iPhone 18 Pro and Duo Once Planned With 16GB RAM, Leaker Says

MacRumors reports that the leaker known as "Instant Digital" said on Weibo that Apple initially planned to give the iPhone 18 Pro lineup and the iPhone Duo 16GB of RAM. The post does not specify when Apple considered that capacity.

The phones that are shipping or about to ship have 12GB instead. The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max arrived with 12GB of RAM, a figure confirmed through early software code and consistent with the iPhone 17 Pro generation. The iPhone Duo is expected to use 12GB as well, though it has not appeared in the same code yet.

The 12GB figure was widely expected. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted 12GB for the iPhone 18 lineup back in April 2025. Analyst Jeff Pu projected the same for the Pro models and the foldable in January. A March report from The Bell said Samsung would supply 12GB memory modules for the Duo.

The reason Apple might have changed a 16GB plan is the memory market. The Bell report noted sharply rising prices for the 12GB modules themselves. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that memory costs drove discussions about a higher launch price for the foldable. Kuo has said DRAM shortages are forcing Apple to scale back its 2026 hardware shipment plans.

Don't wait for a phone with 16GB of RAM.

This generation of iPhones ships with 12GB, and everything the supply chain has been building toward matches that figure. If you were holding out for a memory upgrade, it is not coming this year. The iPhone Duo pre-orders open October 16, and the phone arrives October 23. Twelve gigabytes is plenty for most tasks in 2025, even with the AI features Apple is pushing.

• 16GB RAM
• Apple
• Instant Digital
• iPhone 18 Pro
• iPhone Duo
• memory shortage