Apple Wants You to Upgrade to the Latest iPhones to Use iOS 18 AI Features
May. 31, 2024Apple is likely to use acombination of on-device and cloud for AI processing. However, this doesn’t mean “any” iPhone model is capable of handling on-device processing. Only people using the flagship devices will get the new AI features. According to Mark Gurman’s latest newsletter, the on-device AI may be restricted to the iPhone 15 Pro andiPhone 15 Pro Max, plus the upcoming iPhone 16 and 16 Pro models.
Now, this means users have to own the latest and premium “Pro” iPhones to use every new iOS 18 feature. This is likely because the A17 Pro chipset has made a huge jump in terms of capabilities and performance. The A17 chipset boasts 8GB integrated RAM, significantly faster CPU and GPU cores, and a new 16-core Neural Engine that can perform up to 35 trillion operations per second. For on-device AI processing, Apple might need those technical requirements.
With this exclusivity, Apple might also want users to upgrade to the latest “Pro” models. Well, I don’t think many users would be ready to upgrade their iPhones just for AI. I mean, users who already own an iPhone 15 or iPhone 14 Pro would be more than satisfied. Of course, the newAI features in iOS 18would be damn exciting, but not everyone would be interested in them, especially when they have to make an upgrade.
Of course, the upgrade might be needed for AI features processed on-device. The upcoming iOS 18 will also introduce cloud-based AI features, and Apple is in talks with OpenAI for a partnership deal. It won’t be too much to assume that cloud-based will be available to any iOS 18-supported iPhone.
It sounds like AI features in iOS 18 would be Apple’s big move to get its users to upgrade their iPhones. But, do the rumored AI features sound so lucrative that people will make an upgrade? What do you think? Don’t forget to share your opinions in the comments below.
