Downgraded to a 17e
Decided to take a risk and go from a 16 Plus to a 17e.
I initially bought the 16 Plus because of its battery. After 21 months of ownership, I can say it is by far the best battery I’ve ever had on any phone. For reference, I had 100% battery health for 19 of those months. I hated the form factor, as I’m a fan of sub 6.3in phones for one handed use and less pocket bulk. But for the battery benefits, the size was liveable.
Since the latest iOS updates I noticed the 16 Plus battery get significantly worse with capacity dropping 7% in the space of 3 weeks. Charges would last 4hrs compared to previous 1.5 day charging cycles (even capped at 80%!).
Since the one USP of that phone was now pretty much gone, I decided to swap it for a 17e. I love the size, feels like an old school iPhone X type. Reviews state the chipset is good, and the battery is solid for its size. I do not care for the lack of wide angle camera as I have my own digital camera I carry with me. I also do not care for the 60hz screen as it makes no difference. I really think anyone who is not a mobile gamer does not see any difference between 120 and 60, but they pretend to just to justify the extra price.
Anyway, I’ve been wanting to reduce my screen time as well and wanted a simpler phone to aid this. I wanted to make the switch to Android - more specifically the Pixel 10 series - but my Apple Watch and MacBook have trapped me in the iOS ecosystem.
The phone so far has been great. Works exactly like an iPhone should with battery life solid especially for its size. It does get warm using a fast charger so I’ve swapped it to a standard slow one which seems to have worked. The camera is the exact same as the 17 too minus the ultrawide. The notch is such a throwback and I love it. Never used the Dynamic Island even once on my previous phone.
I do think at £599 it’s a bit overpriced, 499 is a fair price point considering its competition in this segment. All in all, I think this should be the iPhone that the vast majority of people should get but consumerism won’t let them.