The next version of Apple’s iPhone will see the minimum storage option upped to 32GB from 16GB, addressing one of the main criticisms of the current generation.

Apple currently offers 16GB, 64GB and 128GB versions of the device, with the 16GB of the base version increasingly looking meagre. After taking out space consumed by device platform requirements, not much is left for higher resolution images and videos and for richer apps.

Unlike some other vendors, Apple does not support removable storage with iPhone, and pushing users to higher-capacity versions is a lucrative money-spinner for the company. And even though use of cloud storage is becoming more popular, there are still plenty of reasons to store content locally – such as network costs and availability of high-speed connectivity.

With the iPhone rumour mill running at full speed, several other features have also been mooted in recent days – namely that the iPhone will pick up wireless charging support, and include IP68 water and dust resistance.

Based on Apple’s existing release schedule, 2016 is due a large iPhone refresh, but current speculation is that this year will instead see a more moderate bump, to be followed by a bigger refresh to mark the 10th anniversary of the device next year.