Last but not least, the Ceramic Shield. Apple’s Ceramic Shield is a feature that makes the glass at the front of the screen tougher, and the iPhone 16 comes with the latest generation, which makes it more durable. The iPhone 16e comes with the last generation’s Ceramic Shield, which is still pretty tough but not as durable.

We tested nine different cases for Apple’s new iPhone 16e to help you find the ones that will actually keep your new $599 phone safe.

Apple's iPhone 16e officially made its debut on February 19, and it's $200 cheaper than the base iPhone 16. Is it worth saving that money, or should you splurge on the iPhone 16?

The iPhone 16e and iPhone 16 both feature a 48MP main wide camera, but there are some notable differences. On the plus side, the iPhone 16e gives you the equivalent of a 2x optical zoom, just like the regular iPhone 16. But while the iPhone 16e has a portrait mode, you can’t tweak the focus as you can with the iPhone 16.

The 16e, by contrast, is in the chassis of the iPhone 16, which has MagSafe, so it's clearly a budgetary choice this time around, and I think that's quite a big shame. MagSafe is a huge quality of life feature that enables iPhones to work with all manner of smart accessories, grips and chargers really seamlessly, so missing out on it is a bummer.

The more important difference relates to brightness. While the iPhone 16e can hit 800 nits in typical use and 1200 nits in high brightness mode, the iPhone 16 can go well beyond those figures to 1000 nits and 2000 nits respectively.

There was a lot of speculation about the next version of the iPhone SE — which has traditionally been Apple’s cheapest iPhone. The 2022 third generation iPhone SE cost $399 and many of us in the media were wondering if Apple would keep the next version at that price level — spoiler alert — they did not.