Apple has released its new low-cost smartphone, the iPhone 16e. However, the new iPhone is priced higher than previous iPhone SE models, making it possible to buy an iPhone 15 for a similar price. There are plenty of reasons why buying last year’s iPhone makes more sense.

The iPhone 15 Has a Better Camera System

The iPhone 15 has a dual-camera system with a 48MP main camera and a 12MP ultra-wide camera. In comparison, the iPhone 16e is missing the ultra-wide lens, meaning the camera on the iPhone 16e is less capable than the one on the iPhone 15. Both can offer up to 2x optical-quality zoom, but the iPhone 16e lacks the 0.5x option of the iPhone 15 that can give a wider field of view.

Even if you’re not the greatest smartphone photographer in the world, the dual-camera system gives you a lot more options when you’re taking photos with your phone. For roughly the same price, you’re getting a lot more camera for your money with the iPhone 15.

The iPhone 16e Still Has a Notch

There’s no difference in the quality of the front cameras on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16e; both offer a 12MP TrueDepth front camera with an f/1.9 aperture. However, there is a significant difference in where this camera is found.

The iPhone 14 Pro models were the first to remove the notch at the top of the iPhone screen and replace it with the Dynamic Island, a pill-shaped area towards the top of the iPhone screen. Rather than trying to hide it, however, Apple leaned into the Dynamic Island, making it a useful feature. The Dynamic Island can expand to show alerts or display the current activity.

All the iPhone 15 models feature the Dynamic Island, and this was true of all iPhone 16 models, too, until the release of the iPhone 16e, which reverts to the large notch at the very top of the screen. Not only does this make the iPhone 16e look less appealing, but you also lose some of the useful features that the Dynamic Island offers.

The iPhone 15 Has Better Video and Photography Features

Aside from having a better camera system, the iPhone 15 is also more capable for both photography and video. The iPhone 16e can take photos in Portrait mode, but the iPhone 15 supports the more useful next-generation Portrait mode. You can take photos on your iPhone 15 in standard Photo mode, and if the image includes a person, dog, or cat, the depth information is automatically recorded. You can then edit the photo to turn it into a Portrait image later if you want.

You can also edit Portrait mode photos on the iPhone 15, changing the depth of field to increase or reduce the background blur, and even completely change which part of the image is in focus.

The iPhone 15 also has superior video recording capabilities; you can shoot in Cinematic mode, which captures your videos with a shallow depth of field that makes them look more like shots from a movie. The iPhone 15 supports Action mode, too, which can stabilize the video if your camera shakes or vibrates while you’re shooting.

The iPhone 16e Lacks MagSafe Support

MagSafe has been around since the iPhone 12 was launched and involves building an array of magnets around the charging coil inside an iPhone. These magnets ensure that MagSafe-compatible chargers align perfectly with the iPhone’s charging coil, so that your iPhone can take advantage of faster wireless charging.

The iPhone 15 supports MagSafe, so it can handle faster wireless charging up to 15W. In comparison, the iPhone 16e will only support Qi wireless charging up to 7.5W. This means that you can wirelessly charge your iPhone 15 much faster than you can the iPhone 16e.

MagSafe has additional benefits aside from just charging speed. There are a whole host of MagSafe-compatible accessories, such as MagSafe battery packs, MagSafe charging stands, MagSafe dashboard mounts, and even MagSafe tripods that take advantage of the powerful connection you can make using the iPhone’s MagSafe magnets.

The iPhone 15 Has a Brighter Screen

There isn’t a huge difference in the displays of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16e. Both are 6.1-inch OLED displays, with the same 460ppi resolution. However, there is a significant difference in the brightness of the two models.

The iPhone 16e has a typical maximum brightness of 800 nits, compared to 1000 nits for the iPhone 15. The peak brightness for HDR content is 1200 nits for the iPhone 16e, compared to 1600 nits for the iPhone 15.

The biggest difference, however, is that the iPhone 15 can reach up to 2000 nits peak brightness outdoors. It means if you’re using your iPhone outdoors in bright conditions, you’ll have much more of a struggle seeing the display with the iPhone 16e than you will with the iPhone 15.

The iPhone 16e Has No Ultra-Wideband Chip

The iPhone 15 includes the U2 ultra-wideband chip, which is missing from the iPhone 16e. Ultra-wideband is a wireless communication protocol similar to Bluetooth which allows devices to communicate with one another over short distances. The key benefit of ultra-wideband over Bluetooth, however, is that it allows you to accurately determine the location of devices in 3D space.

This is what powers Apple’s Precision Finding. With the iPhone 15, for example, you can locate an AirTag or track down your second-generation AirPods Pro with a high degree of accuracy that isn’t possible with the iPhone 16e.

You can also use the feature to locate other Apple devices that have ultra-wideband chips. For example, if you’re meeting up with a friend in a crowded location, and they have an iPhone with an ultra-wideband chip, you can use your iPhone 15 to find their exact location.

You’re Not Missing Much Without Apple Intelligence

While the iPhone 16e lacks many of the features that are found in the iPhone 15, it’s not all one-way traffic. The iPhone 16e does have some features that the iPhone 15 doesn’t, such as a more powerful chip, an Action button, and slightly better battery life.

Possibly the biggest difference, however, is that the iPhone 16e supports Apple Intelligence, which isn’t supported by the iPhone 15. Is this reason enough to go for the iPhone 16e instead? Well, not so much.

The full feature set of Apple Intelligence still hasn’t been released, but a significant number of the main features are available, and they’re underwhelming, to say the least. Image Playground lets you generate images on-device, but you can only produce either cartoon or hand-drawn styles and it’s not possible to create photorealistic images at all. The Genmoji feature lets you create your own custom emoji, and Writing Tools can proofread or rewrite your text, but these are unlikely to be features you’ll use on a regular basis.

The Clean Up tool is a useful way to remove objects from your photos, but it has very limited options, and there are plenty of apps that can do a better job. Siri still hasn’t improved a great deal; you can use ChatGPT to answer more complex questions, but the integration is a little clunky and Siri still often gets even the most basic requests wrong. You can even recreate the Visual Intelligence feature yourself using Google Lens.

Some other Apple Intelligence features, such as notification and email summaries, can be useful, but they probably don’t outweigh the other benefits you get from an iPhone 15. With some people opting to turn Apple Intelligence features off, unless you’re desperate for one of Apple’s AI tools, you won’t be missing a huge deal by opting for the iPhone 15.

The iPhone 16e is Apple’s most expensive “low-cost” iPhone to date, being only $200 cheaper than the standard iPhone 16. If you do want to save money, however, then you should definitely consider buying the iPhone 15 instead. Unless you’re hugely desperate for Apple Intelligence, you’ll be getting more for your money by opting to buy last year’s iPhone.