Apple is planning to revise its strategy for low-cost iPhones and launch a new model on the market every year in future. It started with the iPhone 16e and will continue with the iPhone 17e in 2026.
The most important facts at a glance
- The iPhone 17e will be released around one year after the iPhone 16e.
- Apple plans to release a new budget iPhone every year.
- The renaming from “SE” to “e” signals this change in strategy.
- The iPhone 16e offers a modern design at a lower price.
iPhone 16e establishes annual budget iPhone
The iPhone 16e (€ 699.00 *), Apple’s current entry-level model, has replaced the previous iPhone SE and offers a modern design and many of the features of the more expensive models. By doing away with certain features such as MagSafe or the ultra-wide-angle camera, Apple is able to keep the price of the iPhone 16e lower, while the standard iPhone 16 is still positioned as a premium option. We are already familiar with this successful formula from the iPhone SE (€ 229.00 *).
But now the low-budget devices will not only come onto the market every few years. Analysts from CIRP report that Apple is planning to launch the iPhone 17e in just one year, around six months after the launch of the iPhone 17 series. This approach is similar to Google’s strategy, whose cheaper Pixel A models are also released a few months after the premium versions. The decision to update the budget iPhones annually could be due to the low demand for the iPhone SE so far, which only accounted for around 5% of iPhone sales in 2024.
New “e” model instead of SE series
With the introduction of the iPhone 16e, Apple could be trying to build on the success of the iPhone 5c from 2013. At the time, the iPhone 5c offered a modern design and many of the features of the more expensive models, but at a lower price. The analysts at CIRP assume that the iPhone 16e represents a more attractive entry into the Apple world than the previous iPhone SE and will therefore achieve better sales figures. The renaming from “SE” to “e” signals this change in strategy and could indeed indicate that Apple plans to update its budget iPhones more regularly in future.
Conclusion: Apple relies on annual budget iPhones
With the planned launch of the iPhone 17e next year, Apple is sending a clear signal for its new product strategy in the budget segment. We will probably only find out more details about the price and availability of the iPhone 17e at the public launch of the smartphone next year.
