u/parisgellerharvard

So, I am in my late 30's and my first ever phone was the Nokia 5110, handed down from my sister but whilst smart phones weren't a thing until the late 2000's, Colour screens and Camera's have been for over 20 years now, 25 ago you started to see Colour screens but no Camera then Camera were the premium and then they were just on every device.

I remember I used to lean heavily towards Sony Ericsson phones because back then It wasn't Ios vs Android - Just about every phone someone foreign to it had to learn how to use it from the ground up.

The Iphone 17e reflects in 1) Iphone Nostalgia 2) 2000's Nostalgia and 3) Being In the Present - I'll elaborate.

1. The Iphone Nostalgia - This is basically just an upgraded XR, smaller notch, bigger screen and yes to a certain point you have to move forward, but for some it's familarity particular for lovers of a previous generation and lovers of the Mini series will tag along because it's the smallest current Iphone available.
2. 2000's Nostalgia - Obviously everything updated, screen, cameras and so on however this phone is exactly the same as the footprint of phones from this time - 1)- Colour Screen 2- Good Battery 3- Single Camera and all of us around this age has seen more simplistic phones in our lifetimes, It's a nod to that because we never used to have it all - I get times change and people need added features but not all of us needs this, the lack of "added features" is something that some of us has never actually seen - Why do people automatically need them now?
3. Being In The Present - Obviously this is the most important thing because if it's not then functionality will be highly doubtful but this is what makes this is a perfect Iphone for 80% of people - It's really got 90% of what the 17 and the 17 Pro/Prom Max for much cheaper.

This phone is basically just a modern representation of what all of us used 20 years ago, again I just don't see the hate with this phone because i personally believe it's close to perfect.

The 17e for me is the perfect phone with my reasons being because 1) i have a 16 Pro also so that takes care of the extra's 2) I actually love and have plenty of time for the notch, it's nostalgia and it's like having an extremely capable Iphone XR in 2026 3) It's one of those phones that if you read too much into the specs and what it doesn't have then it's safe to say it's probably not the right phone for you.

Like, I do notice a difference between the 16 Pro's 120hz refresh rate, compared to that of the 60hz of the 17e but it's absolutely not a big deal for me whatsoever - I do not game or use either phone intensely where it really makes that much of a difference.

But one thing that i think is flying well under the radar with only a small handful of mentions within forums or social media is the audio.

Now, The 16 Pro will have more dynamic range and I test both these phones sometimes multiple times a day because let's be real, it's fun to analyse and to try different genre's to figure out what phone has the best sound profile for that particular style of music.

But yes, the 16 Pro does have more sort of space between what you're getting however I cannot stress how super impressed i am with how fuller and more compact everything is in the 17e, for what comes out of that small of a device with a big emphasis on the bass - Is really impressive.

I actually read someone else's review and I cannot say first hand whether this is accurate and everyone will see and hear things differently but this guy said that the 17e blows the 17 Pro Max out of the water in terms of having the volume at 50-70% and I do see what he means with my 16 Pro (although quality between my phone and the 17 pro line-up will be different and potentially improved).

My 16 Pro is probably overall more balanced however I think i prefer the profile of the 17e more.

Thoughts and if you have multiple phones or have gone from a different phone to the 17e (if you have) and how can you explain your experience(s)?