Apple had 128gb as the base storage for a long time until 2020. The base 256gb storage won’t be bumped up for a while.
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Apple is Robbing People with SSD Upgrade Prices...
- Thread starter jsnuff1
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Because cost and price are different things. If people stopped paying then Apple would reduce the rate. Apple charges what they believe people will pay.
There are quick NAS solutions if you are able to afford them. Like I said, some cloud solutions and NAS solutions are more enterprise or corporate.
As you mentioned, consumers stick to External Storage.
I have learned to examine full configuration price for Apple's offering.
16/512GB is the actual base for my consideration.
M1 24 iMac $1,899
M2 MacBook Air $1,699
M1P 14 MBP $1,999
M1P 16 MBP $2,499
However, MacBook remains competitive at these prices, considering details that may not be apparent - 500 nits+ display, XDR 120Hz, outstanding speakers and mics, M-series battery life, etc. Look at Dell Inspiron, ThinkPad T-series and you still see a lot of 250 nits display at base level with tiny speakers.
If your needs are fulfilled by Apple's base 8/256, you actually get quite a good deal.
16/512GB is the actual base for my consideration.
M1 24 iMac $1,899
M2 MacBook Air $1,699
M1P 14 MBP $1,999
M1P 16 MBP $2,499
However, MacBook remains competitive at these prices, considering details that may not be apparent - 500 nits+ display, XDR 120Hz, outstanding speakers and mics, M-series battery life, etc. Look at Dell Inspiron, ThinkPad T-series and you still see a lot of 250 nits display at base level with tiny speakers.
If your needs are fulfilled by Apple's base 8/256, you actually get quite a good deal.
Apple isn't robbing anyone with the RAM and SSD offerings. People aren't forced to buy anything from Apple. If you don't like it, don't buy OP.
It's pretty bad prices relative to the cost, but it's generally better now than it's ever been. The 128GB Air stuck around for so long, it was a relief just to get 256GB. And the Air started out when hard drive capacity was between 512GB and 1TB... so you had to really think about how to manage your storage, it was probably a downgrade.
Also the upgrades to 512GB were ridiculously priced... similarly to the 2TB capacity now. But 2TB is beyond what I need, and 512GB is just barely enough.
I went with 1TB of storage on my Air. And it's both horribly overpriced and the best value Apple's ever offered. It's a capacity that holds everything I need plus a little bit more. You can buy Apple's most modestly priced receptacle and load it up with storage, you don't need a MBP just to have more than 512GB.
With the M1 Air finally being everything I need in a Mac, it felt okay to go in on the storage. I feel sorry for anyone who upgraded a 2020 Intel Air...
I could see Apple dropping the 512GB storage and just going with 256GB, 1TB and 2TB... if you need storage $200 is just too easy a sell.
Also the upgrades to 512GB were ridiculously priced... similarly to the 2TB capacity now. But 2TB is beyond what I need, and 512GB is just barely enough.
I went with 1TB of storage on my Air. And it's both horribly overpriced and the best value Apple's ever offered. It's a capacity that holds everything I need plus a little bit more. You can buy Apple's most modestly priced receptacle and load it up with storage, you don't need a MBP just to have more than 512GB.
With the M1 Air finally being everything I need in a Mac, it felt okay to go in on the storage. I feel sorry for anyone who upgraded a 2020 Intel Air...
I could see Apple dropping the 512GB storage and just going with 256GB, 1TB and 2TB... if you need storage $200 is just too easy a sell.
I think it really depends on a person's needs. I don't know where people get the idea these days that you need enormous amounts of RAM. I can see 4 to 8GB still being plenty for everyday usage. I've been using 16GB for several machines now. Even with all the VMs I like to run I find I just don't need any more than that.
That 256GB hard drive does seem a bit claustrophobic but I look at my Dad who has about 3GB of data in his documents folder and I think that would work just fine for him.
I think you really didn't need more than 640K of RAM at one point because people's imaginations of what they would want to do with computers were smaller. There was a bit of a feedback loop where as computers became more powerful, they could do more and that opened people up to possibilities so that they needed more. But I think we kinda reached a threshold for this stuff a few years ago, at least for the average person. Now it is more about battery life and portability than even more memory you aren't going to use.
I can say that I could never live with a measly 256GB myself on my MacBook Pro. On the other hand, if I could somehow support a 256GB hard drive on my MS-DOS abandonware machine I have no idea what I'd even do with all that space. But that's because there was just so much less to do on the old MS-DOS machine even back in the day. I don't really feel my ambition is scaling up over time like it used to.
Not going to defend Apple's outrageous upgrade prices but their base specs are probably still okay.
That 256GB hard drive does seem a bit claustrophobic but I look at my Dad who has about 3GB of data in his documents folder and I think that would work just fine for him.
I think you really didn't need more than 640K of RAM at one point because people's imaginations of what they would want to do with computers were smaller. There was a bit of a feedback loop where as computers became more powerful, they could do more and that opened people up to possibilities so that they needed more. But I think we kinda reached a threshold for this stuff a few years ago, at least for the average person. Now it is more about battery life and portability than even more memory you aren't going to use.
I can say that I could never live with a measly 256GB myself on my MacBook Pro. On the other hand, if I could somehow support a 256GB hard drive on my MS-DOS abandonware machine I have no idea what I'd even do with all that space. But that's because there was just so much less to do on the old MS-DOS machine even back in the day. I don't really feel my ambition is scaling up over time like it used to.
Not going to defend Apple's outrageous upgrade prices but their base specs are probably still okay.
What made it worth the cost? What did you store on it?
Apple charging what they do doesn’t bother me as much as them locking down the system and keeping people from being able to improve something they now own. And in doing so ensures that Apple is the only source to obtain whats needed. Thats when their pricing actually becomes an issue, as it’s anti-competitive, because people don’t have a choice other than to not buy Apple products any longer… which, in its own right puts the consumer in a position of losing investments in prior Apple compatible products. What Apple is doing is actually supposed to be regulated under existing anti-trust laws; but they aren’t enforced any longer, and whats law isn’t worth the paper it’s written on. It will take someone filing a lawsuit, then going through very expensive and protracted litigation that will drag on for years before Apple changes it’s way. Which is a shame. They can’t make laws to protect the stupid from doing things that are stupid, like over paying for something that can be obtained for much less than what Apple is charging, but that not what Apple is doing… Apple is ensuring that if you want to upgrade their their products they are the only ones you can go through to do so; which forces people to either pay the outlandish prices or go without… a highly dubious business practice… Apple won’t win the PR war on this one, thats for sure.
Yea…that’s what I personally do, but that’s because I’m in charge of purchasing.
Most companies buy what they need, if you think you’re replacing thousands of hard drives to save a few bucks you’re nuts.
These outrageous markup prices are right in line with the industry, which was my point.
Man, you should see what Dell, Lenovo, HP, Asus, etc. offer in their business lines…oh wait, THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY OPERATES THIS WAY.
It's worse in my country where we don't get BTO option, only pre-configured models. So we cannot have more RAM even if we wanted to pay for it. The only way to get MacBook with 16GB of RAM is to buy the 14" MacBook Pro or higher.
I was hoping for Apple to at least put a pre-configured model for the M2 MacBook Air with 16GB of RAM. But no, greed kept them selling only 8GB RAM models. Meanwhile, I bought my HP Aero 13 laptop, 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD, lighter than the MacBook Air, for less than $750.
Apple not only charge us at least 30% higher prices than US MSRP, they don't even offer proper selections of the lineup.
I was hoping for Apple to at least put a pre-configured model for the M2 MacBook Air with 16GB of RAM. But no, greed kept them selling only 8GB RAM models. Meanwhile, I bought my HP Aero 13 laptop, 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD, lighter than the MacBook Air, for less than $750.
Apple not only charge us at least 30% higher prices than US MSRP, they don't even offer proper selections of the lineup.
Are you not getting what you knowingly paid for? Yes right? Then you are not being robbed, but scammed. Semantics, I know. That said, the entire industry is doing the exact same thing. Also, quoting aftermarket parts is not as simple as you need to match the exact same specs in the Macs for it to be an oranges to oranges comparison.
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At this price range, yes.
The absolute worst example I've seen of ridiculous storage has to be those Windows laptops that are trying to compete with Chromebooks. They have 32 GB of storage. The storage is so little that there isn't even enough space to install Windows updates, let alone apps. It may be the single dumbest thing I've ever seen from computer manufacturers. Complete lack of awareness.
But yeah, there's no excuse for 1000+ dollar machines to have 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. Apple's gotta get their margins though.
Some PC OEMs also think they have cult customers like Apple, and sell ridiculous configs that nobody should really buy. Take example, the latest Surface Laptop Go 2, where the base config only have 4GB of RAM, in 2022. Even phones have more RAM than that...
This is common in the industry people need to stop just blaming Apple when its like this for other companies.
Dell XPS 13 Laptop | Dell USA
This XPS 13 inch laptop, which features up to 11th Gen Intel processors and 4K display, perfectly caters to your home computing and entertainment needs.
www.dell.com
And I guarantee you the M2 is better than both the crappy i3 and the integrated graphics in that Dell.
Another example:
Lenovo Laptops | Explore High-Performance Laptops for Every Need
Discover a wide range of Lenovo laptops that cater to your every need, from gaming and productivity to portability and affordability. Browse now to find your perfect match and elevate your computing experience.
www.lenovo.com
This is a successful strategy for them, and they're not going to change. They want to have a laptop priced low enough (~$999) to bring new users into the ecosystem (e.g., an 8/256 Air might be what parents buy for their kids), while at the same making its RAM and storage so low that many users are forced to buy more, and to pay much more, ensuring high profits. Essentially, the higher storage/RAM models subsidize the lower-end ones. So Apple can have their cake and eat it too.
Apple wants to be able to advertise low entry-level prices to bring people in. Then once they've got them in the door, they can make their money on the floor mats and rust proofing.
They could price the M1 Air so that the upcharges for the SSD and RAM are half what they are now. But then, to be able to charge the same price (and thus make the same profit) on the 16 GB/2TB model, the base M1 Air would need to go for $1499 instead of $999, which ruins their marketing strategy.
And their motivation for requiring you to purchase their SSDs/RAM is profit. For instance, there's no technical reason the SSD in the Studio couldn't be upgradeable. Indeed, they've got two SSD slots, but you can only replace an SSD in a Studio with an SSD of the same size from another Studio.
Sure, they can argue there are technical reasons the RAM in the AS desktops needs to be soldered, but don't think for a moment that they didn't *like* the fact that AS gives them a ready-made *excuse* for having non-upgradeable RAM in their desktops. The fact that they don't allow the SSD's to be upgraded clearly shows their motivation. My own motive is not to criticize them, but rather to be clear-eyed about what they're doing.
Apple wants to be able to advertise low entry-level prices to bring people in. Then once they've got them in the door, they can make their money on the floor mats and rust proofing.
They could price the M1 Air so that the upcharges for the SSD and RAM are half what they are now. But then, to be able to charge the same price (and thus make the same profit) on the 16 GB/2TB model, the base M1 Air would need to go for $1499 instead of $999, which ruins their marketing strategy.
And their motivation for requiring you to purchase their SSDs/RAM is profit. For instance, there's no technical reason the SSD in the Studio couldn't be upgradeable. Indeed, they've got two SSD slots, but you can only replace an SSD in a Studio with an SSD of the same size from another Studio.
Sure, they can argue there are technical reasons the RAM in the AS desktops needs to be soldered, but don't think for a moment that they didn't *like* the fact that AS gives them a ready-made *excuse* for having non-upgradeable RAM in their desktops. The fact that they don't allow the SSD's to be upgraded clearly shows their motivation. My own motive is not to criticize them, but rather to be clear-eyed about what they're doing.
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They build and sell those configs to the truly uniformed that are basing their purchase decisions completely on price/cost… those companies see a quick buck to be made by exploiting those who don’t understand whats what… often times by also limiting what can be upgraded into those machines too… i.e. limitations on max RAM, etc… so those machines can’t be bought cheap and then upgraded.Some PC OEMs also think they have cult customers like Apple, and sell ridiculous configs that nobody should really buy. Take example, the latest Surface Laptop Go 2, where the base config only have 4GB of RAM, in 2022. Even phones have more RAM than that...
OP is being neither robbed nor scammed. The price was advertised, as was the full spec. There is no robbing nor scamming of any kind going on.
At worst they’re being overcharged. And even that is debatable as they’d be charged the advertised price.
They’re simply choosing to make what they perceive to be an overly expensive purchase.
The OP should blame other companies that don't make products as attractive as Apple's. Blame Microsoft if you buy macs for the OS or Intel/AMD, if you buy them for the SoC.
Apple would lower prices if other companies offered products competitive to theirs.
Apple would lower prices if other companies offered products competitive to theirs.
what's worse is when these over priced SSD upgrades decide to quit working and your at Apples mercy again to repair or replace an SSD that has Benn soldered in place. you pay $4000 for a Mac Studio Ultra. and when the SSD goes bad Apple may charge $1000 to $2000 to replace.
We all know SSD's do not have the long shelf life a regular 3.5 inch hard drive does.
Thats why people still use enterprise 3.5 inch mechanical Hard drives for long dependable storage.
We all know SSD's do not have the long shelf life a regular 3.5 inch hard drive does.
Thats why people still use enterprise 3.5 inch mechanical Hard drives for long dependable storage.
Yes, I know it's common in the industry. But at least with Windows devices, you can generally upgrade the RAM and the SSD.This is common in the industry people need to stop just blaming Apple when its like this for other companies.
Dell XPS 13 Laptop | Dell USA
This XPS 13 inch laptop, which features up to 11th Gen Intel processors and 4K display, perfectly caters to your home computing and entertainment needs.www.dell.com
And I guarantee you the M2 is better than both the crappy i3 and the integrated graphics in that Dell.
Another example:
Lenovo Laptops | Explore High-Performance Laptops for Every Need
Discover a wide range of Lenovo laptops that cater to your every need, from gaming and productivity to portability and affordability. Browse now to find your perfect match and elevate your computing experience.www.lenovo.com
And yes, that computer is garbage.
Yeah ... I don't even know why those laptops exist. 4 GB is seriously a joke.
I remember when I was able to afford to buy a 50mb HD back in 1993. I felt like I could store anything on it and never run out of space.This brings to mind a recent find when sorting through old documents.
My 'PC' (before I saw the light) purchase in 1992.
What a 'huge' spec......
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