LPDDR6 will reportedly be finalized later this year, hinting that several phone manufacturers, including the likes of Qualcomm, MediaTek, and Apple, will integrate this technology in their future handsets. However, a rumor doing the rounds states that the upcoming Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will be ahead of all its competitors as it will obtain support for this next-generation memory. In contrast, Apple’s A18 Pro, which will exclusively be mass produced for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max, could miss out on this opportunity.
Assuming the report checks out, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will skip LPDDR5T and jump straight towards LPDDR6 support
Demand for faster and more efficient memory will soon become commonplace amongst smartphone and chipset makers, allowing them to run extensive on-device AI models. An earlier report estimated that future handsets would require at least 20GB RAM to run these models, with LPDDR6 likely delivering an increased bandwidth so that it does not create a performance bottleneck. In this regard, Ajnews reports that Qualcomm will be aiming to get the better of its rivals, such as Apple because its Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 might arrive with LPDDR6 support.
This may be possible because the company’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is validated for LPDDR5T, just like the Dimensity 9300, though it is up to the smartphone manufacturers to source this memory to use in their devices. Back in November last year, SK hynix announced that it would be shipping the first batch of LPDDR5T memory chips for smartphones that featured the Dimensity 9300. The Vivo X100 Pro was rumored to be treated to this cutting-edge technology, but it is still listed as featuring the older LPDDR5X RAM on its specifications page.
In short, it is possible for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 to obtain support for LPDDR6, but it will be up to Qualcomm’s partners to make the final call. As for Apple, the technology giant is known for adopting the newest standards much later than the competition, so, unsurprisingly, the A18 Pro will not support LPDDR6 RAM. While this can mean that the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max may not be able to run on-device Large Language Models (LLMs) more efficiently, Apple is said to be exploring storing LLMs on NAND flash, meaning that theoretically, devices with limited RAM capacity can support on-device AI.
The maximum bandwidth of LPDDR6 has yet to be discussed, but given that LPDDR5T has maximum operating speeds of 9.6Gbps, we can immediately assume that the next-generation will be faster. As for when we will see it in action, the report states that this technology will be adopted in the second half of 2025, so let us keep our fingers crossed.
News Source: Ajnews
