Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple is an industry leader. There’s no pressure on others to do better if Apple doesn’t. Samsung, for example, likes profits too. They used to offer micro-sd support, but nixed it when they realized they could successfully copy Apple’s profit play on up charging for storage.

Yeah, if it were fully up to Apple, we'd all have rental iPhones with no ports and no connectivity to anything other than Apple approved accessories (devices they get license money from)

Everyone just fully controlled by the Corporation ... dutifully paying their $200-800, or more!, per month for "Apple"

Own nothing, have no choice, just "pay up"
 
I disagree. A lot of people can easily get by with 128GB.
I also disagree, because in the grand scheme of things, there are more important things for Apple to do right now.
I mean, I remember back when it started at 16 GB, now that was absolutely ridiculous.
  1. Increasing the base storage in Macs is much more important in my book. I needed to upgrade from my M1 iMac because Xcode was absolutely unsustainable, although I had plenty of power to run it. In fact, my M1 iMac has been both the best and the worst computer I've ever had because of that.
  2. Add more memory in iOS/iPadOS products. At least 12 GB in iPhones and 16 GB in iPads.
  3. Increase this ridiculous free iCloud Storage
  4. Increase base memory from 8 GB to 16 GB in Macs Done
  5. Reduce those upgrade prices for Macs please. They're criminal.
 
This is 256GB iPhone 11 Pro which I have ever since 2019 and I really dunno why I paid this much for smth I do not even fill halfway. Bigger storage for free is nice tho, I doubt I will need it but yeah, nice to have.

Maybe for newer iPhones it is a bigger problem since those have 48mp faux sensor (which still makes 2MB images which is strange, mine 12mp phone makes 2MB images, and in HEIC!)

1738862020744.jpeg
 
I don’t care what they do with the base storage tier, but they definitely need to bump up the max and provide a 2TB option. I’m honestly surprised it hasn’t happened already with the 15 or 16 pro.
 
The rant is all wrong! The problem is not the base memory amount. There are lots of people that don’t need more than 128 GB in a phone including me.

The problem is the amount Apple charges for upgrades.

Apple charges $100 for 128 GB of storage that costs them less than $5.
So to make things fair Apple could offer the 256gb for the same price and sell the 128gb for $ 100 lower.
 
  • Love
Reactions: turbineseaplane
For iPhone, I tended to purchase the middle ground storage option. iPhone 14 Pro (256GB), iPhone 15 Pro (512GB), and now iPhone 16 Pro (512GB). Looking at my storage usage, I think 256GB is my sweet spot.

128GB to 256GB is a big jump, I don't think Apple should move away from 128GB of storage to start especially the budget to mainstream models.
 
  • Like
Reactions: turbineseaplane
If you have a newer phone you actually need more storage space for your photos. The camera has 48 megapixels.

I'm sure!

"Newer phones" are a foreign concept to me, as I've been deemed an unimportant customer since I refuse to carry around a sushi plate sized phone sticking out of my pocket
 
  • Haha
Reactions: navaira and 9081094
For iPhone, I tended to purchase the middle ground storage option. iPhone 14 Pro (256GB), iPhone 15 Pro (512GB), and now iPhone 16 Pro (512GB). Looking at my storage usage, I think 256GB is my sweet spot.

128GB to 256GB is a big jump, I don't think Apple should move away from 128GB of storage to start especially the budget to mainstream models.

How about just keep 128GB for the SE?
 
I still have 60+ GB of my 128GB iPhone 16 free, so I don't need it. I'd rather have a minimal 1TB SSD in any Mac.




Amen to that.
60+ GB already, Apple unintelligence will eat up more as does the braindead Siri. 256GB today costs Apple as much as last years 128GB. So if Apple was playing it nicely they should lower the 128GB option in price and everyone is happy 😆
 
Highest storage capacity
16GB - iPhone 2G [2007]
32GB - iPhone 3GS [2009]
64GB - iPhone 4S [2011]
128GB - iPhone 6/6 Plus [2014]
256GB - iPhone 7/7 Plus [2016]
512GB - iPhone XS/XS Max [2018]
1TB - iPhone 13 Pro/Pro Max [2021]

The highest storage from more than 10 years ago is the current base storage even up to the September 2024 releases...

iCloud free storage more than a decade later is still just 5GB when I think it should be at least 25GB or even 50GB since they have several terabytes of paid storage already available...
 
Depends on what they will asking for the new SE 😉

I just wish they'd make some more options in the 6"+ size category

Once the SE4 comes out, we will only have .... "every single iPhone at that size or larger"



Only talking about new phones, not all the old outdated stuff Tim keeps around to screw people on
 
  • Like
Reactions: 9081094
I'm no power user, but my 512 16 pro is half full, photos and music

Looks like you made an excellent decision anticipating your storage needs.

Many people don't store music on their iPhone. I don't store music anywhere having Apple Music which offers me all-I-can-eat music in any genre I like, any where I'm at (home, car, airplane, library, etc). Also... many people don't store photos on their iPhone and instead store them on their Macs using a USB cable and the Photos app.

For the above people, most would do fine with an iPhone and base storage. It's nice that Apple offers options. Pay for the storage that you need.
 
  • Like
  • Disagree
Reactions: rmadsen3 and jz0309
64 GB of on phone storage is plenty for me

I honestly have a hard time imaging what people need to carry around that much data in their pocket for

...

how did this ranty forum post on the front page anyway?
 
Are you using iCloud for backup 😜?

That too!
I have to pay $10/mo for the 2TB plan, as they purposely don't offer *anything* between 200gb and 2TB

Or offer a simple sliding scale of "pay more and get more" to fit differing needs
 
Looks like you made an excellent decision anticipating your storage needs.

Many people don't store music on their iPhone. I don't store music anywhere having Apple Music which offers me all-I-can-eat music in any genre I like, any where I'm at (home, car, airplane, library, etc). Also... many people don't store photos on their iPhone and instead store them on their Macs using a USB cable and the Photos app.

For the above people, most would do fine with an iPhone and base storage. It's nice that Apple offers options. Pay for the storage that you need.
Exactly. Options are a good thing.
But it’s just funny (actually it’s sad) how so many here make their own needs the needs of everyone
 
I'm a heavy iOS gamer with a ton of 3gb+ titles and dozens of PSP roms.

I have 40gb left on my 128gb phone.

Does an average user (not your typical Macrumors poster) need more than 128gb? I would argue only if they aren't using iCloud for photo backups. Even a Pro user will likely be recording those hefty LOG files straight to an SSD if they're serious about things.

Apple's storage tiers are too expensive though and the iPads as well as Macs should all be 256gb base.
Yep. The 256GB base on the Macs is much more limiting on most regular users than 128GB base on the iPhones, and I don't see how anyone is filling it unless they have the attitude of never offloading anything off their phone, which I guess is your choice if you want to use it that way, but nuts to me from a backup standpoint.

To me a more useful benefit that still lets Apple charge for the people who really need the space is better storage management features. It annoys me, for instance, that I can't delete old attachments and files in messages without nuking the messages entirely, or having no context for the missing media if I delete only the media and leave the texts. Or allowing people to offload the Apple Intelligence stuff if they don't care about local models (or AI at all.) Otherwise complaining about the storage sizing is just kicking the can further down the road without giving users for whom it matters tools to address it.
 
I'm a heavy iOS gamer with a ton of 3gb+ titles and dozens of PSP roms.

I have 40gb left on my 128gb phone.

Does an average user (not your typical Macrumors poster) need more than 128gb? I would argue only if they aren't using iCloud for photo backups. Even a Pro user will likely be recording those hefty LOG files straight to an SSD if they're serious about things.

Apple's storage tiers are too expensive though and the iPads as well as Macs should all be 256gb base.
That's only until your iPhone has a memory leak or does some weird cache operation, that somehow eats up 50GB of space and you're left with nothing without forewarning.
I had this kind of situation recently while doing some critical stuff on mine and instantly regretted having just 128GB. Also the iPhone tends to unload apps to make space during updates and such and just like that I'm forced to download an app I need now, not later, like Uber or a train ticket app but it's nowhere to be seen - needs to be downloaded from the cloud.
No 128GB for me, no siree Bob!
 
  • Love
Reactions: turbineseaplane
Yep. The 256GB base on the Macs is much more limiting on most regular users than 128GB base on the iPhones, and I don't see how anyone is filling it unless they have the attitude of never offloading anything off their phone, which I guess is your choice if you want to use it that way, but nuts to me from a backup standpoint.

To me a more useful benefit that still lets Apple charge for the people who really need the space is better storage management features. It annoys me, for instance, that I can't delete old attachments and files in messages without nuking the messages entirely, or having no context for the missing media if I delete only the media and leave the texts. Or allowing people to offload the Apple Intelligence stuff if they don't care about local models (or AI at all.) Otherwise complaining about the storage sizing is just kicking the can further down the road without giving users for whom it matters tools to address it.

...They could also just include more storage and charge less for upgrades and none of your entire 2nd paragraph would be needed

It's a wildly better product and experience to not be forcing folks to jockey around trying to figure out what to delete and/or how to do it
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.