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I'm not at that end of the spectrum, but I got along fine with 64 GB on my SE 2016, and I don't really think I needed any more in the near term...but I went ahead and got 128 GB on my SE 2020 and on my current 13 mini, just because I can't anticipate what might come about that I'll need the memory for. Anyone shooting at really high res, I could see somewhat future-proofing their storage.
 
I don’t need 1TB, but if I did it would be for photos.

I keep originals on my iPhone and wouldn’t consider using iCloud for backup or offloading of originals unless it had e2ee.
 
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I don’t need 1TB, but if I did it would be for photos.

I keep originals on my iPhone and wouldn’t consider using iCloud for backup or offloading of originals unless it had e2ee.
I use iCloud Photo Library, and I agree about encryption, I really hope they implement it sooner rather than later. It's worth noting, though, that Apple specifically says that iPL is not a backup solution. It can work as one (and it has for me once)...but Apple does not promise its effectiveness in that role.
 
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As much as I want the 1TB version, I cannot justify the cost of it, especially since I plan to trade it in or sell it for the USB-C model next year. The base model should have started with 256 GB instead of 128 GB and ended with 1 TB as the same price of the 512 GB. Which is why decided to get the 512 GB, but I will probably bite next year and get the 1TB as I plan on keeping the 15 for at least 2-3 years and I will be using ProRes and Pro RAW a lot.
 
I think there is a certain amount of "induced demand" when people opt for the hugest storage because they're afraid of running out, then because they have all that space they fill it up because they don't need to hold back. The next time they look at how much space they use they think they "need" all the space but really they might be able to do with less without much trouble.

That's fine if it's worth the extra money so really it's up to each person's budget, but for me I couldn't justify spending more than the amount for 128GB. I get by on 64GB currently just fine with usage of iCloud and some occasional judicious storage management (I'm lucky to have excellent home internet and consistent outdoor coverage just about anywhere I go) so it will be a boon already to double that space.

I think it is true that the larger ProRAW files are worth considering but realistically I think people can have a workflow that involves using that feature but also offloading the resultant large files for editing, rather than treating their phone as their permanent storage home. There's a balance between wanting everything with you all the time and letting that factor contribute stress to your usage of the device.
 
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For me, I always want access to my photos and videos. I mess with them and send them in a lot of situations. Cellular service is sketchy where I live so I do not utilize the cloud and I don’t want my files compresses either.

Also serves as a backup of sorts. I cross sync so they are on both my MacBook as well as my phone. Also, I do not delete text message history so that has grown in size. Could I do things differently to make 128gb work? Absolutely. But since higher storage is available, I’ll pay the premium to be able to stick to my preferences.
 
I don't have the iCloud plan that you have. I try to keep monthly subscriptions to a minimum and so far I've found that paying a monthly fee to store my photos, videos and silly tiktoks is more expensive then just buying more physical storage up front though I understand the convenience. That being said, getting 1TB on my iPhone may have been a bit of overkill but oh well.

I just remember filling up my 256GB iPhone back in the day and then having to go through all my stuff and either deleting or moving it. I had to do that several times which was a pain.
 
It's pretty easy for me:

1) I want to keep all my Photos library originals on my phone -> I need a 1TB phone, since I have roughly 600GB of pictures, taken over the many years since the advent of digital photography (my first pictures are from Dec 2000, when I got my first digital camera, a 2MP Kodak DC3800)
2) I decide it's enough to "optimise" storage for Photos, so I can fit into 128GB, but 256GB give me a bit of buffer for taking long videos, keeping more music on my phone for when I'm on an airplane, etc... it's a decent tradeoff

Downside of 2 is that going back to watch old videos/pictures is not "instant", sometimes it take a few seconds to wait for wifi/mobile buffering to see the picture/video in full quality... but this downside for me is not worth the 500€+ I would need to give to take a 1TB phone instead of a 256GB one.

So I went for 256GB, but if I could justify the cost of a 1TB, I would definitely get the 1TB version.
 
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Hey everyone - No judgement here, I'm genuinely curious. As I made my annual pilgrimage to the forums to track my iPhone order and I love seeing everyone's configs. I noticed quite a few people ordering the 1TB model. I'm curious the use cases to need that much space. In my mind it must be a lot of photos with no online (e.g. iCloud) backup, significant video downloads, and/or heavy app usage on something that requires large files.

I ask because people generally consider my Photos library to be huge at 107K photos. I have every digital photo I've taken since I got my first digital camera in 2002. BUT I do use iCloud which does an amazing job at managing space on my phone resulting in 109GB still available on my 256GB model. Actual photo storage flow is:
  • Synced to Apple One (2TB iCloud plan for my family of 5)
  • MacBook Pro with external SSD where the photo library sits...set to download original resolution photos
  • Backs up with TimeMachine (local)
  • Backs up with Backblaze (offsite)
So I've got originals in 4 places (iCloud, SSD, TimeMachine, Backblaze) and my phone space is freed up.

For those of you getting the 1TB model, what's your primary storage need? Thanks for satisfying my curiosity!

View attachment 2055853
Who needs an iPhone or any other electronic device? If your job requires it you can always quit and do manual labor. Nobody "needs" anything.
 
I laugh because Apple was not ready for Hi res lossless music at all, I mean for The longest time my normal music files were like 77gb on my iphone so I was content with the 256gb for years!!!! It was until last year that I realized that all my songs hires were like 290gb in size so something had to give not to mention that all my photos and videos combined are like 780gb and apple doesn’t release devices big enough for my needs as it seems
 
Probably will be used mostly for media content

Other than that, games take up a lot of space too

Really it’s more peace of mind

Not to mention: 4K, ProRes, RAW, lossless 👍🏻
 
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Two reasons:

1) I live in a very remote area and spend half my time out in the backcountry skiing, running, & climbing meaning I need music, media offline, and more than just a few "most used" ones (e.g. music to listen while running/climbing, if we want to watch a movie at camp, etc, and yes, I know a lot of people think and want to preach "go in nature to disconnect", and that's great for urban dwellers, but camping & backcountry touring is a daily thing here for us just like riding the subway, so, it works for us b/c it's 15 min and we're in wilderness and we do it multiple times a month at least so it's not this "stay disconnected or turn off the screen" special event).

2) ProRAW and ProRes file sizes, have you seen them on the 13 Pro Max, let alone the 48MP on the 14 Pro? 70-80MB per still and 1-2GB per min of video....that 1TB is only really about 900GB usable, and it goes FAST even if you use "optimize storage", and, if I'm in the backcountry (at home or elsewhere) for an extended period without really good cellular or land service (happens often, esp overseas where I cannot take Starlink with us, b/c well, they don't want you using it outside your billing address' continent), you can't really offload the media to the cloud, and then you're carrying yet another accessory to copy things onto, etc.

Frankly, I am disappointed there is no 2TB
 
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The only thing wrong about 1TB is that it is not 2TB.
This. 100%. When you have a device that generates the file sizes it does out of the camera it makes no sense. The only reason I could imagine is that there just aren't enough yields of 2TB flash in the right form factor/power consumption to be a drop-in.
 
I'm another rural user. Urban people forgot not everyone has access to fast or reliable internet constantly. I prefer to have what I need saved on my device so I have it when I need it. I would have paid for 2 TB if it was available.
 
I got the 1TB since I do have most of my music library downloaded, have many photos and even with using iCloud still have a pretty large amount of those stored on device, and with the amount of apps and app data I'm using 380+ on my 512GB. With the newer camera features it makes sense for myself to go with 1TB.
If you can show the breakdown I’d love to see it. My wife has 1TB worth of photo and videos but because of photo optimization she only consume half of her 128Gb storage. You must have ALOT of app and app data along with movies, books, and offline music. That’s the only reason I can see how you can drive that much usage.
 
I think there is a certain amount of "induced demand" when people opt for the hugest storage because they're afraid of running out, then because they have all that space they fill it up because they don't need to hold back. The next time they look at how much space they use they think they "need" all the space but really they might be able to do with less without much trouble.

That's fine if it's worth the extra money so really it's up to each person's budget, but for me I couldn't justify spending more than the amount for 128GB. I get by on 64GB currently just fine with usage of iCloud and some occasional judicious storage management (I'm lucky to have excellent home internet and consistent outdoor coverage just about anywhere I go) so it will be a boon already to double that space.

I think it is true that the larger ProRAW files are worth considering but realistically I think people can have a workflow that involves using that feature but also offloading the resultant large files for editing, rather than treating their phone as their permanent storage home. There's a balance between wanting everything with you all the time and letting that factor contribute stress to your usage of the device.
I wonder if they overproduce TB or they purposely do that hoping people will pay if they can't get lower sooner. I can find all but Silver TB in our closest store, but not a single one of the other capacities.
 
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