Apple announces the iPhone 17E

Apple has taken the wraps off the iPhone 17E, its latest entry-level smartphone. The iPhone 17E starts at $599 with a higher 256GB of storage, and is available in black, white, and pink. The company revealed the new device as part of a series of announcements that kicked off this week.

Similar to the iPhone 16E, the iPhone 17E comes with a 6.1-inch display, but with a tougher Ceramic Shield 2 for better scratch resistance and reduced glare. It also offers more storage for the same starting price as its predecessor, which cost $599 for 128GB when it launched last year. The iPhone 17E adds an upgraded A19 processor and MagSafe charging with Qi2 support, allowing for wireless charging at up to 15W.

It also has a C1X chip, the next-gen version of Apple’s in-house modem, which the company says is twice as fast. The iPhone 17E offers a 48-megapixel “fusion” camera as well, enabling an “optical-quality” 2x telephoto. There’s support for Apple’s advanced portraits feature, too, which automatically recognizes people, dogs, and cats and saves depth information, giving you the ability to add background blur after capture.

In between hardware launches, Apple has been working on a more personalized version of Siri powered by Google’s Gemini AI, allowing it to understand your personal context and take action on your screen. Though Apple CEO Tim Cook previously said these features would arrive this spring, a report from Bloomberg suggests that we may have to wait a little longer.

The iPhone 17E will be available to preorder on March 4th, with availability starting March 11th. Along with the 256GB model priced at $599, Apple is also selling a 512GB option for $799.