Apple iPhone 16e / Samsung Galaxy A56 5G (SM-A566B)

Apple iPhone 16e: iPhone 16e (A3212); 128, 256 or 512 GB; matte black and white. Physical SIM support varies by country; the US model uses eSIM only. The 2026 iPhone 17e is a separate model.

Samsung Galaxy A56 5G (SM-A566B): SM-A566B (Europe/UK); the listed configuration is 8 GB / 256 GB, with 8/128 and 12/256 GB depending on market. The Galaxy A55 (previous generation) and Galaxy A36 5G are separate models.

SpecificationApple iPhone 16eSamsung Galaxy A56 5G (SM-A566B)
Release year20252025
ChipA18; 6-core CPU (2 performance + 4 efficiency), 4-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine

The A18 in the iPhone 16 has a 5-core GPU; the 16e has one GPU core fewer. The GPU supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing.

Apple		—
Cellular modemApple C1; 5G (sub-6 GHz, 4×4 MIMO), Gigabit LTE (4×4 MIMO)

The C1 is the first Apple-designed modem used in an iPhone. mmWave 5G is not supported; that band is used only in some countries for very high short-range speeds.

Apple		—
Display6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED; 2532 × 1170, 460 ppi

Typical maximum brightness is 800 nits and HDR peak 1,200 nits; 2,000,000:1 contrast, P3 wide colour and True Tone. Apple does not list Dynamic Island or ProMotion for this model.

Apple		6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED, 2340 × 1080; up to 120 Hz refresh; up to 1,200 nits in High Brightness Mode

120 Hz makes scrolling smoother; 1,200 nits is reached in High Brightness Mode, which switches on automatically in sunlight. Allowing for the rounded corners, the visible area is 6.5 inches.

Samsung
Design and glassAluminium enclosure, Ceramic Shield front, glass back Apple—
Storage128, 256 or 512 GB Apple—
Rear camera48MP Fusion main camera (26 mm, ƒ/1.6, optical image stabilisation); 12MP 2x telephoto (52 mm) from the same sensor

Apple lists the 2x telephoto as a mode the main camera “also enables”; there is no separate lens. Digital zoom up to 10x. There is no ultra-wide or macro camera.

Apple		—
Video4K at 24/25/30/60 fps Dolby Vision; 1080p slo-mo at 120/240 fps; 4K 60 fps on the front camera

The rear camera offers optical and cinematic stabilisation for video, spatial audio recording and wind noise reduction.

Apple		—
Front camera12MP TrueDepth, ƒ/1.9, autofocus; Face ID Apple—
Battery and chargingUp to 26 hours of video playback; 50% in 30 minutes with a 20W or higher adapter; Qi wireless charging; built-in lithium-ion

Up to 21 hours of streamed video and 90 hours of audio playback. Apple does not list MagSafe or Qi2. No power adapter is in the box, only a 1 m USB-C cable.

Apple		5,000 mAh (typical); up to 29 hours video playback; 45 W Super Fast Charging 2.0 (adapter sold separately)

45 W speeds need a 45 W USB PD PPS adapter; lower-powered adapters take longer.

Samsung
PortUSB-C; USB 2 (up to 480 Mb/s)

Moving large video files over a cable is slower than on Pro models with USB 3.

Apple		—
WirelessWi-Fi 6 (802.11ax, 2×2 MIMO); Bluetooth 5.3; NFC with reader mode

Emergency SOS, Messages and Find My via satellite are supported; availability depends on the country.

Apple		—
SIMDual eSIM (two active lines at once)

Models sold outside the US also have a physical SIM tray.

Apple		Nano-SIM and eSIM; SIM+SIM, SIM+eSIM or dual eSIM combinations Samsung
DurabilityIP68 under IEC 60529 (up to 6 metres for 30 minutes)

Apple says resistance may decrease over time and liquid damage is not covered by warranty.

Apple		—
Action buttonCan be set to Silent mode, camera, flashlight, Visual Intelligence, a shortcut and other functions Apple—
Size and weight146.7 × 71.5 × 7.80 mm; 167 g Apple162.2 × 77.5 × 7.4 mm; 198 g Samsung
Glass—Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ front and back (camera glass excluded)

Glass on the back as well is uncommon in this class; Samsung notes the camera lens covers are not included.

Samsung
Processor—Exynos 1580 (4 nm); octa-core: 1 × 2.9 GHz, 3 × 2.6 GHz, 4 × 1.9 GHz; Xclipse 540 GPU

Samsung says a larger vapor chamber than the previous generation spreads heat better in games and multitasking.

Samsung
Memory and storage—8 GB RAM, 256 GB storage (234.4 GB available); 8/128 and 12/256 GB options depending on market; no microSD slot

With no card slot, storage cannot be expanded later, so the capacity choice matters for heavy photo and video use.

Samsung
Rear cameras—50MP wide, ƒ/1.8, autofocus and OIS; 12MP ultra-wide, ƒ/2.2; 5MP macro, ƒ/2.4; 10× digital zoom

Optical stabilisation (OIS) is on the main camera only and reduces shake at night and in video. There is no telephoto camera; zoom is digital.

Samsung
Front camera and video—12MP front camera, ƒ/2.2, fixed focus; 4K 30 fps recording on the rear camera, 240 fps slow motion in HD; 10-bit HDR video on the front camera

4K recording is limited to 30 fps; smoother video needs a drop to 1080p.

Samsung
Connectivity—5G Sub-6; Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax, 2.4/5 GHz); Bluetooth 5.3; NFC; USB-C (USB 2.0); no 3.5 mm headphone jack

USB 2.0 is slower than USB 3 ports for large video transfers and has no video output.

Samsung
Location and sensors—GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS; in-display fingerprint, accelerometer, gyro, geomagnetic, light and virtual proximity sensor

A virtual proximity sensor uses software and other sensors rather than dedicated hardware to turn the screen off during calls.

Samsung
Water and dust resistance—IP67 (tested in up to 1 m of fresh water for up to 30 minutes)

This is no guarantee against seawater, pool water or pressurised water.

Samsung
Software and updates—Ships with One UI 7; 6 generations of Android/One UI upgrades and 6 years of security updates (until 31 March 2032 on the UK page)

This is the longest support yet in the Galaxy A series; rollout timing can vary by country and carrier.

Samsung
Security—Samsung Knox Vault, Auto Blocker, Theft Protection

Knox Vault stores sensitive data such as PINs and passwords in an isolated hardware area separate from the main processor.

Samsung
Colours—Awesome Graphite, Awesome Lightgrey, Awesome Olive, Awesome Pink Samsung