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Bottom line: Apple is expected to switch to quad-level cell storage technology in the not-too-distant future, meaning iPhones could soon ship with up to 2 TB of local storage. While a larger-capacity smartphone sounds great on paper, there are some performance, endurance, and cost tradeoffs to consider.
Existing iPhones utilize storage chips based on triple-level cell (TLC) technology, a type of NAND that's relatively speedy and durable. QLC NAND is denser meaning more storage capacity can fit in the same physical footprint, and it is typically less expensive than TLC. The downside, however, is that QLC NAND affords slower read and write speeds and isn't as robust.
Market intelligence firm TrendForce expects Apple to start incorporating QLC NAND into iPhones by 2026. That means it could show up in the iPhone 16 later this year, the iPhone 17 in 2025, or the iPhone 18 near the end of 2026.
The prediction jives with a report from DigiTimes earlier this year claiming Apple was evaluating whether or not to switch to QLC for 1 TB iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max models.
For most, the switch will likely be a non-issue. Apple has almost certainly worked to optimize its use of QLC to minimize the performance impact. Endurance and reliability hits may be unavoidable but with today's average upgrade cycle, Apple might view the tradeoff as less of a concern.
Cost will likely factor heavily into the equation, both from a supplier standpoint and the price that end users will pay for a larger-capacity iPhone. Currently, an iPhone 15 Pro Max with 256 GB of storage retails for $1,199, the mid-capacity 512 GB model commands $1,399, and the top-end 1 TB model goes for $1,599. How much could Apple charge for a 2 TB variant and more importantly, how much would consumers stomach before compromising and dialing back to a smaller capacity to save on cost?
Apple is widely expected to announce the iPhone 16 in September, meaning we don't have to wait much longer to find out if QLC NAND will debut this year.
Image credit: Amanz