Rumour: Apple to Ditch 16GB Memory Option for iPhone 7

Maura · May 30, 2016

Phone Arena reports that it looks as though Apple is finally ready to ditch the 16GB memory option, with the forthcoming iPhone 7 set to start at 32GB memory. The news comes via a research note from analyst Kevin Wang, director of Market Research at IHS Technology in China who says that this will be the case. This really would be a significant move from Apple, marking the first time ever that there has not been a 16GB version of an iPhone. Wang also says that the iPhone 7 will have 2GB of RAM, putting it on a par with the iPhone 6s.

Should this rumour prove to be factual, then it’s something that has been very much on the cards for some time, with previous rumours proving to be false in the past, but hinting at things to come. It’s only to be hoped that Apple won’t increase the base price of the iPhone 7 now that the cheaper 16GB option is no longer available, however.

Source: Base-level iPhone 7 will reportedly include 32GB of storage

Pinkpoison · May 30, 2016

I SO hope this is true, I have been hoping for this.
Fingers crossed.

scifan57 · May 30, 2016

Personally, I think that they should have done this several years ago.

DaveM · May 30, 2016

I think it's damaging to the brand when someone purchases a 16 GB phone and finds out a few months later that they don't have enough space. For most people iPhones aren't something that they buy and sell on a whim, so when they make a purchase decision they do it for the long haul, at least several years. This is especially true with the 2 year contract purchasing model. So there they are, stuck with a phone that they were expecting to be a very high quality investment of a significant amount of money, but it's now limited in its usefulness. I think this is something that will increase the satisfaction of a lot of iPhone users, especially first-timers. It should have been done a long time ago, and as memory needs increase with time I hope Apple is smart enough to keep the lowest memory option high enough to avoid disappointing people.

Pinkpoison · May 31, 2016

I wonder though if this happens if this will increase the price of the phone.

scifan57 · May 31, 2016

Poisonivy said:
I wonder though if this happens if this will increase the price of the phone.

The price of flash storage has dropped to the point where Apple certainly does not HAVE to increase the price of the base model iPhone if it now has 32gb of flash storage built in. With that being said, I wouldn't be surprised if Apple does increase the price to maintain their already industry leading profit margin.

Pinkpoison · May 31, 2016

scifan57 said:
The price of flash storage has dropped to the point where Apple certainly does not HAVE to increase the price of the base model iPhone if it now has 32gb of flash storage built in. With that being said, I wouldn't be surprised if Apple does increase the price to maintain their already industry leading profit margin.

I too wouldn't be surprised if they do.
Having said that it really is way over due to increase the storage to 32GB and I hope for this every year, Maybe this year it will happen.

scifan57 · May 31, 2016

Poisonivy said:
I too wouldn't be surprised if they do.
Having said that it really is way over due to increase the storage to 32GB and I hope for this every year, Maybe this year it will happen.

Maybe they'll also increase the maximum available storage size to 256gb, like on the current iPad Pro models, at the some time?

Pinkpoison · May 31, 2016

scifan57 said:
Maybe they'll also increase the maximum available storage size to 256gb, like on the current iPad Pro models, at the some time?

Some would like that but for myself 32GB would be perfect.
I was almost convinced by the rumours last year and it didn't happen so i'm not holding my breath......A small part of me wants to believe it though

DaveM · May 31, 2016

Poisonivy said:
I wonder though if this happens if this will increase the price of the phone.

If they do increase prices, I don't think it will be just on one particular model - it will be across the whole line. And it will be impossible to know how much of a price increase was specifically due to memory increase. Memory keeps getting cheaper, so it should make it easier for Apple to make larger amounts of memory available at the same prices, or at least a very minimal increase.