DE — heise online

Limits of local AI: What iPhone, Galaxy, Pixel and iPad can do

AIOctober 26, 20261 min read

This paywalled heise+ article looks at what on-device AI can really do on iPhone, Galaxy, Pixel and iPad in 2026. It explains where phones still need to send work to a server, and why memory costs are a problem.

What the article covers

Modern phones can record a interview and turn speech into text without an internet connection. Harder tasks, like summarizing a conversation or translating a document, often depend on what the phone can calculate itself and what it must send to a server. The article looks at these limits on current high-end devices.

Apple's AI in Europe

Apple's Siri AI launched on September 14 with iOS 27, but only in English. Apple announced five more languages for October, and German is not one of them. On iPhone and iPad in the EU, Siri AI is missing altogether. Apple says this follows how EU regulators read the Digital Markets Act. Local AI models from the App Store are not affected by this block.

Key numbers

TrendForce says mobile LPDDR5X memory cost 78 to 83 percent more in Q2 2026 than in the previous quarter.
LPDDR4X memory cost 70 to 75 percent more in the same period.
High-end phones are settling on 12 GB of RAM, with 16 GB less common.
Mid-range phones fall back to 8 GB, and entry-level devices to about 4 GB.
A language model must fit fully in RAM to run locally.

Why it matters

Running AI on the device can keep private data, like interview recordings, off remote servers. But high memory prices and small RAM limits make it harder to run strong models locally. Rules in the EU also decide which AI features people in Europe can use on Apple devices at all.

What to watch

Whether Apple adds German to Siri AI after October.
Whether memory prices fall or stay high in later quarters.
How much RAM future phones ship with, especially mid-range models.
How EU rules on the Digital Markets Act change which AI features Apple can offer.

Glossary

heise+: A paid subscription service from the German tech publisher heise that gives access to premium articles.
Siri AI: Apple's new AI assistant, built into iOS 27, which so far works only in English.
Digital Markets Act: An EU law that sets rules for large tech platforms, such as Apple and Google.
TrendForce: A research firm that tracks prices and trends in computer chips and memory.
LPDDR5X: A type of fast, low-power memory used in phones.
RAM: Working memory in a device; a phone's AI model must fit inside it to run locally.

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