And yet Apple still sells two generations of iPad starting with 64 GB.
Entry-level specs for entry-level pricing. My mother is 100% fine with that, so doesn’t use much storage. YMMV and that’s ok
In this case it's worse because Apple didn't even spec bump those models. Last year there were no new iPads AFAIK.
I was interested in one but walked away when I saw they hadn't released new models or adjusted pricing. At the very, very, very least they could have upped the storage to bring it into line with the times. 64GB in 2024 is now woeful even for an entry level machine.
I think think @Xed nailed it. The term "lots of" completely depends on your personal perspective. It's like someone else telling you that you have "lots of" money in your bank account or financial portfolio. Really? Does my opinion count?
I'm consuming 300 GB of my 512 GB allotment on my iPhone 14 Pro Max. Having only 128 GB total to work with would require that I change the way I use my iPhone to accommodate its limitations, which I prefer not to do when it's avoidable. Because I've been upgrading fairly slowly, on about a 4-5 year cycle, I've generally found myself doubling each new iPhone's storage capacity compared to my previous iPhone. Starting off a cycle with more than I need has allowed me to stay on longer upgrade cycles because running low on storage is not really a concern.
It always comes down to being a personal decision based on what you're willing to spend for what you're getting. Again, following a longer upgrade cycle makes the acquisition cost for more storage tolerable. After all, a 3-4 year old iPhone that's not pressed against any hard limits is still a very nice tool that is very enjoyable to use.
People forget that if you store photos in iCloud you have to still keep them on the phone. If you delete them they’ll also delete from iCloud. I have always purchased the 256 GB phone and only recently have I found it going above half-full. I have Apple One for the family so its 2 TB of storage means no-one will lose their photos. If the family helps pay it’s worth it.
That is actually not the case. If you are using iCloud to backup your photos, they will ALL be stored in the cloud. However, what your iPhone does is up to you. iPhones typically come with the "Optimize iPhone Storage" option turned on. This means by default, if you start running low on local storage, your iPhone will start wiping photos and videos off your device to free up space... When you go into the Photos app you will still see all your content, but when you tap on older photos/videos it will stream them off the cloud using the internet. If you don't have internet access and try this, you will get an error on videos and you will only see the tiny thumbnail (blown up to fullscreen, so lossy looking) until your internet connection is restored. If you disable the "Optimize iPhone Storage" by choosing "Download and Keep Originals" then yes, 100% of your library is kept on your iPhone and if you delete anything it deletes the corresponding file in the cloud.
This is essentially how it works on a MacBook and iPad as well with infrequently used apps and files if you leave it setup this way. If one paid for iCloud storage and routinely had a decent internet connection you would not even realize this is happening. I work on cargo ships out to see... So I keep optimization disabled on all my Apple devices so I can view my files and photos when offline.
128GB *is* “a lot of storage” for a typical user — IF they are also paying for extra iCloud storage, even at the 50GB level.
Photos and videos are THE things that eat up storage space on an iPhone <b>if</b> you store them on-device. By default, iCloud will move the original images to iCloud when storage starts to run low. IIRC, you can also specify that you want it to <em>always</em> do that when internet access is available.
Given that Apple has a vested interest in you going to beyond the 5GB free iCloud storage limit, their advertising for 128GB is designed to push users to buying into at least the 50GB iCloud tier. So now your total “storage” is 178GB.
But even without iCloud, 128GB should be plenty for typical users. Assuming let’s say 48GB of apps — which would be a lot — that still leaves you with 80GB of potential photo storage. That’s enough for 1,000 48MP photos taken on the latest models, or 4,000 12MP photos on older iPhones.
I’d call that “a lot,” but I’d also note that Apple’s claim about the 128GB storage is oriented around photography and general use, not videos. Clearly, that’s not a lot of storage if you mostly do videos.
128GB *is* “a lot of storage” for a typical user — IF they are also paying for extra iCloud storage, even at the 50GB level.
Photos and videos are THE things that eat up storage space on an iPhone <b>if</b> you store them on-device. By default, iCloud will move the original images to iCloud when storage starts to run low. IIRC, you can also specify that you want it to <em>always</em> do that when internet access is available.
Given that Apple has a vested interest in you going to beyond the 5GB free iCloud storage limit, their advertising for 128GB is designed to push users to buying into at least the 50GB iCloud tier. So now your total “storage” is 178GB.
But even without iCloud, 128GB should be plenty for typical users. Assuming let’s say 48GB of apps — which would be a lot — that still leaves you with 80GB of potential photo storage. That’s enough for 1,000 48MP photos taken on the latest models, or 4,000 12MP photos on older iPhones.
I’d call that “a lot,” but I’d also note that Apple’s claim about the 128GB storage is oriented around photography and general use, not videos. Clearly, that’s not a lot of storage if you mostly do videos.
If you're not using iCloud, you should transfer the photos off the phone in other ways into whatever app you're using. That frees up space too. And unlike 10-15 years ago, there's no reason to spend a lot of gigabytes on music.
Comments
I was interested in one but walked away when I saw they hadn't released new models or adjusted pricing. At the very, very, very least they could have upped the storage to bring it into line with the times. 64GB in 2024 is now woeful even for an entry level machine.
That being said my phone I bought in 2020 phone that came standard as 256GB.
I'm consuming 300 GB of my 512 GB allotment on my iPhone 14 Pro Max. Having only 128 GB total to work with would require that I change the way I use my iPhone to accommodate its limitations, which I prefer not to do when it's avoidable. Because I've been upgrading fairly slowly, on about a 4-5 year cycle, I've generally found myself doubling each new iPhone's storage capacity compared to my previous iPhone. Starting off a cycle with more than I need has allowed me to stay on longer upgrade cycles because running low on storage is not really a concern.
It always comes down to being a personal decision based on what you're willing to spend for what you're getting. Again, following a longer upgrade cycle makes the acquisition cost for more storage tolerable. After all, a 3-4 year old iPhone that's not pressed against any hard limits is still a very nice tool that is very enjoyable to use.
This is essentially how it works on a MacBook and iPad as well with infrequently used apps and files if you leave it setup this way. If one paid for iCloud storage and routinely had a decent internet connection you would not even realize this is happening. I work on cargo ships out to see... So I keep optimization disabled on all my Apple devices so I can view my files and photos when offline.
If you're not using iCloud, you should transfer the photos off the phone in other ways into whatever app you're using. That frees up space too. And unlike 10-15 years ago, there's no reason to spend a lot of gigabytes on music.