Can Bonsai 27B (1-bit) run on iPhone 17?
YES — Runs, barely
Formula estimate
What this means
Our estimate says Bonsai 27B (1-bit) should fit, but there is very little memory left for the operating system and other apps.
Download the Q1_0 version, which is about 3.8 GB. We expect it to use about 4.8 GB of the roughly 5.2 GB available to a model on this phone.
At the estimated speed, a roughly 300-word answer may take about 49 seconds to finish.
This result is calculated from the phone and model specifications. It has not been measured on this exact phone and setup.
8.1tokens/s
estimated · faster than you read
4.8GB
needed at Q1_0
Q1_0
quant checked
needs 4.8 GBusable 5.2 GB
Apple A198 GB RAMMetal
Make it bearable
1
Drop context to 2K — saves ~0.2 GB of KV cache and a little speed.
2
Close every other app before loading — the 0.4 GB headroom is real; iOS may evict the model otherwise.
3
Expect throttling after ~10 min of sustained generation on a phone chassis.
See how fast it feels
Estimated at 8.1 tokens/s — faster than you read. A ~300-word reply takes about 49 seconds on this phone.
Where the memory goes
| Component | Detail | GB |
|---|---|---|
| Model weights | Q1_0 GGUF (3.8 GB) + mmap overhead | 4 |
| KV cache | 4K context window | 0.3 |
| Runtime | llama.cpp + app overhead | 0.6 |
| Total needed | at Q1_0, 4K context | 4.8 |
| Working budget | 8 GB RAM − iOS reserve (jetsam limit) | 5.2 |
| Headroom | remaining inside the working budget | 0.4 |
Pick your quant
| Quant | Download | Verdict | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1_0 BEST HERE | 3.8 GB | ! Runs, barely | ~8.1 tokens/s |
Get your first offline chat working
1
Install or update PocketPal from the App Store. It is free and does not require an account. Use a current version so its loader supports newer model architectures.
2
Open the exact model. Tap Open in PocketPal. If that does not open the app, go to Models → + → Add from Hugging Face and paste
prism-ml/Bonsai-27B-gguf.3
Choose Bonsai-27B-Q1_0.gguf. The download is about 3.8 GB, so use Wi-Fi and keep the app open. Do not choose F16, mmproj, mtp, or dspark helper files.
4
Tap Download, then Load. Start with a 4K (4096-token) context. Keep PocketPal’s default Metal acceleration; this does not require Xcode.
5
Send a simple first prompt. Try “Explain why the sky is blue in three sentences.” This page estimates about 8.1 tokens/s, but that number is not a PocketPal measurement unless it carries a ✓ Verified label.
6
Confirm it is really offline. After the first reply, turn on airplane mode and ask a second question. If it still answers, the model is running on your phone.
If it does not work
- Model not listed: update PocketPal and paste the exact repository
prism-ml/Bonsai-27B-gguf. - App closes while loading: close other apps, restart the phone, and try 2K context. If it still closes, choose a smaller model.
- No offline reply: confirm that Bonsai-27B-Q1_0.gguf is loaded in the chat rather than a remote model.
Related checks
More on iPhone 17
Bonsai 27B (1-bit) on other phones