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16gb MBP in 2021 isn’t enough for long-term
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Microsoft released a new Surface laptop which comes with 4Gb of RAM.
Yep, and the maximum RAM you can buy is 64 GB, whereas the minimum SSD you can buy is 512 GB.
So unless you're consistently using 63.9 GB RAM, no more, no less, than the money you spend on RAM upgrades is mostly wasted, or at least very low return on investment.
Windows 11 requires 4Gb of RAM. If you are running virtual machines which needs 15Gb of RAM, of course, you need more than 16Gb of RAM.
Running high memory virtual machines is one use case where 16gb of memory isn't enough and no one would argue against anyone getting 32Gb or even 64 Gb in such a scenario.
I wouldn't assume they're trying to hide anything.
There are enough variations between the 14/16 bodies that it'd be difficult to produce every direct comparison we'd want to see. It wouldn't make sense from their end as content creators to absorb extra costs while producing 10 similar videos that would dilute their rankings.
I wouldn't think there are a lot of heavy Parallels users who will get the 16GB model and they probably think so too. Now, I myself plan on running Parallels on 16GB, but I'm not a heavy user and I've already run Parallels on 8GB and was satisfied with how it did.
@hans1972
Samsung 850 Pro has MLC with larger transistors, you cant compare it with high density tlc nand
. The endurance is much, much worse .
The memory pressure is green so i has to be still fast? My experience is different. 12-13 gb allocated + 1.3 gb reserved resulting in massive slow down.
Samsung 850 Pro has MLC with larger transistors, you cant compare it with high density tlc nand
. The endurance is much, much worse .The memory pressure is green so i has to be still fast? My experience is different. 12-13 gb allocated + 1.3 gb reserved resulting in massive slow down.
You wouldn't get me wasting 400 on doubling RAM, as long as you can justify the upgrade to yourself then that's all that matters. I certainly wouldn't be taking the advice of someone on here lol. DYOR and make peace with your decision, don't listen to anyone but your own logicSeeing the benefit of more ram = justifying
Beautifully put,
Basically the value is in the SSD size, swapping is inevitable so increase your writes with increased storage,
That looks to be the answer
What is this "massive" slowdown,@hans1972
Samsung 850 Pro has MLC with larger transistors, you cant compare it with high density tlc nand
The memory pressure is green so i has to be still fast? My experience is different. 12-13 gb allocated + 1.3 gb reserved resulting in massive slow down.
Im beating up my MacBook Pro and I have not had a single "slow down"
Dude, like I said before, get your machine back to apple, something is defective...
I'm bumping this thread because I agree. After about 20 Chrome tabs, VScode, Apple Books, Spotify, Pixelmator and a few other smaller apps running, I'm seeing 'red' memory pressure. I'm a web developer so I'm constantly switching between PaaS/SaaS tools, IDEs, photo editing, team work tools, etc. Luckily, I don't need to do any virtualizing.
Chrome is the worst offender (using about 9GB), but that's where 80% of my workday is.
In the new year I'll be editing more 4K videos for a project so that means I'll need to me more mindful of what I have running in the background. I don't want to babysit memory. The I'd rather pay the few hundred bucks and have more flexibility.
I still have until Jan 8th to return this, and I'm seriously considering it. I think I'll go with 32GB/1TB.
I would be OK with 16GB if the storage chips weren't soldered to the logic board, but after experiencing my 2015 MBP crashing because of the finicky NVMe that Apple included in it, I'm weary about high amounts of swapping.
Chrome is the worst offender (using about 9GB), but that's where 80% of my workday is.
In the new year I'll be editing more 4K videos for a project so that means I'll need to me more mindful of what I have running in the background. I don't want to babysit memory. The I'd rather pay the few hundred bucks and have more flexibility.
I still have until Jan 8th to return this, and I'm seriously considering it. I think I'll go with 32GB/1TB.
I would be OK with 16GB if the storage chips weren't soldered to the logic board, but after experiencing my 2015 MBP crashing because of the finicky NVMe that Apple included in it, I'm weary about high amounts of swapping.
Not sure what kind test is it to open apps and look at ram usage. I'm a professional video/photo editor and I have a 16GB M1 PRO and I have zero issues. Final Cut, Adobe apps run excellent. Stop giving people advice on stuff you don't own...lol
It only really matters if it's causing your computer to run slow. I'm a Web Developer too. I use tons of programs, a virtual environment or two, and multiple browsers at the same time all the time (but Chrome is usually not one of them).
I haven't noticed any reason to regret going with 16GB. I picked 16GB after I trialed an 8GB 13" M1 this summer and it handled the workflow I normally entrust to my 32GB 2018 like a champ despite running in the red constantly.
It is, that's why I'm upgrading. Scrubbing in Screenflow starts to drop frames and audio starts clipping when my memory usage is in the red.
I've had the NVMe fail in my 2015 MBP in the 3rd year of ownership. At least the drive was replaceable. These new computers means a logic board replacement if the storage fails. The write on this computer is already at 2TB, and I've only had it for 2 weeks.
I've just placed the order for the 32GB model as I'm done thinking about this issue, it's not worth the headspace for the measly few hundred bucks.
I'd like to open up this discussion.
Here's me, I'm a cloud engineer. This is my normal behavior during work I do Ansible pipelines with the Visual Code Studio and have tons of web apps open because I have to manage database and various servers across a cloud platform.
As you can see there's some crazy apps like What's App and MS Teams that take a lof of memory. I'm currently not using any VM because we have Citrix.
However as you can see 16GB is simply not enough, If I were to add a local VM to my workflow it would cripple my computer.. Just look at those 6,39GB compressed....
(Hooked up to 2x Huawei Mateview dual displays)
Should I upgrade to 32GB? Probably not. I'll explain why I will most likely upgrade to the next model / every 2 years. Honestly If I were to get the 32GB model it would take me a whole month + 400€.. Plus I'm no longer in the return window, I could ask Amazon though.
Honestly I'm not expecting any slowdowns outside of Rosetta 2 apps.. I'm going to wait and see how it's going with these apps that will be eventually converted to Universal.
Here's me, I'm a cloud engineer. This is my normal behavior during work I do Ansible pipelines with the Visual Code Studio and have tons of web apps open because I have to manage database and various servers across a cloud platform.
As you can see there's some crazy apps like What's App and MS Teams that take a lof of memory. I'm currently not using any VM because we have Citrix.
However as you can see 16GB is simply not enough, If I were to add a local VM to my workflow it would cripple my computer.. Just look at those 6,39GB compressed....
(Hooked up to 2x Huawei Mateview dual displays)
Should I upgrade to 32GB? Probably not. I'll explain why I will most likely upgrade to the next model / every 2 years. Honestly If I were to get the 32GB model it would take me a whole month + 400€.. Plus I'm no longer in the return window, I could ask Amazon though.
Honestly I'm not expecting any slowdowns outside of Rosetta 2 apps.. I'm going to wait and see how it's going with these apps that will be eventually converted to Universal.
Thanks for sharing this! Personally, this is something I don’t want to see on a brand new PRO system that costed me 3000$.
I believe my computer should be flexible and adapt with changing need. Specially if it’s a pro system.
When I bought my PC a few years ago I installed 2x8gb ram and it was enough for gaming, browsing and everything else. Never had issue. Lately i’ve started to do lightroom+photoshop of my 12 pro max photo and my system is using 15-16gb of ram. I’ve also started to edit my 4k video shot with my 12 pro max. 16gb wasn’t enough anymore. I was able to upgrade my ram for 100$.
This is the point that most « hater » aren’t getting on this thread. It’s not normal to replace your laptop because you don’t have enough ram. Both the post above me and my use case are not « pro » usage. Truth is, the macbook pro m1 pro/max should have never ship with 16gb of ram period.
I believe my computer should be flexible and adapt with changing need. Specially if it’s a pro system.
When I bought my PC a few years ago I installed 2x8gb ram and it was enough for gaming, browsing and everything else. Never had issue. Lately i’ve started to do lightroom+photoshop of my 12 pro max photo and my system is using 15-16gb of ram. I’ve also started to edit my 4k video shot with my 12 pro max. 16gb wasn’t enough anymore. I was able to upgrade my ram for 100$.
This is the point that most « hater » aren’t getting on this thread. It’s not normal to replace your laptop because you don’t have enough ram. Both the post above me and my use case are not « pro » usage. Truth is, the macbook pro m1 pro/max should have never ship with 16gb of ram period.
There are probably 500 times as many different use cases and scenarios as there are mac users in total. Indeed, you’re running tight on 16GB and would struggle to add a VM.
However I for example can see the next 6-8 years comfortably on 16GB on my M1 Pro, most notably due to Universal Control. I have workflows that allow me to offload a lot of my tasks to my M1 iPad, and with universal control it’s completely effortless and has freed up a lot of memory usage on my mac already.
In the future if necessary, i’ll buy a 16GB m1 mac mini to essentially have 32GB of memory available when combined with my macbook for a fraction of the price of what it would cost to upgrade my whole macbook, and with universal control it will also feel effortless. Theres also the added benefit of being able to offload tasks to the ‘slower’ M1, and focus intensive tasks on the macbook.
All in all, I couldn’t be happier that I made the choice to stick with 16GB
"16gb MBP in 2021 isn’t enough for long-term for my usage".
There, I fixed the thread title for you.
I have 8 Gb in my work M1 Air, it will be totally fine for years for what I use it for. My own M1 Pro 14" is 16 Gb, and I will be equally even more fine on this computer for years, again, for my usage.
I really dislike these threads, but I guess they can be helpful.
"16gb MBP in 2021 isn’t enough for long-term for my usage".
There, I fixed the thread title for you.
I have 8 Gb in my work M1 Air, it will be totally fine for years for what I use it for. My own M1 Pro 14" is 16 Gb, and I will be equally even more fine on this computer for years, again, for my usage.
I really dislike these threads, but I guess they can be helpful.
"16gb mbPRO(as on professional) in 2021 isn’t enough for long-term professional usage".
There, I fixed it back
‘Professionals’ is a very broad term. Authors who write books are professionals, and yet they could probably manage just fine with 8GB for the foreseeable future, or maybe even 4GB!"16gb mbPRO(as on professional) in 2021 isn’t enough for long-term professional usage".
There, I fixed it back
So yeah, 16GB isn’t enough for your professional usage.
Thank you! This is exactly what I mean, and why the thread title is a weak one. I manage a part of the company I work for on a base M1 Air. Our turnover is not too shabby. Is this not professional work?‘Professionals’ is a very broad term. Authors who write books are professionals, and yet they could probably manage just fine with 8GB for the foreseeable future, or maybe even 4GB!
So yeah, 16GB isn’t enough for your professional usage.
Well I guess if you were a good engineer, you would have known that going into it - so I'm guessing this is just to prove a point. In my case, I reviewed my usage on my 16 GB 2015 MBP and determined I didn't need more than 8. so, being a good engineer, I determined my usage requirements and bought appropriately. I am more than happy, never ran into a problem.
lol , if you never off browser and left them , 64 gb also out . ram is ram for fast cache. 8 gb is enough if you open only what you need . 16 gb is crazy enough for me open 2 nodejs server and sometimes open android and xcode apps. 16 gb wouldnt enough if want to do all thing in one place. Delegate your work instead blaim on laptop.