[News] Apple to Upgrade iPhone 17 Pro to 12GB DRAM, with Samsung Rumored to Capture 70% Share

Multiple sources have confirmed that Apple will, for the first time, equip part of its new iPhone 17 lineup with 12GB DRAM—opening the door to big gains for memory suppliers. South Korean outlet etnews reports that Samsung is poised to capture roughly 70% of total demand.

It is worth noting that AI phones, equipped with small language models (Small LLMs) and other AI tools, could mean bigger profits for memory makers. As highlighted by etnews, a 12GB DRAM chip, for instance, sells for about 50% more than its 8GB counterpart.

According to etnews, after introducing 8GB RAM in the iPhone 15 Pro in 2023 and sticking with that through the iPhone 16 lineup, Apple has decided to upgrade the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max to 12GB of DRAM amid rising demands for on-device AI. However, the boost will remain exclusive to the Pro models among the four iPhone variants, the report adds.

Turnaround for Samsung?

While Samsung, SK hynix, and Micron will all supply the new memory chips in iPhone 17, the report suggests Samsung is expected to take the lion’s share—potentially shipping up to 70 million units, based on Apple’s annual iPhone sales.

This could be a golden opportunity for Samsung, as it’s forced to rely on Micron’s mobile DRAM for its Galaxy S25 series due to struggles with 1b LPDDR5, according to The Korea Herald. While Micron has been a secondary supplier for the Galaxy series for over a decade, this marks its first time as the primary supplier, the report notes.

With the iPhone 17 set to launch in September, Apple is reportedly finalizing deals with memory suppliers to boost DRAM capacity—some shipments have already been greenlit, according to etnews.

In addition, Apple seems determined to push the memory boundaries with each new iPhone iteration, driving significant benefits for major suppliers. According to 9to5Mac, iPhone 18 is set to feature 6-channel LPDDR5X memory in 2026, marking a major leap in speed, efficiency, and performance. Development for this upgrade is already underway, as per the report.

Read more

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(Photo credit: Apple)