The iPhone 16e, the most affordable in the iPhone 16 series, starts at $599/€699/£599. Its A18 chip is a binned version, featuring a 6-core CPU (2 performance, 4 efficiency) and a 4-core GPU, which is one core less than the standard A18 chip in the regular iPhone 16. While this difference may not significantly impact everyday performance, it could affect benchmarks and demanding games. This practice of chip binning allows Apple to utilize less powerful chips by disabling certain cores and offering them at lower prices, similar to the iPad mini (2024) with the A17 Pro chip.
The newly released iPhone 16e is the fourth and most affordable option in the iPhone 16 lineup. Achieving the starting price of $599/€699/£599 required some ingenuity, and it has now been confirmed that the A18 chip in the 16e doesn’t match the performance of the standard iPhone 16’s chip.
According to Apple’s official specifications, the A18 chip in the 16e is equipped with a 6-core CPU (2 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores), a 4-core GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine. While the CPU and Neural Engine core counts are identical to those in the standard A18 chip, the 16e’s GPU has one less core. This difference may not be significant in everyday use, but it could be reflected in benchmarks and more demanding gaming applications.
iPhone 16e A18 chip specs
Chip binning is a typical quality control method in the semiconductor sector, as production yields aren’t always perfect and some chips fail to meet the required core counts or clock speeds. Instead of discarding these chips, manufacturers categorize them into different bins (hence the term) and deactivate certain cores. These binned chips are then sold at reduced prices.
The three different variations of the Apple A18 chip
The A18 chip utilized in the 16e has one less GPU core compared to the A18 in the iPhone 16 and two cores fewer than the A18 Pro found in the iPhone 16 Pro/Max. This scenario mirrors that of the iPad mini (2024), which utilizes a binned version of the A17 Pro chip that also has one fewer GPU core.
For more information on the iPhone 16e, be sure to check out our comprehensive announcement coverage that covers everything you need to know about this latest iPhone model.
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