nateo200
macrumors 68040
I think 50% of the reason I upgraded my 14PM to 17PM was the USB-C port. The Siri AI stuff is wildly uninteresting to me thus far lol.
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iPhone 18e Rumored to Feature Increased RAM
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nateo200
macrumors 68040
It’s probably not strictly necessary but Apple likes to give excess headroom because they are a company about experience more than hardware and they want the experience to be consistent and overall good. I bet 6GB could run it fine with 8GB being necessary for advanced features but they again want things to run very smoothly. If the new entry level iPhone is 9GB’s I’m betting it’s because they wanted to go 10 or 12GB’s but that the memory shortages cut that back a lot and they wanted to at least give a tiny boost to justify the price increase.
Genelec8341
macrumors 6502
noannualfee
macrumors regular
Yeah, the SE was much cheaper and smaller and appealed to a certain segment. I don’t see enough difference in price, etc. between the 17 and 17E. I’m more attracted to the 17E and that’s just for aesthetics.
Homme
macrumors 65816
I kinda disagree for the SE Lineup to be updated annually ( except the OG SE in another world) but the 16e was the perfect opportunity for Apple to do it because the SE ones throughout the years weren’t the perfect time
Also 17e has USB 2.0 not 3.0 ( the iPhone Air has a USB 2.0 port may I add lol)
The 17e is great ( it has things even the Air doesn’t have like stereo speakers, better USB C Port for connecting things
If they also managed to fix their OS memory usage and Apps efficiency, giving you an extra 1GB is going to feel a little more than usual.
Of course 5 years down the line software will eat up all those again.
Of course 5 years down the line software will eat up all those again.
An extra 1Gb is hilarious to me. Absolutely classic Tim Apple.
TVreporter
macrumors 68030
Maybe it’s because it’s only offered in the US and millions of other customers worldwide don’t have access to the program?
Sosab123
macrumors 6502
I had both iPhone X and XR from launch day till I upgraded to the 17e. As a phone person, I don't really use my phones for anything else other than making calls, and staying connected. I didn't get XR immediately I bought one for really cheap second hand for a backup phone. I generally use a more portable iPad for other tasks. I switched to the Mini with the 6th generation, but up until then I relied on the iPad Pro 11".
Until the 17e, I preferred the $1000~ phone segment. I was surprised that the Xr got updates longer than the X. Both phones held up well over the 8~ or so years. This was the first time I actually used a phone for this long mainly due to Covid having me at home a lot more often I just didn't care about upgrading as much anymore and A.I wasn't exactly the hype it was today. For me at least. Its really hard to want to spend $1000 again, when, its been 4 years and my $500 backup phone still does just as much as my $1000 phone, this is what literally crossed my mind a few years ago. There was obviously a difference in features, but, once again a phone for me is just to stay connected.
I was waiting for a performance brick wall without trying to find one intentionally like playing a new game or etc, and I did find a natural performance wall.
I needed to update my contact info for my bank and to do so, which I hadn't done in a very long time. I needed to use a link they sent me via text message. For some reason the link struggled to work on both phones and when I did get it to work there just wasn't enough processing power to actually complete the task. It kept timing out. I bought a iPhone 17e that day with no regrets.
I considered getting iPhone Air cause the memory amount seems a lot more future proof, but the 17e having a 4000 mAH battery and just weighing about 2 grams more than the air made the Air a hard decision. Battery life is way more important for me but theres a handful of other factors, but, in most places you compare the 17e out performs the Air where its necessary for a Phone to be a Phone. Speakers, microphone, comfort in holding, weight, etc. The E line is actually a really well built phone.
17e + iPad Mini 7 = real all day battery life. My phone doesn't need charge for days at a time.
I won't be upgrading to the 18e since I am light on A.I use when it comes to iPhone, but, If I was upgrading from nothing or something next to nothing, I would def not hesitate to consider it over way more expensive options.
Until the 17e, I preferred the $1000~ phone segment. I was surprised that the Xr got updates longer than the X. Both phones held up well over the 8~ or so years. This was the first time I actually used a phone for this long mainly due to Covid having me at home a lot more often I just didn't care about upgrading as much anymore and A.I wasn't exactly the hype it was today. For me at least. Its really hard to want to spend $1000 again, when, its been 4 years and my $500 backup phone still does just as much as my $1000 phone, this is what literally crossed my mind a few years ago. There was obviously a difference in features, but, once again a phone for me is just to stay connected.
I was waiting for a performance brick wall without trying to find one intentionally like playing a new game or etc, and I did find a natural performance wall.
I needed to update my contact info for my bank and to do so, which I hadn't done in a very long time. I needed to use a link they sent me via text message. For some reason the link struggled to work on both phones and when I did get it to work there just wasn't enough processing power to actually complete the task. It kept timing out. I bought a iPhone 17e that day with no regrets.
I considered getting iPhone Air cause the memory amount seems a lot more future proof, but the 17e having a 4000 mAH battery and just weighing about 2 grams more than the air made the Air a hard decision. Battery life is way more important for me but theres a handful of other factors, but, in most places you compare the 17e out performs the Air where its necessary for a Phone to be a Phone. Speakers, microphone, comfort in holding, weight, etc. The E line is actually a really well built phone.
17e + iPad Mini 7 = real all day battery life. My phone doesn't need charge for days at a time.
I won't be upgrading to the 18e since I am light on A.I use when it comes to iPhone, but, If I was upgrading from nothing or something next to nothing, I would def not hesitate to consider it over way more expensive options.
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Moukee
macrumors 6502
I guess this way they can use an odd 3x 3 GB module configuration (or something similar) that they got better pricing on compared to whatever they'd gotten for 8 GB total.
surfbutler
macrumors newbie
Agreed. I would have thought now is the time to be lowering RAM in budget lines, not increasing it. And getting rid of built-in LLMs like Siri-AI.
tahoeroscoe
macrumors regular
Reason077
macrumors 601
This is actually true. RAM cost well under $10/GB in 2014. Now days you’d be very lucky to find it for $10/GB, and you’re often paying substantially more.
You are getting significantly faster and more efficient DDR5, of course. DDR3 was the prevailing standard in 2014.
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Reason077
macrumors 601
Reportedly it will be 6 x 1.5GB dies. Similar configuration to the current 12GB Pros which are 8 x 1.5GB, just with 2 less dies.
calzon65
macrumors 6502a
You are correct Homme, sorry my mistake, I had USB-C on my mind referring to the connector type and inadvertently typed USB3.
Because of the RAM price gouging, I mean shortages, Apple has redefined GB to mean Gigabit. Cunning huh.
Populus
macrumors 604
Yeah, I had the same exact thought. How bad the memory situation has to be, for Apple to try to increase the base devices up from 8GB, and settle only with 9GB. I mean, this is the best evidence that memory RAM is really scarce nowadays…
And the saddest part is that, unless more memory factories start producing, this shortage is here for the long term, as big AI (and not so big) companies aren’t going to pause their data center plans…
I already got my new M5 Mac, a MacBook Air with 32GB of RAM, and I’m quite happy with my M2 iPad Pro. So with those devices I’m served for many years.
But my iPhone is an SE 3rd gen that, even though it’s still going strong, has at least two more years of iOS support, and I really love it (I don’t need bigger and heavier smartphones), I am aware that it has only 4GB of RAM and sooner or later will start to run sluggish. Hopefully it will hold up well enough until 2030 and beyond, and even if I don’t get the major iOS updates, I’ll still receive security patches.
Populus
macrumors 604
Honestly, I don’t think so. This might change if Apple achieves to fit those bigger models into 9GB iPhones in 2027, but as of now, the requirement of 12GB for the “advanced” Siri AI seems like a real constraint. Apple uses a significantly bigger model on those devices in order to deliver a better experience with on-device dictation, transcription, and more realistic Siri voice. So I’m afraid that 9GB devices will face the same constraints as 8GB iPhones.
Bad timing for Apple to implement AI on their smartphones… although I’m all for local AI, but it’s just the worst time in history to increase the RAM needed. Microsoft, for instance, is starting to optimize Windows 11 for 8GB computers, because they know that with this shortage, 8GB is going to be the new normal…
Astrohunter
macrumors 6502a
nateo200
macrumors 68040
Yeah two of my buddies just got 64GB MacBook Pro’s but they wish they could have gotten more lol. AI loves memory
capamac
macrumors 6502a
Mebbe I'm missing it, but Apple doesn't even seem to bother listing RAM on it's current iphone line-up here https://www.apple.com/iphone/compare/?modelList=iphone-17-pro,iphone-17,iphone-17e
I suspect this is because Apple is so consumer-focused, with its buyers being non-technical folks, and presumes such buyers (most certainly correctly) do not really care how much RAM is in the phone, so long as it "does the thing."
I suspect this is because Apple is so consumer-focused, with its buyers being non-technical folks, and presumes such buyers (most certainly correctly) do not really care how much RAM is in the phone, so long as it "does the thing."