Lawsuit over 16GB iPhone capacity could lead Apple to 32GB upgrade

By Josh Fielder | January 5, 2015

Another day, another ridiculous lawsuit against Apple brought by consumer plaintiffs who don’t understand technology, goaded on by lawyers are out to make a buck, and backed by tech pundits who know better. This time it’s a suit over the fact that the “16GB iPhone” doesn’t quite hold sixteen gigabytes worth of stuff due to the fact that it already has the iOS 8 system software and built-in apps installed. And while this particular legal action won’t go far in the courts, it may prompt Apple to deliver a novel solution.

Every smartphone on the market has less than its advertised storage space once the built-in system software is factored in, whether it’s the Apple iPhone or the Samsung Galaxy or for that matter a tablet or desktop computer. They all have their core software, and for decades, they’ve been advertised based on their formatted capacity, not how much extra space is left over once the core software has been added. Short of landing a judge and jury who also have no understanding of technology, this lawsuit should be dismissed within minutes of being presented.

But Apple will be left with the need to make the bad publicity go away, even if it is unfair and inaccurate. That solution would come in the form of bumping the current 16GB iPhone model up to the 32GB level, a hole which Apple left open in the product matrix when it decided the new iPhone would come in 16, 64 and 128GB capacities. The move wouldn’t do much to assuage the hurt feelings of clueless folks who already bought their devices, but it would prevent future potential buyers from being worried about the issue. But how soon would such a move happen…

Apple may use the launch of its Watch this spring as an opportunity to tweak the iPhone lineup, either with an “S” model or new color variants. That could now be expanded to include the arrival of a 32GB model to replace the 16GB model. The nuisance lawsuit will have been long dismissed by that time, but the move would help put any lingering public doubts to bed.