Apple's iPhone X & iPhone 8 Plus to come with 3GB of RAM, iPhone 8 with 2GB

Posted:
in iPhone edited September 2017
More information gleaned from this weekend's iOS 11 GM leak point to memory allotments for Apple's upcoming iPhone models, with the top-end OLED-toting iPhone X and 5.5-inch iPhone 8 Plus to feature 3GB of RAM, while the 4.7-inch iPhone 8 will make do with 2GB.




Evidence of the forthcoming RAM allotments was dug up by developer Steven Troughton-Smith, who has been sifting through the leaked Apple code for hints relating to soon-to-be-announced iPhone, Apple Watch and Apple TV hardware.

RAM

iPhone 8: 2GB
iPhone 8 Plus: 3GB
iPhone X: 3GB

-- Steve T-S (@stroughtonsmith)


It seems Apple will carry over memory specifications from current iPhone models, as existing iPhone 7 and 7 Plus devices sport 2GB and 3GB of RAM, respectively. Apple's new for 2017 OLED iPhone, referred to as "iPhone X" in the leaked iOS 11 GM, will carry the same amount of RAM as its closest stablemate, the next-generation 5.5-inch LCD model.

The extra RAM will likely help iPhone X perform computationally demanding tasks like facial recognition, which is expected to debut as a device-specific feature next week.

Along the memory specifications, information about Apple's next-generation processors were also revealed on Sunday.

Colloquially called "A11 Fusion," in reference to the A10 Fusion SoC that shipped with iPhone 7, the forthcoming chip is expected to run six cores in a 2+4 configuration -- two high performance "Mistral" cores and four high efficiency "Monsoon" cores. This compares to the A10 Fusion, a quad-core chip that operates in a 2+2 configuration. A separate SoC, the A10X, debuted in the latest iPad Pro refresh this years as a 3+3 chip.

Separately, Troughton-Smith tweeted out what appears to be confirmation of iPhone X camera specifications. The OLED handset will rely on a 12-megapixel rear shooter -- or more likely two 12MP modules in a dual camera array, ala iPhone 7 Plus -- capable of shooting 4K video at 60 frames per second or 1080p video at 240fps. On the front is a 7MP camera that can shoot 1080p at 30fps. By comparison, the 12MP camera on iPhone 7 caps 4K video at 30fps.

More interesting are code points suggesting the front-facing infrared receiver will capture image information at a resolution of 1,312-by-1,104 pixels. Apple is widely rumored to integrate a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) and an IR receiver as part of its "Face ID" facial recognition and authentication system.

Apple is expected to announce iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X alongside an LTE Apple Watch and 4K Apple TV at a special media event next week. AppleInsider will be covering the event live from Apple Park on Tuesday, Sept. 12, at 10 a.m. Pacific.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 33
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    If accurate, and I assume it is, I look forward to people bitching and moaning about Apple not giving them 4 GiB RAM¡
    tmaychiaGeorgeBMac
  • Reply 2 of 33
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    Soli said:
    If accurate, and I assume it is, I look forward to people bitching and moaning about Apple not giving them 4 GiB RAM¡
    And a massive battery. Don't forget the massive battery. It has to powerful enough to run a Toyota Prius for a day and a half, and if Ive wasn't so obssessed with thinness then Apple could make the phone slightly thicker to accommodate it. 
    doozydozenchiawilliamlondon
  • Reply 3 of 33
    ksecksec Posts: 1,569member
    Soli said:
    If accurate, and I assume it is, I look forward to people bitching and moaning about Apple not giving them 4 GiB RAM¡
    Given how we know there will be a iPhone X Plus with higher resolution next year or two, the 4GB Ram will likely be introduced then. 
    doozydozenAvieshek
  • Reply 4 of 33
    Soli said:
    If accurate, and I assume it is, I look forward to people bitching and moaning about Apple not giving them 4 GiB RAM¡
    There is going to be something to bitch and moan about. You will see, they will find something to moan about anyways. It is just not going to be about RAM size. 
    It is quite obvious that iPhone X should be able to mown a lawn, for example.
     Yes, it is true that Android based smartphones do not do that, but Apple have to have a different and higher set of standards applied to them, because they are such an underachieving company....somehow. And don't forget that they are constantly copying from Sammy, dirty bastards
    And Sammy is constantly leading the race... by following Apple with its next release.
    /s
    williamlondonRayz2016SpamSandwich
  • Reply 5 of 33
    On the camera front, I'm glad Apple has not committed to the megapixel arms race. The same 12 MP count in this year's iPhone lineup ought to be class-lending, once again. I wonder what technical wizardry Apple will announce that keeps themselves far out in front of the competition?
  • Reply 6 of 33
    On the camera front, I'm glad Apple has not committed to the megapixel arms race. The same 12 MP count in this year's iPhone lineup ought to be class-lending, once again. I wonder what technical wizardry Apple will announce that keeps themselves far out in front of the competition?
    Will just add Optical-Image-Stabilisation to the Telephoto-lens. 
    doozydozen
  • Reply 7 of 33
    4.7" always get the budget treatment again with only 2GB still!
  • Reply 8 of 33
    My mother has an iPad mini 3 running the latest software. I was using it the other day and boy was it painful compared to my iPad Pro with 4GB RAM. Pretty much everything I did on it was slow and/or janky. I know people with an iPhone 6 who really feel the limitation of only having 1GB RAM. I really wish Apple wasn’t so stingy with RAM. It seems as though they do the bare minimum. I think the amount of RAM should be based on how many software updates Apple expects the device to get. IPhone 8 with 3GB and iPhone X (or whatever they call it) should have 4GB. That would expand the life of these devices. And certainly Apple’s software and hardware teams could figure out how to manage/preserve battery life with more RAM.
    doozydozen
  • Reply 9 of 33
    ... I know people with an iPhone 6 who really feel the limitation of only having 1GB RAM....
    I have an iPhone 6 Plus, and I don't really know about the limitation. My battery life is still pretty good, too. I'm not likely to upgrade because of money and such, but I'm not really dissatisfied with what I've got. I previously used a 3GS for 5 years and I don't see why this iPhone 6 Plus couldn't last just as long. I don't think there's a whole lot of apps that won't run on this phone yet.
    williamlondonGeorgeBMacdoozydozen
  • Reply 10 of 33
    mike1mike1 Posts: 3,275member
    4.7" always get the budget treatment again with only 2GB still!
    Probably not necessary to deliver the same performance.with the smaller screen size


    williamlondonGeorgeBMacdoozydozen
  • Reply 11 of 33
    tipootipoo Posts: 1,141member
    2 still feels fine on my 7, but with lowering power requirements I was rooting for 4 in the X at least, for future proofing. RAM always feels like enough at launch, until one day it suddenly doesn't. 
  • Reply 12 of 33
    Apple optimizes there phones to the max. And they are in the business of making money. So, I think a high priority is keeping build cost as low as possible.  Also, I think Apple choose for example 3 things to focus on and upgrade with every phone. 
  • Reply 13 of 33
    ... I know people with an iPhone 6 who really feel the limitation of only having 1GB RAM....
    I have an iPhone 6 Plus, and I don't really know about the limitation. My battery life is still pretty good, too. I'm not likely to upgrade because of money and such, but I'm not really dissatisfied with what I've got. I previously used a 3GS for 5 years and I don't see why this iPhone 6 Plus couldn't last just as long. I don't think there's a whole lot of apps that won't run on this phone yet.
    Ditto...
    My only complaint with my iPhone 6+ is that it isn't an iPhone Pro -- otherwise it does everything I want it to do and does it well.  Actually, it being older is an advantage because for things like running I remove its case to save weight and make it thinner -- because the risk of dropping and breaking it is less financially traumatic.  I simply don't have to worry about it as much.
  • Reply 14 of 33
    More RAM uses more battery continuously so Apple balances everything as usual. Note the larger battery phones are the ones with additional RAM.
  • Reply 15 of 33
    netmage said:
    More RAM uses more battery continuously so Apple balances everything as usual. Note the larger battery phones are the ones with additional RAM.
    Then how do you "explain" SE having 2 GB RAM, vs 6 Plus having 1 GB RAM????
  • Reply 16 of 33
    mike1 said:
    4.7" always get the budget treatment again with only 2GB still!
    Probably not necessary to deliver the same performance.with the smaller screen size



    That is BS. Then why put the same SOC? Why not put a 1 or 2 year old SOC?
  • Reply 17 of 33
    My mother has an iPad mini 3 running the latest software. I was using it the other day and boy was it painful compared to my iPad Pro with 4GB RAM. Pretty much everything I did on it was slow and/or janky. I know people with an iPhone 6 who really feel the limitation of only having 1GB RAM. I really wish Apple wasn’t so stingy with RAM. It seems as though they do the bare minimum. I think the amount of RAM should be based on how many software updates Apple expects the device to get. IPhone 8 with 3GB and iPhone X (or whatever they call it) should have 4GB. That would expand the life of these devices. And certainly Apple’s software and hardware teams could figure out how to manage/preserve battery life with more RAM.

    You nailed it with the point highlighted - the amount of RAM should be based on how many software updates Apple expects the device to get. Unable to understand why many people in this forum do NOT get this simple fact?
    edited September 2017
  • Reply 18 of 33
    tshapi said:
    Apple optimizes there phones to the max. And they are in the business of making money. So, I think a high priority is keeping build cost as low as possible.  Also, I think Apple choose for example 3 things to focus on and upgrade with every phone. 

    That should be the LAST priority for the person who spends his/her hard earned money on a "premium" product. For Apple shareholders who form the majority of this forum - YES. Not for the people who are the actual buyers of the product.
  • Reply 19 of 33
    ... I know people with an iPhone 6 who really feel the limitation of only having 1GB RAM....
    I have an iPhone 6 Plus, and I don't really know about the limitation. My battery life is still pretty good, too. I'm not likely to upgrade because of money and such, but I'm not really dissatisfied with what I've got. I previously used a 3GS for 5 years and I don't see why this iPhone 6 Plus couldn't last just as long. I don't think there's a whole lot of apps that won't run on this phone yet.
    Did the 6 Plus only get 1GB RAM? I know a lot of people on AI like to snark about this (and I remember seeing many a post defending 1GB RAM as good enough) but I can only go by what others have told me their experience is plus what I recently experienced using an iPad mini 3. It wasn’t that a specific app no longer worked it was that things weren’t buttery smooth. Overall slowness and lag. Apple likes to tout older devices getting software updates but it’s not so great when there’s performance degradation. My guess is it has more to do with RAM than the A-series chips which have been beasts for many years now.
    muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 20 of 33
    Soli said:
    If accurate, and I assume it is, I look forward to people bitching and moaning about Apple not giving them 4 GiB RAM¡
    I have an iPad Pro with 4GB RAM. Not once in the year plus that I’ve owned it have I ever experienced a Safari tab reload. In fact I rarely see reloads when I switch from one app to another. My experience with the iPad Pro has bee nothing but buttery smooth all the time. Night and day from the iPad Air with 1GB RAM. 
    doozydozen
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