Google's Pixel 8a, launched in 2024 as a $499 midrange phone with seven years of software support, continues to receive AI features through Pixel Drops, while Apple's latest AI cutoff requires at least 12GB of RAM for its largest on-device model, limiting it to the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. The standard iPhone 17, launched at $799, has 8GB and cannot run the newest on-device AI model, creating a premium tier within the same generation. Google has shown willingness to move hardware boundaries: Gemini Nano debuted on the Pixel 8 Pro in December 2023, excluding the regular Pixel 8 and Pixel 8a, but by June 2024, Google expanded Gemini Nano to both cheaper phones through a developer option, enabling on-device Recorder summaries on the Pixel 8a. Some of Google's newest tools remain tied to Pixel 10 hardware, country, language, subscriptions, or cloud access.