The iPhone 17 launch is prone to be remembered for a few years, however possible not given that you assume. Sure, the launch introduced us the iPhone Air and the brand new iPhone 17 Professional sequence, however Apple additionally launched the iPhone 17, setting a brand new normal for the business.
No, it isn’t the wonderful show, nor the improbable battery life. And it is actually not the twin digicam, though it is arguably higher than the bottom Pixel 10 and Galaxy S25 regardless of missing a 3rd digicam. Slightly, it is the 256GB beginning storage, which is what makes the iPhone 17 possible the most effective telephone for many individuals this 12 months.
Let’s be actual; 128GB storage is not really 128GB
Pixel 10 sequence in additional element
Examine your current telephone and you will find that the working system makes use of a large portion of the overall storage. For instance, a 128GB telephone may have as much as 40GB (or extra) utilized by the OS, making the precise usable storage significantly lower than you will have thought.
This causes its personal issues, as customers — like my mom, who went via this together with her ageing Galaxy S22 — fill that storage, particularly in case you’ve introduced a brand new telephone for its cameras.
I’ve additionally seen this drawback firsthand on my Pixel 10 Professional evaluation pattern from Google, which is the bottom mannequin with 128GB of storage. Taking pictures and movies throughout IFA 2025 this 12 months, I managed to exhaust all the out there storage inside that week.
Granted, I am not a mean person, however take into account a marriage or a trip, particularly one that you simply need to seize many recollections from. Taking quite a few pictures and movies can shortly result in low storage warnings.
Sure, Google Photographs can again up your photos and robotically offload them out of your telephone to recoup a few of that storage. Nonetheless, it additionally will increase your knowledge utilization, which might be difficult if you’re touring or on a restricted knowledge plan.
Sure, Google and Samsung each promote greater storage variants for his or her telephones, and costlier units just like the Pixel 10 Professional XL and Galaxy S25 Plus begin at double the storage, however this comes at a further premium. That is the place the iPhone 17 proves to be a improbable providing from Apple.
Merely put, Apple doubled the bottom storage however did not add the premium. This successfully saves $100 in comparison with the competitors on the base storage. Nonetheless, it’s value noting that these financial savings don’t prolong to the 512GB model of the iPhone 17, however neither Samsung nor Google affords this storage choice with their base telephones.
|
Storage |
iPhone 17 |
Pixel 10 |
Galaxy S25 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
128GB |
– |
$799 |
$799.99 |
|
256GB |
$799 |
$899 |
$899.99 |
|
512GB |
$999 |
– |
– |
It is also value noting that each Samsung and Google supply promotions that embrace double the storage without spending a dime, however these aren’t at all times out there. On the time of writing, Samsung and Google don’t have this promotion out there for the Galaxy S25 and Pixel 10 within the US, that means the most cost effective choice comes with 128GB of storage.
There’s one different key motive that 128GB storage is a giant drawback, particularly for the Pixel 10 Professional, and it’s one which I’ve skilled firsthand.
For this reason the iPhone 17 is healthier than my lagging Pixel 10 Professional
As Harish Jonnalagadda defined earlier this 12 months, the Pixel 10 Professional includes a distinctive strategy to storage, particularly Zoned UFS. Truly, that’s not fairly correct; there are three several types of UFS in use on the Pixel 10 Professional, which finally decide the read-write speeds when saving pictures or transferring them to a tough drive or your laptop.
The 512GB and 1TB variations of the Pixel 10 Professional make the most of Zoned UFS, which divides the storage into completely different zones with various speeds. That is very best for long-term Android updates, making certain the storage mannequin doesn’t degrade over time. In the meantime, the 256GB model makes use of UFS 4.0, whereas the 128GB model employs the slower UFS 3.1 normal.
As I discovered to my detriment, UFS 3.1 may cause a substantial bottleneck when making an attempt to learn the storage through your laptop, particularly in case you use a Mac.
Android File Switch for the Mac is already a difficult app to make use of, however it may well take as much as quarter-hour simply to learn the contents of my Pixel 10 Professional, not to mention the appreciable added time to dump these information. Sure, that is actually an edge case, but it surely serves as a well timed warning of the perils of restricted storage capability, particularly when paired with slower speeds.
This isn’t unique to only Google and Samsung — many firms supply slower speeds in decrease storage variants — however it’s a appreciable problem for Google and Samsung, contemplating the iPhone affords extra storage by default.
It is time to bin 128GB storage on flagships
If there’s one good thing to return from the iPhone 17 launch, I hope it means the tip of 128GB as the usual base storage in flagship telephones.
Second, I hope it additionally means we gained’t must pay further for the added storage, particularly when the extra price is a negligible addition to the general {hardware} price of the telephone.
It might not have an effect on you now, however with Samsung and Google additionally selling seven years of software program and safety updates for his or her telephones, it’s fairly possible that 128GB of storage gained’t suffice a number of years from now, particularly as new options are added in future updates. It’s time to make 256GB storage the usual, and we have now Apple to thank for that!
FAQ
What are the storage choices for the iPhone 17, Pixel 10, and Galaxy S25?
The iPhone 17 is out there in 256GB and 512GB storage choices. The Pixel 10 and Galaxy S25 are each out there in 128GB and 216GB storage choices.
How a lot out there storage does iOS and Android take up?
On the iPhone 17, Apple states that iOS might take up as a lot as 12-24GB of storage, which incorporates “iOS 26 with its newest options and Apple apps that may be deleted.” On the bottom Pixel 10, Android 16 might take up roughly 11GB, with a various quantity reserved for momentary information. On the Galaxy S25, system information can take as much as 20GB. Notice that these figures might differ relying on the machine and software program.
What is the greatest distinction between UFS 3.1 and UFS 4.0 storage?
Compares to UFS 3.1, the newer UFS 4.0 storage can learn as much as 100% quicker (as much as 4,200MBps) and write as much as 133% quicker (as much as 2,800MBps) whereas utilizing almost 50% much less energy.
