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Apple has announced the expansion of its line of more affordable smartphones. The new iPhone 17e model has the same A19 chip used in the basic iPhone 17 and supports the Apple Intelligence artificial intelligence toolkit. As rumors predicted, the price of the new model will start at $599, which is the same price as the iPhone 16e last year. But now the basic configuration offers 256 GB of memory, and pink is now among the color versions.
Compared to its predecessor, the iPhone 17e has several important additions. In particular, it now supports MagSafe with Qi2 speed, which provides 15W of wireless charging instead of the 7.5W of the previous model. The smartphone is also equipped with Apple’s own C1X modem, which the company says provides speeds up to twice as fast as the iPhone 16e’s C1. The 6.1″ Super Retina display is now protected by Ceramic Shield 2, which, according to the manufacturer, resists scratches three times better and has a reduced glare level.
Most other features remain similar to the iPhone 16e, including the 48-megapixel Fusion camera. It is not yet known whether specific changes have been made to this module, but Apple notes that the camera also offers a 2x optical quality telephoto lens, effectively combining the functions of two cameras in one solution.
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The iPhone 17e is IP68-rated for dust and water resistance and supports Emergency SOS, Roadside Assistance, Messages, and Find My via satellite. Externally, the model is almost identical to the previous one: the same body shape, notch, and button layout are retained. Final conclusions about the battery life can be drawn after testing, but the company again promises that one charge will last for a whole day. Apple added that this time, the C1X modem and improved power management in iOS 26 affect the battery life.
Apple presented most of the iPhone 17 series models back in September, while budget options traditionally come out later. In addition, the market is waiting for the official announcement of the device, informally called the iPhone Fold, which is rumored to appear in the second half of the year. Pre-orders for the iPhone 17e will open on March 4, and it will go on sale on March 11.
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At the same time, Apple presented an updated iPad Air. The device generally repeats the last year’s model, but is now equipped with the M4 chip instead of the M3. In addition, the company has integrated its own N1 and C1X networking solutions for Wi-Fi and mobile connectivity, so the iPad Air now supports Wi-Fi 7. The amount of RAM has been increased to 12 GB instead of 8 GB in the previous version.
Other parameters remain unchanged. The tablet is available with an 11- or 13-inch LCD display with a brightness of up to 500 nits and a refresh rate of 60 Hz. Memory options start at 128 GB and go up to 1 TB. The iPad Air with M4 runs iPadOS 26, which was introduced last fall. This is one of the largest updates to the system, which brought significantly expanded multitasking capabilities.
Pre-orders for the iPad Air M4 will start on March 4, and full sales will begin on March 11. The starting price is $599 for the 11-inch version and $799 for the 13-inch model.
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