iPhone 16e vs Google Pixel 8a: Clash of the mid-range titans

Apple has just unveiled the latest member of its smartphone family, drawing back the curtain on the long-rumoured iPhone 16e. This mid-range phone is the latest iPhone SE in all but name, changing the numbering system to bring it in line with the rest of the iPhone 16 series.

Unlike the rest of the Apple phone family, which are refreshed on a yearly basis, the SE range has thus far stuck to a more casual schedule – case in point, the iPhone 16e is replacing the iPhone SE 3, which first launched back in 2022. Whether this naming update indicates Apple’s intention to start delivering new mid-range models on a yearly basis remains to be seen.

Before we get into the Apple vs Google smackdown, it’s worth highlighting that the Pixel 8a is rapidly approaching its first birthday and it will be the upcoming Pixel 9a that spends most of the year going toe-to-toe with Apple’s latest. The 9a isn’t due for a few weeks yet, however, so for now, let’s see how the iPhone 16e stacks up to our current favourite mid-range phone, the Google Pixel 8a.

iPhone 16e vs Google Pixel 8a: Specifications

iPhone 16e vs Google Pixel 8a: Price, design and display

As it’s a few months old now, the Pixel 8a has seen a couple of price drops. While its original retail price of £499 for the 128GB model and £549 for the 256GB were a little more in the iPhone 16e’s neck of the woods, these discounted prices mean that the Pixel 8a is the clear winner in terms of affordability.

The iPhone 16e has had a major glow-up compared to its predecessor, dropping the thick chin and forehead bezels and jettisoning the Touch ID home button below the display. What we have now looks much more in line with the rest of the iPhone series, with flat edges and rounded corners.

It’s also a little more premium than the Pixel 8a, with an aluminium frame and glass covering the rear, whereas the Pixel has plastic for both. The bezels around the display look a little slimmer on the iPhone, too.

Around the edges, we’ve got the same button selection as the rest of the iPhone 16 series, with the exception of the camera button. That means you do at least get the Action button, which can be programmed for a multitude of tasks, including quick-launching apps, activating the flashlight and switching between loud and silent modes.

The iPhone 16e’s dust and water resistance has been upgraded to a more robust IP68 rating, whereas the Pixel 8a is slightly less secure, at IP67. For most people, that difference is going to be negligible – it essentially means that the iPhone can survive being submerged in water longer than the Pixel – but it’s worth noting nonetheless.

Over on the rear, the Pixel 8a tucks its cameras into a full-width bar, like the rest of the Pixel 8 series. I’m a big fan of this look – to the point where I think the Pixel 9 series dropped the ball by moving away from it – and by comparison, the iPhone 16e looks rather boring. Its single rear camera sits innocuously in the top-left corner, with only the centrally placed Apple logo adding any kind of personality to the rear.

Apple is also behind on the colour varieties, too, with only black and white options available at the time of writing. Google, meanwhile, offers the Pixel 8a in Obsidian (black), Porcelain (white), Bay (blue) and Aloe (green).

Both phones are fitted with 6.1in OLED displays that have very similar resolutions: the iPhone 16e is 2,532 x 1,170 and the Pixel 8a is just a tad lower, at 2,400 x 1,080. Where the Pixel has a hole-punch notch housing its selfie camera, the iPhone 16e is modeled after the iPhone 14 – the last flagship generation before Apple introduced the Dynamic Island feature – with a wide bathtub notch around its own front-facing camera. Here we see another big upgrade over the iPhone SE 3, with support for TrueDepth face unlocking.

Considering Apple still belligerently kept the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus’ displays at 60Hz, it’s not surprising to see the 16e with that same, disappointing refresh rate. When phones half this price are dialling up to 120Hz, or even 144Hz in some cases, there’s really no excuse for Apple to restrict users like this. Suffice to say, the Pixel 8a and its 120Hz display take the win here.

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iPhone 16e vs Google Pixel 8a: Performance, battery and charging

We’ve yet to put the iPhone 16e through our standard testing gauntlet but looking at the specs, it seems a safe bet that it will prove to be a faster performer than the Pixel 8a. The 4GHz A18 chipset powering the 16e is the same one found in the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus. It’s paired with 8GB of RAM (2GB more than the SE 3) and up to 512GB of storage.

The Pixel 8a, meanwhile, runs on the 3.0GHz Tensor G3 SoC that first debuted with the rest of the Pixel 8 series, also with 8GB of RAM. Storage options are slightly more limited, however, with only 128GB and 256GB variants. Regardless, it’s a solid performer, especially for how cheap the Pixel 8a is, but Apple’s silicon is both newer and more powerful.

Even when the Pixel 9a debuts with its Tensor G4 chipset, I expect the iPhone 16e will have the edge on performance. For reference, you can see how the iPhone 16 compares to the Pixel 8a and Pixel 9 below:

In addition to its excellent performance, we were also impressed by the power efficiency achieved by the A18, with both the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus beating their predecessors in our standard battery test. To be blunt, the iPhone 16e needs to make some dramatic leaps here, as the SE 3’s stamina was shockingly bad, even for 2022.

Apple hasn’t explicitly stated the size of the iPhone 16e’s battery but it has stated that this is its longest-lasting 6.1in phone to date. As such, I expect that the cell will at least be bigger than the SE 3’s (a relatively puny 2,018mAh), if not up to the same size as the iPhone 16 (3,561mAh). Regardless of capacity, if the iPhone 16e is able to at least match the iPhone 16’s stamina, it will surpass the Pixel 8a:

Again, Apple has been decidedly coy regarding the exact charging speeds we can expect from the iPhone 16e. We know that it will charge over USB-C like the rest of the iPhone 16 series but, beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess how long it will take. If I had to guess, I’d expect it to be closer to Pixel 8a’s weedy 18W charging than something like the Motorola Edge 50 Fusion, which supports 68W charging.

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iPhone 16e vs Google Pixel 8a: Cameras and AI

Something that hasn’t changed since the 2022 iPhone SE is that Apple has again decided to stick with a single rear camera. It’s better than before, at least, seemingly using the same 48-megapixel (f/1.6) main camera as the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16.

We had plenty of good things to say about that camera, so I’m sure we’ll be equally pleased with its performance here, but the continued lack of any kind of secondary camera does make the iPhone 16e feel more restricted.

Apple also claims this is a “2-in-1” camera system with an “integrated 2x telephoto” that captures telephoto images at “optical quality”. I’ve used my monthly quota of quotation marks there because, to me, this just sounds like Apple’s way of trying to dress up a digital zoom to sound more impressive than it really is. I’m ready to be proven wrong when we come to review the phone but for now, take this one with a pinch of salt.

What’s much easier to be excited about is that it will capture 4K 60fps Dolby Vision video footage. This has long been one of our favourite features on iPhones, so it’s great to see the SE series getting in on the action.

Photography is consistently one of the biggest draws of Pixel phones and it’s no different with the Pixel 8a; the 64-megapixel (f/1.9) main lens produces gorgeous dynamic range and incredible detail in good lighting, night shots are vibrant and clean and portraits are sharp with accurate skin tones.

The 13-megapixel (f/2.2) ultrawide is also one of the best around, with stronger detail towards the edges than most and a colour tone that stays faithful to the main camera.

Throw in a deep bench of editing tools that includes the face-swapping Best Take and the excellent Magic Eraser, and the Google Pixel 8a has the edge on versatility here. We’ll have more to say when we come to review the iPhone 16e but, suffice to say, it has its work cut out to match the Pixel’s photography chops.

That’s not to say that the iPhone 16e is without tricks, however. Apple Intelligence launched a couple of months ago and the 16e is the brand’s first handset to support it from day one. Features include the object erasing Clean Up tool, text rewriting and summarising, a more conversational Siri assistant that can follow your prompts even when you trip over your words and custom Genmoji generation in Image Playground.

The Action Button can also be used for what Apple calls “Visual Intelligence”. With this, you can copy, summarise or translate text on the screen, search with Google or ask ChatGPT about whatever’s on your display.

That’s broadly similar to Google’s own Circle to Search, which is present on the Pixel 8a. I prefer the experience of Circle to Search overall because its integration with Google Search and Gemini AI is more streamlined but for anyone already locked into the Apple ecosystem, Visual Intelligence is a great inclusion.

Finally, the Pixel 8a also supports Gemini Live, which allows you to hold a free-flowing conversation with the AI assistant, interrupting it to clarify answers or change your questions on the fly. I’m calling this a draw for now, although I reserve the right to change that once we’ve got the iPhone 16e in for testing.

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iPhone 16e vs Google Pixel 8a: Early verdict

I’m a massive champion of mid-range phones, so it’s great to see Apple putting some serious effort into making the iPhone 16e a modern and appealing competitor. Performance should be good, the premium materials and improved IP rating bode well for its durability and all signs point to a solid showing on the battery life front.

For die-hard Apple fans seeking a slightly more affordable phone, there’s no real discussion needed here: the iPhone 16e looks to be a massive improvement over its predecessor and you’ll likely be very happy with it.

If you’re more open to Android, however, my initial instinct is that the Google Pixel 8a is the better value of the two – the 120Hz display and superior camera selection are big draws here and I find the AI offerings to be of more practical use in daily life. Not to mention, the Pixel 8a is considerably cheaper at time of writing.

We’ll be getting our hands on an iPhone 16e in the near future, so be sure to check back soon to see if the final product paints as strong a picture as this first look does.