First, the company shifted away from the “SE” branding after nearly a decade. Then it priced the budget phone higher than expected at $599 – a notable jump from the $429 iPhone SE.

The iPhone 16e has officially replaced the iPhone SE as Apple’s cheapest handset, but cheapest doesn’t necessarily mean cheap – in fact, I can’t quite believe how expensive the iPhone 16e is.

That said, AI tools on Google's Pixel devices are much more refined than what Apple offers at this point, and the Pixel 9a figures to reap the benefits. With Google all but certain to turn to the Tensor G4 chipset that powers the Pixel 9, we'd expect the 9a to gain many of the capabilities that arrived on Google's flagships last year.