The iPhone 6s finally gets us beyond the 1 GB RAM limitation Apple's smartphones have been limited to by doubling it up to 2 GB. That tidbit also comes along with more information to back up Adobe's retracted claim that the iPad Pro ships with 4 GB RAM.
iPhone 6s and iPad Pro get double the RAM
iOS app developer Hamza Sood figured out a slick way to use Xcode to ferret out just how much RAM the new iPhones and iPad Pro pack. Xcode is the tool developers use to write iPhone, iPad, and Mac apps, and it includes a simulator for iOS devices that Mr. Sood took advantage of in a creative way to display the RAM in the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, and iPad Pro.
He said on Twitter, "Not much of a surprise but Xcode confirms 2GB of RAM for the 6s (and 6s plus), and 4GB for the iPad Pro."
The simulator tool acts as if is a real iOS device so developers can use their Macs to test apps before sending them to actual iPhones and iPads, so Mr. Sood wrote an app that displays different graphics depending on how much RAM a device has. For the iPhone 6, that's 1 GB, and for the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus that's 2 GB. The iPad Pro also doubled its RAM storage compared to the iPad Air with 4 GB instead of 2 GB.
Adobe spilled the beans on the iPad Pro's RAM specs last week after the new 12.9-inch display tablet was unveiled. An Adobe blog post said the iPad Pro included 4 GB, but was later changed to say 2 GB shortly before any reference to RAM was removed.
The last time Apple increased the RAM in the iPhone was 2015 when it bumped up from 500 MB to 1 GB.
The new iPhone models also include Apple's A9 processor, a 12 megapixel camera with improved image sensors, 3d Touch navigation, and faster Touch ID fingerprint recognition. Pre-orders started on Saturday and the new models will be in stores on September 25.