An early benchmark of the iPhone 16e reveals that graphics performance, while good, falls slightly short of the iPhone 15 Pro. This is to be expected, given that the new 16e uses a binned version of the A18 chipset.
Corporations like Apple regularly utilize chip binning to maximize manufacturing efficiency. It’s a pretty simple idea—some chips will leave the assembly line with a non-functional part, a defect, or some other problem. These chips aren’t “broken,” so to speak, they just fall below the manufacturer’s spec. So, instead of throwing these chips in the trash, manufacturers hunt for ways that they may be repurposed.
Apple made a ton of A18 chips for the iPhone 16 series. Some of these chips were imperfect, so they were set aside for the budget iPhone 16e handset. And, honestly, the difference between these binned and not-binned A18 chips is very mild. The iPhone 16e has the same 6-core CPU count as the standard iPhone 16, and it runs on 8GB of RAM, it’s just missing a GPU core. We’re talking 4 GPU cores instead of 5.
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A Geekbench 6 Metal benchmark, spotted by MySmartPrice, gives us a decent idea of how this binning will impact the iPhone 16e’s graphics performance. Geekbench clocked the iPhone 16e at a Metal score of 24,188. This score is approximately 13.5% lower than that of the standard iPhone 16. In fact, when we compare the iPhone 16e’s Metal score to previous iPhone benchmark tests, it slots somewhere between the iPhone 15 Pro (27,283) and the standard iPhone 15 (22,767). Real-world performance may differ from what’s in the benchmarks, but this is more or less what we expected from the binned A18 chip.
Here’s the thing; the A18 is an incredibly powerful chipset. It’s more powerful than the M1 desktop processor in my 2020 MacBook Air. Removing a single GPU core will have almost no noticeable impact on everyday tasks, full stop. It’s like arguing the difference between two generations of smartphones—like, literally, the iPhone 16e’s Metal score is just slightly worse than that of the iPhone 15 Pro.
The average person should disregard any hand-wringing about graphics performance. It’s a new iPhone, it’s fine. The iPhone 16e’s truncated camera count, lack of MagSafe charging, and relatively high price tag are far bigger and more practical concerns than the binned GPU.
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Obviously, hardcore mobile gamers are the exception. The iPhone 16e is powerful enough for Death Stranding and other AAA games that have been ported to iOS. It even supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing, but it ain’t the most powerful phone in Apple’s lineup. If you intend on playing a lot of AAA games, last year’s iPhone 15 Pro is the best bargain option, as it effectively matches the iPhone 16’s graphics performance but only costs about $650, depending on where you buy it. A carrier trade-in deal will push the cost even lower, of course.
I’m morally compelled to mention that AAA games in Apple’s App Store are very expensive. If you’re on a budget and mobile gaming is really a priority for you, maybe you should buy a cheap iPhone 14 and a Steam Deck. Just sayin’.
Pre-orders for the iPhone 16e are open today. The phone costs $600 before trade-in discounts or other promotions. Personally, I’d buy the iPhone 15 Pro, which is about the same price as the iPhone 16e.
iPhone 16e
The iPhone 16e is an affordable addition to the iPhone 16 family, priced at $200 less than the based iPhone 16.
Source: MySmartPrice via MacRumors
