i Phone 17e vs i Phone 17: which entry-level Apple phone is best for you? | Tech Radar

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i Phone 17e vs i Phone 17: which entry-level Apple phone is best for you?

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The i Phone 17e (left) and i Phone 17 (right) (Image credit: Future)

The i Phone 17e is a powerful, long-lasting i Phone for those who can live without expensive camera and display features.

With its Pro-level display and innovative camera system, the i Phone 17 is a phenomenal value proposition.

Apple’s i Phone 17 lineup is now complete, with the i Phone 17e having joined the base i Phone 17, i Phone 17 Pro, and i Phone 17 Pro Max on store shelves.

A direct successor to the i Phone 16e, the i Phone 17e is intended to be an affordable, no-frills entry point into the i Phone ecosystem, but how does it compare to the next-cheapest model in Apple’s newest lineup, the i Phone 17?

In this guide, we’ll be comparing the two phones’ key specs and features to help you decide which i Phone 17 model is best for you. If you’re willing to spend a bit more money, you can also check out our i Phone 17 vs i Phone 17 Pro comparison.

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Before we dig into the details, here’s an overview of both phones’ key specs:

Both the i Phone 17e and i Phone 17 are available globally; the former was released in March 2026, while the latter hit shelves in September 2025.

The i Phone 17e retails for

In other words, the i Phone 17e is

It’s also important to note that both the i Phone 16e and i Phone 16 shipped with 128GB of storage as standard, so both i Phone 17e and i Phone 17 offer more base storage than their respective predecessors for the same starting price.

The i Phone 17e and i Phone 17 are very similar-looking devices – they’re almost identical in size and weight, both have aluminum frames with Ceramic Shield 2 protection on their respective displays, and both are rated IP68 for water and dust resistance.

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The i Phone 17e also gets the same customizable Action button as the i Phone 17, which was once an exclusive feature of Apple’s top-end i Phone 15 Pro.

The i Phone 17 has a larger 6.3-inch display than its cheaper sibling, but the two phones feel very similar in the hand, owing to the i Phone 17e’s chunkier display bezels.

The key design differences are functional. The i Phone 17 benefits from Camera Control and an extra lens on the back (more on this later), while the i Phone 17e has no such cut-out.

They’re also available in different colors; both come in black or white, but the i Phone 17e offers an additional pink shade, while the i Phone 17 also comes in blue, green, or lavender.

As mentioned, the i Phone 17 gets a larger OLED display than the i Phone 17e – 6.3 inches vs 6.1 inches – but it’s fitted into largely the same frame. That means the i Phone 17’s bezels are wafer-thin, while the i Phone 17e has to make do with some thicker, less premium-looking black borders.

The i Phone 17 also gets Apple’s interactive Dynamic Island cut-out at the top of its display, where the i Phone 17e is stuck with a physical notch. If you haven’t used the Dynamic Island before, you won’t know what you’re missing, but it’s essentially a pill-shaped area that’s capable of displaying real-time alerts, notifications, and background activities.

As for display detail, both phones are just as sharp as one another (460-pixels-per-inch), but the i Phone 17 can get a lot brighter, boasting a peak brightness of 3,000 nits to the i Phone 17e’s 1,200 nits. Mind you, in most everyday scenarios, you can expect to get around 800 nits from the i Phone 17e and around 1,000 nits from the i Phone 17.

The biggest display difference comes in the refresh rate department. The i Phone 17e’s screen is locked to 60 Hz, while the i Phone 17 gets an always-on, 120 Hz display. That basically means the scrolling experience on the i Phone 17 is far smoother than that of the 17e, though again, if you’re used to the 60 Hz refresh rate of Apple’s older i Phone models, you're not likely to be disappointed by how the 17e feels to navigate.

The biggest difference between the i Phone 17e and i Phone 17 can be spotted by someone who knows absolutely nothing about phones: Apple’s more expensive phone has a whole extra lens on the back. Specifically, it’s a 48MP ultra-wide lens, which lets you capture expansive subjects like landscapes and tall buildings with ease.

The i Phone 17e does at least get the same 48MP Fusion camera as the rest of the i Phone 17 line (including the i Phone 17 Pro and i Phone 17 Pro Max). This lens lets you capture shots at either 1x or 2x, and uses some smart pixel-binning wizardry to maintain image quality at that larger distance (you’ll need to go Pro if you want to zoom further than 2x).

Notably, you also get the next-generation Portrait Mode – which automatically detects depth and lets you adjust the focus of an image post-capture – on both the i Phone 17e and i Phone 17, which is a nice win for Apple’s cheapest i Phone. Several other features, though – like spatial photo capture and Dolby Vision video capture – are exclusive to the i Phone 17.

In the selfie department, the i Phone 17 features an 18MP Center Stage camera that can switch orientation from vertical to horizontal to help you fit more people into the frame. The i Phone 17e, meanwhile, gets a run-of-the-mill 12MP front-facing lens.

i Phone 17e vs i Phone 17: performance and software

Both the i Phone 17e and i Phone 17 use an almost identical A19 chipset (the latter phone has an extra GPU core), making them just as powerful as one another.

Indeed, as we noted in our i Phone 17e review, “even with one fewer GPU core, everything flies on the i Phone 17e. If you’re coming from an older smartphone, you’re going to notice a significant improvement [...] In daily use, [we] found the 17e to be consistently responsive, and quick to deliver on whatever [we] asked it to do.”

The software experience is also the same across both phones. The i Phone 17e – like the rest of the i Phone 17 line – runs i OS 26 out of the box, is compatible with Apple Intelligence, and offers the customizable Action Button for handy software shortcuts.

As for software support, you’ll get between five and seven years of major i OS updates, regardless of which i Phone you choose.

When it comes to battery life, the i Phone 17e and i Phone 17 offer similar endurance thanks to their shared A19 chipset and C1X modem. Apple rates the former for 26 hours of video playback and the latter for 30 hours, and that proved to be largely accurate in our testing – you’ll get at least a full day of juice from either model.

The gaps begin to appear in the charging department. While both devices benefit from Mag Safe compatibility – which is a big win for the i Phone 17e, since the i Phone 16e offered no such compatibility – the i Phone 17 offers faster charging speeds across the board.

Specifically, the i Phone 17 offers 40W wired, 25W wireless, and 4.5W reverse wired charging, while the i Phone 17e offers 20W wired and 15W wireless speeds. Those aren’t deal-breaking disparities, but for reference, you can expect to reach 50% charge in around 30 minutes with the i Phone 17e, and the same figure in around 20 minutes with the i Phone 17 (if you’re using chargers that support their respective max wattages).

On paper, the i Phone 17e doesn’t triumph over the i Phone 17 in any area except price, but if you’re looking for a no-frills i Phone that’ll remain powerful and supported for years to come, it’s still a great-value product.

Keen photographers, though, will be better served by one of Apple’s more expensive i Phones, and if you’re someone who values the display experience above all else, then the i Phone 17’s faster refresh rate and higher brightness do, in this writer’s opinion, justify the

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Axel is Tech Radar's Phones Editor, reporting on everything from the latest Apple developments to newest AI breakthroughs as part of the site's Mobile Computing vertical. Having previously written for publications including Esquire and Four Four Two, Axel is well-versed in the applications of technology beyond the desktop, and his coverage extends from general reporting and analysis to in-depth interviews and opinion.

Axel studied for a degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick before joining Tech Radar in 2020, where he earned an NCTJ qualification as part of the company’s inaugural digital training scheme.

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Key Takeaways

• i Phone 17e vs i Phone 17: which entry-level Apple phone is best for you

• When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission

• The i Phone 17e (left) and i Phone 17 (right) (Image credit: Future)

• The i Phone 17e is a powerful, long-lasting i Phone for those who can live without expensive camera and display features

• With its Pro-level display and innovative camera system, the i Phone 17 is a phenomenal value proposition