siri: Why Apple Might Make Third-Party Voice Assistants Available in Europe

When given the choice, iPhone owners might opt for alternatives given the delayed rollout of Siri’s AI revamp.

Apple is reportedly working on changes to the iPhone’s operating system that will make it possible to choose an alternative voice assistant to Siri.

The ability to switch from Siri to another voice assistant, potentially powered by third-party companies including OpenAI, Google or Meta, could be a reality in the near future, but only for iPhone owners in Europe, Bloomberg reports. Apple didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Apple is preparing the changes to Siri in anticipation of the European Union demanding the company allow European users a choice of voice assistants, according to Bloomberg. It would be similar to the policy shift Apple has already made in allowing rival app stores onto the iPhone, which was sparked by Europe’s Digital Markets Act.

Apple has faced many regulatory hurdles with the EU in recent years, largely in the form of challenges to its proprietary technology and walled-garden ecosystem, which provide Apple device owners with high levels of consistency, privacy and security, but often make it difficult for smaller companies to compete.

These regulatory challenges often leave Apple with little choice but to make significant changes to the way its tech works. Some of these changes — such as switching from Lightning connectors to the universal standard of USB-C — affect Apple device owners globally. Others affect only those who live within the EU.

Siri’s AI troubles

Siri has been available on iPhones since 2011 and has spawned many copycats. But the advent of generative AI over the last few years has brought about a number of chatbots, most notably OpenAI’s ChatGPT, that rival and surpass Siri’s capabilities, to the point where Apple is now seen as lagging behind competitors.

Apple announced an AI revamp of Siri last year at WWDC, its June developer conference, but the company delayed its rollout. Apple Intelligence-powered Siri is still nowhere to be seen, and may not even make an appearance at this year’s WWDC, per Bloomberg.

In light of this, it may be possible that European iPhone owners, when given the option, choose an alternative voice assistant. Unless Apple’s hand is forced, there’s currently no indication that people elsewhere will be given the same choice.

But Thomas Husson, VP and principal analyst at Forrester, doesn’t believe the AI overhaul of Siri is Apple’s main challenge.

«Is Siri’s revamp well overdue? Yes. Does Apple give the impression that they have an AI issue? Yes. It is too late for them? I don’t think so,» he said. Instead, Husson said what’s really at stake for the company is its ability to invent a user interface adapted to the AI era and create an ecosystem with companies and developers that will allow for new experiences within existing apps.

«Meeting the EU regulations and especially the DMA makes things more complex,» he added, but that’s the case for any digital platform operating in Europe.

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Technologies

I’ve Been Tracking Tariff Price Impacts Every Day: Here’s the Latest News

CNET’s tariff impact tracker is keeping tabs on price moves for several popular products, and while things seem steady, problems could be coming this summer.

President Donald Trump’s tariff policies could be leading to a rough summer for a lot of US consumers, as Walmart, the largest grocery store chain in the country, has become the latest company, and perhaps the most impactful, to warn of impending price hikes due to the administration’s import taxes. The company said that these increases are «inevitable» due to the circumstances.

«We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible,» CEO Doug McMillon said during an earnings call for the country’s largest grocery chain. «But given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced levels announced this week, we aren’t able to absorb all the pressure given the reality of narrow retail margins.»

This prompted a heated response from the president, who said in a post to Truth Social that the chain should eat the costs of the tariffs instead of passing them onto consumers, a tactic that’s not likely to gain much ground with most businesses, even Goliaths like Walmart. The administration previously lashed out at Amazon over reports that they were considering a plan to show consumers what portion of their purchase prices were caused by tariffs, calling the idea a «hostile and political act.» The Trump White House has by and large been extremely combative over the notion that companies might admit that the president’s tariffs have caused price inflations, which as I’ve explained in the past on CNET, is absolutely the case.

In this article, I’ve been tracking the daily effect of Trump’s tariffs on the prices of 11 popular products you might want or need to buy, whether it be a new phone, laptop or your daily coffee. So far, we’ve seen notable price hikes for the flagship Xbox game console, while everything else has either remained steady aside from occasional fluctuations that might not be tariff-related. That sort of consistency is far from certain, however, especially with new reports emerging that Apple might be looking to make iPhones more expensive this year.

Below, you can check out a chart with the average price of the 11 included items over the course of 2025. This will help give you a sense of the overall price changes and fluctuations going on. Further down, you’ll be able to check out charts for each individual product being tracked.

The recent tariff agreement with China, much-hyped by the White House, did significantly cut tariff rates against the US’s biggest trading partner. The new 30% rate is only temporary, however, and still historically high. It just looks more reasonable next to the ludicrous 145% rate that was previously in place. As those negotiations move along, companies continue to warn of impending price hikes in order to deal with the new tariffs, including Sony, which could potentially mean a price hike for its ever-popular PlayStation 5 consoles.

We’ll be updating this article regularly as prices change. It’s all in the name of helping you make sense of things, so be sure to check back every so often. For more, check out CNET’s guide to whether you should wait to make big purchases or buy them now and get expert tips about how to prepare for a recession.

Methodology

We’re checking prices daily and will update the article and the relevant charts right away to reflect any changes. The following charts show a single bullet point for each month, with the most recent one labeled «Now» and showing the current price. For the past months, we’ve gone with what was the most common price for each item in the given month. 

In most cases, the price stats used in these graphs were pulled from Amazon using the historical price tracker tool Keepa. For the iPhones, the prices come from Apple’s official materials and are based on the 128-gigabyte base model of the latest offering for each year: the iPhone 14, iPhone 15 and iPhone 16. For the Xbox Series X, the prices were sourced from Best Buy using the tool PriceTracker. If any of these products happen to be on sale at a given time, we’ll be sure to let you know and explain how those price drops differ from longer-term pricing trends that tariffs can cause.

The 11 products we’re tracking

Mostly what we’re tracking in this article are electronic devices and digital items that CNET covers in depth, like iPhones and affordable 4K TVs — along with a typical bag of coffee, a more humble product that isn’t produced in the US to any significant degree. 

The products featured were chosen for a few reasons: Some of them are popular and/or affordable representatives for major consumer tech categories, like smartphones, TVs and game consoles. Others are meant to represent things that consumers might buy more frequently, like printer ink or coffee beans. Some products were chosen over others because they are likely more susceptible to tariffs. Some of these products have been reviewed by CNET or have been featured in some of our best lists.

Below, we’ll get into more about each individual product.

iPhone 16

The iPhone is the most popular smartphone brand in the US, so this was a clear priority for price tracking. The iPhone has also emerged as a major focal point for conversations about tariffs, given its popularity and its susceptibility to import taxes because of its overseas production, largely in China. Trump has reportedly been fixated on the idea that the iPhone can and should be manufactured in the US, an idea that experts have dismissed as a fantasy. Estimates have also suggested that a US-made iPhone would cost as much as $3,500.

Apple has made several moves this year to protect its prices in the US as much as possible, like flying in bulk shipments of product ahead of the tariffs taking effect and working to move production for the American market from China to India, where tariff rates are less severe. This latter move provoked a response from Trump, given his noted fixation on the iPhone, saying on Thursday that he «had a little problem» with Tim Cook over the move, claiming without evidence that the Apple CEO pledged to bring more manufacturing to the US. Cook and others close to the company for years say that the supply chains for its products are too complex to move manufacturing entirely to the US.

Duracell AA batteries

A lot of the tech products in your home might boast a rechargeable energy source but individual batteries are still an everyday essential and I can tell you from experience that as soon as you forget about them, you’ll be needing to restock. The Duracell AAs we’re tracking are some of the bestselling batteries on Amazon.

Samsung DU7200 TV

Alongside smartphones, televisions are some of the most popular tech products out there, even if they’re an infrequent purchase. This particular product is a popular entry-level 4K TV and was CNET’s pick for best overall budget TV for 2025. Unlike a lot of tech products that have key supply lines in China, Samsung is a South Korean company, so it might have some measure of tariff resistance. In recent days, this model has fluctuated from $400, where its been for most of the year so far, and $470, where it sits today. These fluctuations don’t seem to be influenced by tariffs, at least for the time being.

Xbox Series X

Video game software and hardware are a market segment expected to be hit hard by the Trump tariffs. Microsoft’s Xbox is the first console brand to see price hikes — the company cited «market conditions» along with the rising cost of development. Most notably, this included an increase in the price of the flagship Xbox Series X, up from $500 to $600. Numerous Xbox accessories were also affected, and the company also said that «certain» games will eventually see a price hike from $70 to $80.

Initially, we were tracking the price of the much more popular Nintendo Switch as a representative of the gaming market. Nintendo has not yet hiked the price of its handheld-console hybrid and stressed that the $450 price tag of the upcoming Switch 2 has not yet been inflated because of tariffs. Sony, meanwhile, has so far only increased prices on its PlayStation hardware in markets outside the US.

AirPods Pro 2

The latest iteration of Apple’s wildly popular true-wireless earbuds are here to represent the headphone market. Much to the chagrin of the audiophiles out there, a quick look at sales charts on Amazon shows you just how much the brand dominates all headphone sales. The AirPods Pro 2 have hovered steadily around $200 on Amazon in 2025, but were on sale for $169 the first few days of May before jumping back up.

HP 962 CMY printer ink

This HP printer ink includes cyan, magenta and yellow all in one product and recently saw its price jump from around $72 — where it stayed for most of 2025 — to $80, which is around its highest price over the last five years. We will be keeping tabs to see if this is a long-term change or a brief uptick.

This product replaced Overture PLA Filament for 3D printers in this piece, but we’re still tracking that item.

Anker 10,000-mAh, 30-watt power bank

Anker’s accessories are perennially popular in the tech space and the company has already announced that some of its products will get more expensive as a direct result of tariffs. This specific product has also been featured in some of CNET’s lists of the best portable chargers. While the price has remained steady throughout the year, it is currently on sale for $16 on Amazon, but only for Prime members.

Bose TV speaker

Soundbars have become important purchases, given the often iffy quality of the speakers built into TVs. While not the biggest or the best offering in the space, the Bose TV Speaker is one of the more affordable soundbar options out there, especially hailing from a brand as popular as Bose.

Oral-B Pro 1000 electric toothbrush

They might be a lot more expensive than their traditional counterparts, but electric toothbrushes remain a popular choice for consumers because of how well they get the job done. I know my dentist won’t let up on how much I need one. This particular Oral-B offering was CNET’s overall choice for the best electric toothbrush for 2025.

Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook

Lenovo is notable among the big laptop manufacturers for being a Chinese company making its products especially susceptible to Trump’s tariffs.

Starbucks Ground Coffee (28-ounce bag)

Coffee is included in this tracker because of its ubiquity —I’m certainly drinking too much of it these days —and because it’s uniquely susceptible to Trump’s tariff agenda. Famously, coffee beans can only be grown within a certain distance from Earth’s equator, a tropical span largely outside the US and known as the «Coffee Belt.» 

Hawaii is the only part of the US that can produce coffee beans, with data from USAFacts showing that 11.5 million pounds were harvested there in the 2022-23 season — little more than a drop in the mug, as the US consumed 282 times that amount of coffee during that period. Making matters worse, Hawaiian coffee production has declined in the past few years.

All that to say: Americans get almost all of their coffee from overseas, making it one of the most likely products to see price hikes from tariffs.

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Technologies

Preorder a Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge With Free Storage Upgrade and $50 Amazon Gift Card

This new ultra-thin phone can be yours with 512GB of storage for the price of the 256GB model.

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is the latest addition to the existing Galaxy S25 lineup, and its main claim to fame is its impossibly thin design. It’s a solid addition, and it’ll officially go on sale on May 30. You can preorder it right now, and if you do it soon, you can pick up the new Galaxy S25 Edge with a free double-storage upgrade and a $50 Amazon gift card thrown in for good measure. The result is a Samsung Galaxy S25 deal that saves you a total of $170 off your order.

This deal is available across three different colors so make sure to pick the one you like best before ordering. You’ll get the 512GB model rather than the entry-level 256GB model with that gift card included all for $1,100.

The first thing you’ll notice about the Galaxy S25 Edge is its thickness. Or rather, it’s thinness. It comes in at just 5.8mm thick at its edge which is less than the 7.2mm Galaxy S25 and the Galaxy S25 Plus at 7.3mm. Despite the design change compared to the rest of the lineup, this model maintains the same IP68 dust and water resistance using a Corning Gorilla Glass Ceramic 2 display paired with a Gorilla Glass Victus 2 rear panel.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

Up front, you’ll find a 6.7-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate while the familiar 200-megapixel main camera is joined by a 12-megapixel ultrawide shooter. You’ll also find a 12-megapixel selfie camera hiding towards the top of the display. Other features of note include an under-display fingerprint sensor for biometric authentication, 12GB of RAM, and the fast Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chip.

Why this deal matters

Super-thin phones are set to be a real trend for 2025, with Apple expected to launch the iPhone 17 Air later this year. But with this deal, you can get in on the act right now, all while saving some cash. And if you’re in the Android ecosystem, then this is the thin phone to check out, and soon.

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