AppleTech Insights in Your InboxSubscribe to our free newsletter and never miss out on what’s happening in the tech world. Learn Tech Today, Lead Tomorrow.Apple recently introduced a new feature called Apple Intelligence that is designed to completely change how we interact with our devices. This feature will be exclusive to the latest iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, along with newer iPads and Macs equipped with M1 chips or higher.
Senior executives joined John Gruber on “The Talk Show” at WWDC 2024 to explain why the new AI is limited to the latest devices.
Giannandrea kicked things off by explaining that running these large language models is a heavy lift. It’s not just about having a good processor; these models need tons of bandwidth and a beefy neural engine to run smoothly. He pointed out that while you could technically run Apple Intelligence on older devices, it would be so slow it wouldn’t be worth it.
Federighi chimed in to highlight the fact that the iPhone 15 Pro models come with the A17 Pro chip, which packs a 16-core Neural Engine capable of 35 trillion operations per second. That’s a massive jump from the A16 chip in older models. Plus, these new devices have at least 8GB of RAM which is important for Apple Intelligence to run smoothly.
Joswiak addressed the elephant in the room – is this just a tactic to sell more new iPhones? He confidently denied this, pointing out that if it were a sales ploy, they would have restricted the feature to the latest iPads and Macs too. Ultimately, the real reason is that the hardware of older devices just can’t keep up with the demands of Apple Intelligence.
If you don’t have the latest iPhone, there’s still plenty to look forward to with the upcoming iOS 18 update. It will be available on all devices that currently run iOS 17 including the 2018 iPhone XR. While you won’t get Apple Intelligence, there will be tons of new features to try out.
For those eager to dive into this new AI experience, the iPhone 16 series, which is set to launch this fall with iOS 18, could be the perfect option.
Rumors suggest the iPhone 16 will feature even more advanced hardware, ensuring seamless operation of Apple Intelligence and other upcoming features.
Overall, Apple is breaking new ground by demonstrating the potential of advanced AI. This is an exciting period and Apple Intelligence marks the start of a new technological era.
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