Gurman Confirms ‘Imminent’ iPhone 17e Launch with MagSafe and a Price Lock
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The release of Apple’s next budget-priced handset, the iPhone 17e, is “due imminently” and despite upgrading three important features on the new device, the price will remain the same, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.
Gurman’s comments came in Sunday’s Power On newsletter, where he shared the following details on the upcoming iPhone 17e:
The new iPhone 17e, which replaces the 16e from a year ago, is due imminently. The big changes include the device getting the A19 chip from the iPhone 17 and MagSafe charging. And it’s shifting to Apple’s newest in-house cellular and wireless chips, I can confirm. I’ve also been told that the company is planning to keep pricing the same, at $599, setting up a simple advertising pitch: You’ll get more features for the same cost.
Mark Gurman
As we reported last week, some sources have pegged a specific date of February 19, which would mark the one-year anniversary of the iPhone 16e, but we also aren’t likely to see any show-stopping new features on the iPhone 17e.
The changes will likely be limited to the usual chip upgrades, in this case the A19 from the iPhone 17 and Apple’s in-house C1X modem and N1 wireless chips. Apple debuted its first self-developed 5G modem chip, the C1, in last year’s iPhone 16e, and then followed that up in the fall with the C1X in the iPhone Air alongside a new N1 Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip that also spanned the entire iPhone 17 lineup and even came to the new M5 iPad Pro.
While those chip upgrades aren’t at all surprising, Gurman has confirmed other reports that the iPhone 17e will get MagSafe support, which was conspicuously missing from last year’s iPhone 16e. This will not only enable magnetic attachment to chargers, but also unlock much faster wireless charging speeds, hopefully reaching the peak 25W supported by the rest of Apple’s current iPhone lineup.
If you were disappointed with the price of last year’s iPhone “e” iPhone model, with which Apple redefined “budget” from the sub-$500 iPhone SE days, you’ll want to brace yourself, as that era is clearly over. While the price of this year’s iPhone 17e will most likely remain the same as last year’s iPhone 16e, the good news is that at least it isn’t increasing. That’s a victory of sorts, we suppose.
While we’ve seen several iPhone 17e rumors indicating that Apple would ditch the notch and bring the Dynamic Island feature to its most affordable iPhone model, Gurman made no mention of this in Sunday’s comments. Of course, that omission doesn’t mean the Dynamic Island isn’t going to happen, but with several other recent leaks saying Apple plans to stick with the notch, Gurman’s silence is another strike against the validity of the Dynamic Island rumors.
Another rumor on which Gurman has remained silent is a potential storage increase. Some reports have suggested Apple will double the iPhone 17e’s base storage to 256 GB, following a similar move with the standard iPhone 17 last year. However, it’s quite possible that Apple may stick with 128 GB to help it absorb rising component prices, particularly those of RAM and storage.
The iPhone 17e will follow its predecessor and continue to deliver what we’ve come to expect from a “low-priced” Apple product. However, if the iPhone 17e does continue to be available at $599, it may put it in an awkward position in the iPhone lineup — particularly if it receives that rumored 256 GB storage bump.
The current iPhone lineup consists of the iPhone 16e at $599, the iPhone 16 starting at $699, the iPhone 17 with a base price of $799, the iPhone Air starting at $999, and the iPhone 17 Pro at $1,099.
The iPhone 17e is expected to replace the iPhone 16e at the same price point, but Apple will almost certainly leave the $699 iPhone 16 on the market, as it did with the iPhone 15 last year. For budget-minded customers looking for the most storage bang for the buck, a 256 GB iPhone 17e at $599, could prove more attractive than the 128 GB iPhone 16 at $699. Of course, that assumes the iPhone 17e gets the rumored storage bump. It’s easy to see why Apple might avoid that this year.
Still, even if that does happen, those who prioritize features over raw storage will likely find the lower-capacity iPhone 16 to be the better value even at $100 more, thanks to the better camera system, Dynamic Island, and potentially better screen.
Regardless of the price, Apple and its carrier partners will all likely sell the new budget handset at deep discounts, with trade-in promotions and other deals that will likely make the actual price of the device a lesser consideration. It’s also worth keeping in mind that the iPhone 17e isn’t just about budget-conscious consumers; Gurman says that Apple is also planning to “market the 17e heavily to users in emerging economies and enterprises,” which makes the $599 price tag even more significant for getting iPhones into businesses and countries where even the base iPhone 17 may be priced entirely out of the average person’s budget.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]
