iPhone 17e: Apple’s budget iPhone packs a strong punch
Not everyone upgrades their phone every year, or even every two years. A lot of users hold onto their devices until the experience noticeably changes, whether that’s battery life, performance, or camera quality. I fall into that group, and so do a lot of people around me still using older Apple iPhone models. I usually upgrade my iPhone every 4-5 years, but the iPhone 17e makes a damn good compelling case for me to break my pattern.
The iPhone 17e introduces itself as an ‘affordable iPhone’, but it doesn’t look and feel like a stripped-down experience and as someone who actually currently has an iPhone SE from 2022, I knew I was the target market. So when I heard about the iPhone 17e my curiosity was instantly piqued.
The flagship experience but make it affordable
It carries over key features from higher-end models, including access to Apple Intelligence, which is becoming central convenience and quality of life these days to Apple users. With added security measures as well, staying anonymous and safe is instantly easier as well. If you want an extra level of safety, iCloud also offers options to hide your presence online with ‘Hide my Email’ as well as being able to backup your entire phone daily.
The camera is definitely my favorite feature of the 17e. Despite only having a single camera, it rarely feels limiting in actual use. The 48 MP Fusion Main Camera produces super high-resolution photos with the ease of a button. Editing photos in post is easy too with various filters and also with the help of AI Clean Up to remove unwanted elements. I also loved the Portrait Mode which made pulling of aesthetic bokeh shots simple even for the most casual snapper. Low-light and night photography is not top notch, but it is more than passable for everyday shooting, especially for social media and simple photography. While it does not fully match the top-tier hardware of the iPhone 17 Pro Max, the gap is miniscule at best. I took it for a spin on my travels last weekend and it more than delivered crisp and quality shots.
As someone who also loves using videos for interviews and content during events, the iPhone 17e offers 4K resolution and 60 FPS takes. But my favorite part is how you can easily isolate the recorded audio to reduce noise using its built in Audio Mixer. You can focus on the subject’s voice or even go for a recording booth experience or full on surround sound depending on your needs. This feature is usually available on paid tiers with apps like Capcut. But it comes stock with the iPhone 17e.
Gaming performance is another area where the 17e quietly overdelivers. Titles like Wuthering Waves, Arknights: Endfield, and Genshin Impact run smoothly, even with higher graphical settings and hardware accelerated ray tracing enabled with supported games. Frame rates remain stable, load times are quick, and the overall experience feels closer to flagship performance than expected at this price point. It holds up without compromise and doesn’t heat up as much as other phones with gaming but with all of the beauty of a flagship thanks to its ray tracing capabilities.
Battery life is another meaningful upgrade, especially for users coming from older devices such as myself. The iPhone 17e out of the box promises six more hours of battery life with video playback and up to nine more hours of regular usage. That’s a lot more time to take your snaps, browse social media, and pretty much everything else in between on a single charge.
The iPhone 17e delivers access to Apple’s latest features, performance improvements, and ecosystem updates at a significantly lower entry point while being incredibly lightweight with its sleek aluminum design. With the A19 6-core CPU which is roughly two times faster than the A13 Bionic of the older iPhone 11 series as well as my iPhone SE 2022. It focuses on delivering the flagship features without shelling the cost but with enough performance and longevity to stay relevant for several years which is what I always look at when upgrading.
The iPhone 17e is a definite bang for your buck as a lightweight powerhouse that is built to last. It definitely is a must-consider and is less of a “budget iPhone” and more of a practical daily driver.
