The iPhone 15 & iPhone 15 Plus, Won’t See AI Upgrades – Here’s Why
Apple is jumping on the AI bandwagon, releasing their own version called Apple Intelligence. It will be available on most newer models of iPhones, iPads and Macs and the beta version will be installable with the iOS 18.1 update. But if you were hoping for Apple AI iPhone 15 availability? Nope. Sorry. We’ll cover exactly why iPhone 15 and 15 Plus won’t have AI tricks like everybody else, and exactly what they’re missing out on.
It’s Because of the RAM
Yup. It’s really that simple. iPhone 15 AI just isn’t possible with the hardware limitations of the 15 and 15 Plus models. The 15 versions only have 6 gigabytes of RAM whereas the newer models have 8, which Apple decided is the minimum to successfully run their AI.
Also, the 15 iPhone versions use a 5 core GPU and A16 processor, while more recent iPhones use a 6 core GPU and A17 processor. While they technically could make Apple AI work on older models, it would be so slow and unresponsive as to negate its usefulness. In that regard it makes sense why Apple AI iPhone 15 versions just aren’t feasible. Unless you have iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. These do fall within the hardware requirements.
AI Advancements the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus are Missing Out On
However understandable it is that iPhone 15 AI is non-existent, it’s definitely a bummer to not have access to all the state of the art features newer models will get to play with. Even just the photo editing enhancements will make 15 users jealous, along with the ability to search for specific saved videos and photos by using natural language prompts. Here’s how Apple describes it:
“In Photos, the Memories feature now enables users to create the movies they want to see by simply typing a description. In addition, natural language can be used to search for specific photos, and search in videos gets more powerful with the ability to find specific moments in clips.”
When you have thousands of photos (as most of us do), this ability alone is huge.
Other AI capabilities to be jealous of:
- Summaries of notifications
- The ability to prioritize emails by sender or importance
- A Focus mode that only sends notification alerts if deemed a priority
- Various writing tools
- Smart reply
- Message and email summaries
- Enhanced Siri capabilities, such as improved voice comprehension and recognition
- Typing to Siri is available
In addition, more features will be released throughout the coming months. Image Wand can turn simple sketches into images. Customized, original emoji creation will be created just by typing a description. Siri will be more useful and capable, including giving you how-to tutorials, and the option to integrate ChatGPT will streamline AI tools without having to jump around.
All of these AI advancements are only available for iPhones that meet the following prerequisites:
- Must be iPhone models: 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro, 16 Pro Max, 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max
- Must be updated to iOS 18.1
- Your Siri and device languages must be currently supported. This is initially only U.S. English, with other English variations such as UK and Canada available in December. In 2025, other language expansions will roll out, such as French, Japanese, Spanish, etc.
- You need 4 GB of iPhone storage
- European Union residents who have their Apple account registered as such will not have access to Apple AI. This is due to violation concerns over the EU Digital Markets Act and may become available in the future but not at this time
- Residents of China mainland who purchased their iPhone in China and/or have their Apple account set in China will not have access to Apple Intelligence
- Note: If you have an Apple account set in a region with access to the AI, you will still have this AI access if you travel outside the country
While Apple AI iPhone 15 availability simply isn’t going to happen, at least 15 users can take comfort knowing they’re not the only ones in the lurch. You at least have the entire European Union and mainland China also without these features and no foreseeable timeline for that to change.