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Comparing M1 16GB…
- Thread starter Warped9
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I checked out Usage, but unfortunately you need Mac OS11 or newer and I'm stuck at High Sierra.
Pity.
So here is what I see. The only app running, other than Finder and Activity Monitor, is SketchUp.
As others have mentioned, I think it would be sufficient for you to open as many other programs and browser windows as you are likely to have open, fire up SketchUp, Maxwell Render, and Photoshop, and check "Memory Used" while using each of those (if you only use one at a time, then just open one at a time). If it's well under 16 GB, you should be fine with that amount.
Unfortunately, if you're trying to decide whether 16 GB is enough, you can't use the Memory Pressure or Swap Used figures from your current device, since they're for 32 GB RAM.
You've specifically mentioned being concerned about the RAM usage from SketchUp, but you might also want to pay attention to Photoshop. According to https://www.pugetsystems.com/soluti...ons/adobe-photoshop/hardware-recommendations/ , you want to consider your document sizes:
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Actually OP can, to some extent, by removing half the RAM from OP's current iMac
Ah, that's a clever idea.
@Warped9 : I assume you've got 4 x 8 GB sticks. If you do what wilberforce suggested, which will show you what 16 GB feels like for your use cases, you'll want to leave one stick in Channel A and one in Channel B to maintain dual-channel RAM speeds. If it's like my 2019 iMac, that means you want to leave sticks in the 1st and 3rd (or 2nd and 4th) slots. You can check this in Apple ->About this Mac -> System Report -> Memory. You'll see something like this (except the stick size will be 8 GB instead of 32 GB, the Type and Speed will be different, and when you're done you'll have two that are empty):
i’m curious, are you absolutely set on sticking with an M1 iMac?
Because if it’s single core performance you care about, the M2 gets about an 18% increase over the M1.
The clock speed is higher too, 3.5 GHz versus 3.2 GHz on the M1.
And instead of 16 GB of RAM (which everyone is saying will be plenty enough) you can bump that up to 24 to be even more secure.
The only obvious Downside is that you have to provide your own monitor, and depending on the model you get, it’s possible you can get a slower SSD.
But an M2 Mac Mini should meet your needs fine, and also more than likely has the potential of getting an extra year or so of security and software support compared to the almost two years old iMac.
Funny, Amiga's own memory maps show that the RAM is segmented like the Vic20/C64 before it...
Firstly, I like the iMac’s AIO configuration. But it’s not absolutely set in stone.
I confess to being human and thus experiencing a small measure of…impatience. Although I’m not desperate for a new computer I kinda would like to get one with my 2011 going on twelve years. I was hoping Apple would have updated the iMac by now with the M2’s release, but arrgh!…no, not yet.
Upfront I don’t like the Mac Mini. It looks underwhelming. Call me narrow minded, but there it is. Plus spec’d how I’d want it I‘m spending pretty much the same as a spec’d iMac (plus I then have to buy a monitor), so I might as well get what I prefer. Keyboard and mouse are no issue because I already have those.
So it’s:
- M1 iMac w. 16GB and 512 SSD (now)
- M3 iMac w. 24-32GB and 512 SSD (later)
- Base M1 Max Mac Studio (now or later and I have to buy a monitor)
So I’m really trying to decide whether the M1 iMac will work for me over the long term. The Mac Studio would unquestionably work for the long term, but it will cost me more because I have to get a monitor. A Studio Display is very nice, but it’s very pricey so I’d likely have to look at alternatives. Meanwhile the iMac has an excellent display already included.
I share your desire for the AiO iMac, in fact I just bought a 2020 27"iMac and am *extremely* happy with it. It was a refurb that was less than the cost, by just a little bit, of a Studio Display. Great Monitor, sound is surprisingly good too. The only thing I don't like is no height adjustment, and no swapping SSD's.
I can't help with the M1 iMac, though it should be decent for a few years anyway. Just make sure to get at least 16G of RAM and whatever size ssd you need.
You could go the same way I did and get the intel iMac. One thing with it is you can buy the minimum RAM config and then add RAM later. (which I did, all the way to 128G) I know you probably don't want an intel, but it would last a few years in wait for the perfect M series iMac. I'm really hoping they don't discontinue AiO's, Apple makes really nice ones.
In any case I think you'll like what you get.
I think a 27" iMac with a tilt & height adjustable stand similar to the Studio Display would be a home run for Apple. I'm sure they'd charge three arms and five legs for such a machine, but it would fill a niche currently underserved by current hardware options.
Okay, went to a different source—SketchUp forums—to find out from others who have already made this jump.
It took over a year for SketchUp to be optimized for Apple Silicon. Previously SketchUp (through Rosetta) would run no better than on Intel and sometimes worse from some accounts. SketchUp 2022 has finally been optimized for Apple Silicon and things are better.
But here is the catch: SketchUp is a single core user. So having ever more cores and 32 plus of RAM won’t really matter because of SketchUp’s built in limitation. SketchUp is improved every year, but still runs on only one core. Presently making your models smarter helps performance better than lots of RAM.
My version of SketchUp is several years old and runs mostly fine on my current setup. But that version no longer exists anymore and it won’t run on Apple Silicon. The current “free” version of SketchUp is more limited than mine. So I would have to get SketchUp Pro 2022 or ‘23, and that is subscription based, of course like so much else today. That will likely apply to my older versions of Photoshop and Illustrator as well.
The takeaway: anything more than the current M1 iMac isn’t going to make SketchUp run much better. And I don’t do anything else that requires lots of RAM. Waiting for the M3 iMac won’t likely gain much if anything. And a Mac Studio would be overkill for my needs.
It’s looking like the best way to future proof myself at present is to go with an M1 iMac w. 16GB and 512-1TB storage. If I go with an Apple refurbished I can even save a few hundred dollars. Mind you, I wouldn’t get the colour coordinated numeric keyboard, but I still have my own numeric keyboard I can use (it’s the plugin version, but that doesn’t matter). My keyboard would be colour coordinated if I get a Silver iMac, but I like the Blue. 😁
Oh, well…
It took over a year for SketchUp to be optimized for Apple Silicon. Previously SketchUp (through Rosetta) would run no better than on Intel and sometimes worse from some accounts. SketchUp 2022 has finally been optimized for Apple Silicon and things are better.
But here is the catch: SketchUp is a single core user. So having ever more cores and 32 plus of RAM won’t really matter because of SketchUp’s built in limitation. SketchUp is improved every year, but still runs on only one core. Presently making your models smarter helps performance better than lots of RAM.
My version of SketchUp is several years old and runs mostly fine on my current setup. But that version no longer exists anymore and it won’t run on Apple Silicon. The current “free” version of SketchUp is more limited than mine. So I would have to get SketchUp Pro 2022 or ‘23, and that is subscription based, of course like so much else today. That will likely apply to my older versions of Photoshop and Illustrator as well.
The takeaway: anything more than the current M1 iMac isn’t going to make SketchUp run much better. And I don’t do anything else that requires lots of RAM. Waiting for the M3 iMac won’t likely gain much if anything. And a Mac Studio would be overkill for my needs.
It’s looking like the best way to future proof myself at present is to go with an M1 iMac w. 16GB and 512-1TB storage. If I go with an Apple refurbished I can even save a few hundred dollars. Mind you, I wouldn’t get the colour coordinated numeric keyboard, but I still have my own numeric keyboard I can use (it’s the plugin version, but that doesn’t matter). My keyboard would be colour coordinated if I get a Silver iMac, but I like the Blue. 😁
Oh, well…
id go 1tb as the drive is twice as fast as the 512. Will help with swap files. I went hat route as I dint want to pay an extra $400 for 32GB. Needed the storage more.
My considering the option of going with a Mac Studio and a new display reminds me of another (unrelated ) choice I faced about a year ago.
For some time I had been considering upgrading the wheels on my car. I had 17in. wheels and really wanted 18in. wheels. But I had two considerations weighing on me. Firstly, the tires I had on my car were very low mileage—almost new. Secondly, moving to 18in. wheels also meant I would have to buy new tires to fit those larger wheels.
New wheels meant about $1000 CAN. New tires, good quality Michelins, meant nearly $1000 CAN as well. That meant essentially doubling my cost to upgrade. And the car wouldn’t perform better in any significant way with bigger wheels as the tire width would remain about the same.
I really wanted 18in. wheels for the cooler look, but I was bugged by having to buy new tires to replace my present tires which were like new. Aarrrgh!
In the end I decided to get wider 17in. wheels (wider than my previous ones) in a new design which also allowed me to keep my present tires that I was very happy with and still had a lot of mileage in them. So while the new wheels aren’t bigger than the old ones they do sit wider thus giving the car a different stance.
So while part of me would still kinda like bigger wheels I quite like my new setup which gives the car an athletic stance.
For some time I had been considering upgrading the wheels on my car. I had 17in. wheels and really wanted 18in. wheels. But I had two considerations weighing on me. Firstly, the tires I had on my car were very low mileage—almost new. Secondly, moving to 18in. wheels also meant I would have to buy new tires to fit those larger wheels.
New wheels meant about $1000 CAN. New tires, good quality Michelins, meant nearly $1000 CAN as well. That meant essentially doubling my cost to upgrade. And the car wouldn’t perform better in any significant way with bigger wheels as the tire width would remain about the same.
I really wanted 18in. wheels for the cooler look, but I was bugged by having to buy new tires to replace my present tires which were like new. Aarrrgh!
In the end I decided to get wider 17in. wheels (wider than my previous ones) in a new design which also allowed me to keep my present tires that I was very happy with and still had a lot of mileage in them. So while the new wheels aren’t bigger than the old ones they do sit wider thus giving the car a different stance.
So while part of me would still kinda like bigger wheels I quite like my new setup which gives the car an athletic stance.
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Checking my Activity Monitor while rendering with Maxwell Render. It's not SketchUp that uses up RAM, it's the rendering when it's a complex model. Mind you 16GB with an M1 would probably do better than 32GB with my old i7 2600S, but the 32GB definitely looks like the thing to have on my next computer.
You'd have got a worse ride with the lower profile new wheels and tyres as well. And the suspension would be tuned for your current profile tyres. She still looks great too.My considering the option of going with a Mac Studio and a new display reminds me of another (unrelated ) choice I faced about a year ago.
For some time I had been considering upgrading the wheels on my car. I had 17in. wheels and really wanted 18in. wheels. But I had two considerations weighing on me. Firstly, the tires I had on my car were very low mileage—almost new. Secondly, moving to 18in. wheels also meant I would have to buy new tires to fit those larger wheels.
New wheels meant about $1000 CAN. New tires, good quality Michelins, meant nearly $1000 CAN as well. That meant essentially doubling my cost to upgrade. And the car wouldn’t perform better in any significant way with bigger wheels as the tire width would remain about the same.
I really wanted 18in. wheels for the cooler look, but I was bugged by having to buy new tires to replace my present tires which were like new. Aarrrgh!
In the end I decided to get wider 17in. wheels (wider than my previous ones) in a new design which also allowed me to keep my present tires that I was very happy with and still had a lot of mileage in them. So while the new wheels aren’t bigger than the old ones they do sit wider thus giving the car a different stance.
So while part of me would still kinda like bigger wheels I quite like my new setup which gives the car an athletic stance.
Since more than a year ago I bit the bullet and upgraded to 18in. wheels with 50 series profile tires. Car looks better and it hasn’t hurt the ride.
Other upgrades include Stainless Works headers to go with the SW dual exhaust, upgrade throttle body/plenum and air intake, 3.55 gears and custom tune. It rides, handles and sounds great.