Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted that he believes Apple may break with tradition this year by releasing some iPhone 14 models with the same A15 chip found in the iPhone 13 lineup.
The A15 chip powers the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 and 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Max, although the RAM is upgraded to 6GB from 4GB.
The new A16 chip is reserved for the flagship and more expensive iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max models.
The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max phones have 6GB of LPDDR5 RAM. While the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max retain the LPDDR 4X random access memory found in the iPhone 13.
If true, this is the first time in nearly a decade that Apple has split the specifications of the flagship iPhone in two by the type of chipset you’re using.
In the past, Apple gave its more expensive models a processor with more cores or memory. But it hasn’t used entirely different processors to draw a line between its regular and flagship devices since 2013.
In 2013, Apple released the iPhone 5S, which received an A7 processor. It also released the cheaper iPhone 5C that got the older A6 processor.
While the information is still just rumour, Kuo has a solid track record of the iPhone maker’s plans.
Apple may break tradition this year
Separately, independent sources indicate that the company is developing two new iPhone 14 models with A16 chipsets, and two iPhone 14 models with A15 chipsets inside, which is consistent with Kuo’s tweet.
The company has used segment differentiation strategies in the past. For example, the iPhone 13 Pro features the A15 chip with more RAM and more GPU cores compared to the A15 chip inside the iPhone 13.
Kuo also expects the iPhone 14 Max to have a 6.7-inch screen, which could mark the first time a Pro-grade screen has been available in a cheaper non-Pro-class phone.
Koe made a similar prediction in June. He said at the time that the company was developing an iPhone with a larger screen that costs less than $900.
It is worth noting that the screen size of 5.4 inches is not found in the Ku list. This is a possible signal that the company may be giving up on small size.
Apple has not yet officially announced the iPhone 14 lineup. But it is expected to debut at the upcoming iPhone event that usually takes place in the fall.