Adding 16GB to core GPU or to RAM

[PeterLC]

I'm thinking of just the BASIC 16" MBP, 16 core GPU, 16GB RAM and 512 GB or 1TB SSD but am also considering soon buying X-Plane 11/12. I don't intend to run anything else that is 'heavy' (at the same time) but, other than gaming, need some RAM to work with spreadsheets. I kind of understand that M1 RAM is shared between CPU and GPU, but I don't have a handle on these technical things.
Can/should I stay with (what I think will be) the basic specs to run X-Plane or should I be adding 16 GB somewhere?
In short, if I were wanting to add 16 to one or the other, what would be better - 32 CORE GPU with the basic 16GB of RAM OR the the basic 16 CORE GPU with 32GB of RAM ? My wallet says 'not both'.

 

[mr_roboto]

Wait until Monday. Then we'll know if the rumored configuration options are true, how much they cost, and so forth. Until then, it's impossible for people to give sensible specific advice.

Although there is one thing - it's hard to imagine needing even as much as 16GB RAM for spreadsheet work. As a general rule, if you manage to make a spreadsheet which requires many gigabytes of memory, you probably ought to consider using tools which are not spreadsheets to process all that data.

 

[pshufd]

I have 16 GB of RAM in my 2014 and 2015 MacBook Pros. That's good for ten years though I wish I had 20 for my current usage. The 2021, which I expect to provide ten years of service, will have 32 GB. I can't tell what I will need in five years but I need more than 16 right now. I can't see myself needing more than 16 GPU cores though I suppose that something I read or watch over the weekend may convince me that I will. I don't game and my M1 mini has handled my video editing needs without problems.

 

[bobcomer]

I think I'd wait and see what's available.

 

[PeterLC]

Thanks guys, but my original post asked a question that is really unrelated to waiting to see what the offered specs will be on Monday. It's a question about whether core GPU would be the better option to enhance rather than M1 RAM, in this new Apple system for aggressive video usage like X-Plane presents. Knowing the answer will help me decide which avenue to take after we learn what Apple is offering in their 16" MBPs on Oct. 18th.

 

[LuisN]

I'm thinking of just the BASIC 16" MBP, 16 core GPU, 16GB RAM and 512 GB or 1TB SSD but am also considering soon buying X-Plane 11/12. I don't intend to run anything else that is 'heavy' (at the same time) but, other than gaming, need some RAM to work with spreadsheets. I kind of understand that M1 RAM is shared between CPU and GPU, but I don't have a handle on these technical things.
Can/should I stay with (what I think will be) the basic specs to run X-Plane or should I be adding 16 GB somewhere?
In short, if I were wanting to add 16 to one or the other, what would be better - 32 CORE GPU with the basic 16GB of RAM OR the the basic 16 CORE GPU with 32GB of RAM ? My wallet says 'not both'.

I run x-plane 11 in a MBA M1 16GB. You'll need 16GB if you want all the graphic stuff loaded in memory. It runs very well with high graphic settings but needs the extra ram. My config uses almost 7GB for the graphics

 

[Boil]

I feel the RAM options of the M1X SoC will be limited to either 32GB or 64GB, and those will also be tied into the number of GPU cores; 16-core GPU is paired with 32GB RAM, and the 32-core GPU is paired with 64GB RAM...

For 8GB / 16GB RAM options one would have to step down to the M1 SoC products (MacBook Air / low-end Mac mini / 24" iMac)...

 

[pshufd]

I feel the RAM options of the M1X SoC will be limited to either 32GB or 64GB, and those will also be tied into the number of GPU cores; 16-core GPU is paired with 32GB RAM, and the 32-core GPU is paired with 64GB RAM...

For 8GB / 16GB RAM options one would have to step down to the M1 SoC products (MacBook Air / low-end Mac mini / 24" iMac)...

I think that you are correct. They are going to have 500GB, 1 TB, 2 TB, 4 TB, 8 TB and that already creates a lot of SKUs. I do not think that they are going to offer 64 GB of RAM in the MacBook Pro as the number of SKUs would be really large unless the required at least 2 TB with the 64 GB skus. The coolest thing about this is that they will be able to use their chips for Minis, iMacs and Mac Pros but I see that as down the road. I could see offering 64 GB of RAM on the Mac mini but with required larger storage and GPU.

 

[bobcomer]

Thanks guys, but my original post asked a question that is really unrelated to waiting to see what the offered specs will be on Monday. It's a question about whether core GPU would be the better option to enhance rather than M1 RAM, in this new Apple system for aggressive video usage like X-Plane presents. Knowing the answer will help me decide which avenue to take after we learn what Apple is offering in their 16" MBPs on Oct. 18th.

Okay -- I would have praised it differently rather than talking specifics.

It all depends on your normal usage. For me, CPU cores are WAY more important, but not knowing what you use your computer for, there's no way possible I'd be able to comment what would be better for you.

 

[PeterLC]

I feel the RAM options of the M1X SoC will be limited to either 32GB or 64GB, and those will also be tied into the number of GPU cores; 16-core GPU is paired with 32GB RAM, and the 32-core GPU is paired with 64GB RAM.

I was reading lately that some opine that the 16" MBP M1X base model will come with 16 cores GPU and 16GB of RAM. Options will be 32 cores GPU and 32GB (perhaps also 64GB) of RAM (the latter being sharable with the CPU, et al). So, seeing what LuisN says about his system in post #6 here, which has less GPU cores than those anticipated for the 16" MBP, to run X-Plane 11/12, maybe I should just bring the RAM to 32GB, to serve me well for a few years. My use case has/will have only 3 or 4 spreadsheets running along with QuickBooks running under Parallels & Windows 11 (if that issue gets ironed out), which I will shut down to run X-Plane. So, nothing to call 'heavy' on the system.

 

[leman]

I very much doubt that you will need 32GB any time soon (read - ever). If you want to have higher GPU performance, the 32 cores sounds like a much more useful choice. But frankly, I’d save the money abs stay with 16/16.