iOS 27 offers an improved dictation experience on your iPhone, and you need to activate it.
A more advanced dictation system is already available on your iPhone; Apple just hasn't activated it.
If you own an iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, or iPhone Air running the iOS 27 beta, your device has a significantly improved dictation system ready to use.
However, Apple has not enabled it by default, and most users are unaware of its existence.
So, what is Advanced Dictation Preview?
iOS 27 comes with two distinct dictation systems.
Which one you receive depends on your device. Although every iPhone sees some upgrades (compared to the standard edition), the owners of the iPhone 17 Pro, 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air have access to a unique feature known as Advanced Dictation Preview.
This advanced variation utilizes Apple’s AFM Core Advanced model, which also powers the new expressive Siri voices, and operates entirely on the device without needing an internet connection.
It seamlessly handles punctuation and capitalization as you speak, eliminating the need to verbally say “comma” or “period.”
Why isn’t this available on every iPhone?
The Advanced Dictation feature offers a significant increase in accuracy. However, it is turned off by default as it remains in beta, and Apple is collecting user feedback to enhance it.
If you are using iOS 27 beta and frequently utilize voice dictation, you can enable it by navigating to Settings > General > Keyboards, and scrolling down to locate Advanced Dictation Preview.
The reason not every iPhone receiving iOS 27 can access this feature is due to RAM limitations. The AFM Core Advanced requires a minimum of 12GB of RAM to operate locally, while the standard iPhone 17 is equipped with only 8GB of RAM. Similarly, even the recent iPhone 16 Pro also has 8GB of RAM, which is why it is excluded.
This is a fixed hardware limitation rather than a phased rollout. If your iPhone meets the requirements, go to Settings and toggle it on for an enhanced dictation experience.
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iOS 27 offers an improved dictation experience on your iPhone, and you need to activate it.
iOS 27 discreetly introduces two dictation systems. The superior option is turned off by default, needs 12GB of RAM, and most users are unlikely to realize it needs to be activated.