I am really torn between 8GB vs. 16GB RAM

[IG88]

decided to go with the 8GB Air.

You made the right choice.

 

[billnye97]

My thought process is always to go up on RAM (unless I can replace it myself). With storage you can offload to the cloud and manage it but if you need more RAM you are screwed.

 

[Admiral]

I am very green (walk to work and have family walk to schooling) so this saddens me quite a bit but hopefully I could get my older machine into someone else's hands second-hand to decrease the overall usage footprint of that first machine.

Apple apparently will take your old machine and strip out every usable part for recycling.

 

[NJRonbo]

I decided to go with the 8GB Air.

I've seen a lot of people say that it's better to get more memory rather than less so you have it if you need it later. At first this is a reasonable claim, but when you think about it, it makes little sense. If you use more computational power in your computers and you depend on it for your work, then you'll want to wait for the higher-end models or get the 16GB M1 now, which will pay for itself through your work anyway so in this case you don't really have a dilemma as you don't have the luxury of putting your work in the balance.

If, however, you are torn between these two options, it means you are not guaranteed to need 16GB so in that case I don't think it makes sense to say you should go for the 16GB just in case and for future-proofing. The logic that you should future-proof your device this way fails to account for the very real possibility that you will not actually know if someday you've made any gains with the extra RAM, so in reality you're agreeing to pay more money immediately while also agreeing to an outcome that you may not be able to quantify. This is not just illogical, but also out of line with how you'd usually value the device you're buying. Every time a new device comes out, people gauge the features in the context of the price, so how does it make sense to make a purchase decision based on the potential for a return that will be difficult to determine if it ever came to fruition and even more difficult to gauge if it did.

CTO availability is less with these machines, which suggests Apple is not working hard to get the 16GB into people's hands, which by extension suggests that they are confident the 8GB is plenty enough for a vast majority of users. Then consider the reviews which have exceeded expectations, and these machines were already built-up too much. When it turns out that an 8GB machine outperforms a 16GB or higher machine handily, it would be sensible to at least consider that there has been a shift in the way specs should be viewed.

It seems to me that going for the 16GB model because you're in doubt how much you need essentially means you're discarding the reviews and user experience so far (so basically all of the info you have available) out of worry, and that is an expensive way to make purchasing decisions.

To clarify, I went from basically already deciding on the 16GB Pro even before the Apple event to ultimately deciding on the 8GB Air now. Ever since the event I've been contemplating all of this, reading this forum, the reviews and keeping a close eye on the Activity Monitor in my 2017 Air. So after this "journey" I cannot find a single reason to justify the 16GB purchase as I cannot see where I would need it, and I also cannot reasonably expect that something will happen a few years from now that will change RAM requirements to my disadvantage. Apparently 16GB a month ago is not superior to 8GB today, and this is coming from people who are currently handling these machines. So I'm gonna say "Thanks Apple, nice one" and spend half of the price difference to the initially planned 16Gb Pro on the Airpods Pro instead.

Rant over.

Disclaimer: this is not to say it's stupid to buy the 16GB version even if you don't necessarily need it, because if money is not an issue, then go ahead and max it out and enjoy it, good for you. I just wanted to pitch in to analyse the thought-process of deciding on the 16GB model for the people who are actually weighing it against their needs and cost as I think it's very easy to fall into this "maybe I'll need it" line of thought.

The one theory that still hasn't been completely proven is that 8GB of ram on an M1 is equal to 2-3x that on an Intel machine.

That could be the reason that Apple capped these initial offerings at 16GB.

So, if that theory is true, then 8GB is plenty, yes. I still went with 16GB only because Apple wasn't transparent enough about their secret sauce and how we should be calculating memories with these machines.

 

[perezr10]

I think that in a year from now the Intel machines will tank in price (2nd hand) hard , for now you might be able to sell in a reasonable price for folks who must have an Intel machine ASAP and to those who are not aware that there is an M1 machines in the wild , come next year it will be well established fact that your machine is a "relic" , while being competent computer it will be eclipsed by everything AS , so can't argue with the "SELL NOW" strategy.

Absolutely. You have to either sell ASAP or be prepared to use the machine until it dies because no one is going to want it. Because the depreciation that is coming to intel-powered Macs is going to be unprecedented. Right now only the tech-geeks are really aware of the Apple-silicon revolution that is coming.

 

[NJRonbo]

With M1 Macs, memory just isn't what it used to be

Apple has changed the way RAM is used in a computer. And it's time to change our thinking.

www.macworld.com

 

[Herrpod]

The base 8GB RAM MBA can do 80+ tracks in Logic Pro. How many forum members do you honestly believe need more than that?

Exactly. People are being willfully ignorant. There's tons of reviews from people showing how incredibly hard they're pushing the 8gb machine and it isn't faltering in the slightest.

 

[thegiftofdom]

Hey guys, hopefully this may make you all feel better. I currently own an M1 8GB Air(8 core model). I initially wanted the 16GB model, but they were sold out at my location. Figured I'd try out the 8GB model to see if it would fit my needs, and man… it has blown me away so far. I am coming from an HP Spectre(16gb,512SSD, i7). My typical workflow involves having 25-35 tabs of chrome, 4k YouTube video playing in the background, 3 excel sheets, messages, slack, and some random google pages open. I have experienced no slowdowns, and my Air is barely even warm. I am highly considering keeping this and not upgrading to the 16gb variant. My Spectre was much warmer than this, and the Air is running cooler, and just as fast, if not faster than it. I think you guys should be fine if this looks similar to your use case. Let me know if you have any questions!

Edit: I am also using my iPad Pro for sidecar and also displaying to another monitor(3 screens total)

 

[IG88]

That could be the reason that Apple capped these initial offerings at 16GB.

It's capped at 16GB because the M1 was clearly designed around the fanless MBA, but they decided to throw it in a base "Pro" and base Mini as well, to get more of them out there.

This is not their Pro SOC, not even close.

 

[coorsleftfield]

If you do any virtualization, like Parallels when it becomes available, you will want to give the guest OS 8G of ram. This is why I went 16G. Any virtualization use case justifies upgrading the ram.

 

[mossme89]

I picked up an 8GB M1 while my 16" is in the shop.... I kid you not it's more responsive than my 16GB 16". Now yes im using a clean install but I'm using all. 8GB and it's still cruising along.

I have to keep reminding myself its not 16GB.

That said, I can't recommend 8GB anything in 2020.

 

[mossme89]

Absolutely. You have to either sell ASAP or be prepared to use the machine until it dies because no one is going to want it. Because the depreciation that is coming to intel-powered Macs is going to be unprecedented. Right now only the tech-geeks are really aware of the Apple-silicon revolution that is coming.

I am legit considering selling my 16" for an M1 16GB. its that good.

 

[mossme89]

Chrome is actually fast on the M1. Yes without being a resource hog.

 

[mossme89]

Hey guys, hopefully this may make you all feel better. I currently own an M1 8GB Air(8 core model). I initially wanted the 16GB model, but they were sold out at my location. Figured I'd try out the 8GB model to see if it would fit my needs, and man… it has blown me away so far. I am coming from an HP Spectre(16gb,512SSD, i7). My typical workflow involves having 25-35 tabs of chrome, 4k YouTube video playing in the background, 3 excel sheets, messages, slack, and some random google pages open. I have experienced no slowdowns, and my Air is barely even warm. I am highly considering keeping this and not upgrading to the 16gb variant. My Spectre was much warmer than this, and the Air is running cooler, and just as fast, if not faster than it. I think you guys should be fine if this looks similar to your use case. Let me know if you have any questions!

Edit: I am also using my iPad Pro for sidecar and also displaying to another monitor(3 screens total)

yeah man it's crazy. Does anyone know what Google did with chrome on M1? Because It's the first time chrome has not been a total resource suck in like 10 years

 

[IG88]

If you do any virtualization, like Parallels when it becomes available, you will want to give the guest OS 8G of ram. This is why I went 16G. Any virtualization use case justifies upgrading the ram.

Sure, but if you're a VM user, you already know you need more than 8 GB of RAM.

 

[aajeevlin]

Sure, but if you're a VM user, you already know you need more than 8 GB of RAM.

I guess that’s it for casual hobbyist like me. I never know what my next project is going to be. I could be installing Ubuntu on virtual box or needing to run windows and such. Or I could have not have the need to do these things for months then on a whim I would need that for a project.

The other argument I have heard is that upgrading the ram and storage is actually going to cost you 60% more of the PC. Which means in 3-5 years or less when you can upgrade to a new M machine with half the amount.

 

[icymountain]

If you do any virtualization, like Parallels when it becomes available, you will want to give the guest OS 8G of ram. This is why I went 16G. Any virtualization use case justifies upgrading the ram.

Same.
I give my (linux) guests only 4Gb of RAM, but even then, starting with 8Gb does not seem the best, if one intends to also runs a number of tabs in a couple of web browsers.

 

[thegiftofdom]

yeah man it's crazy. Does anyone know what Google did with chrome on M1? Because It's the first time chrome has not been a total resource suck in like 10 years

I have no idea, but it is indeed insane.

 

[NJRonbo]

It's capped at 16GB because the M1 was clearly designed around the fanless MBA, but they decided to throw it in a base "Pro" and base Mini as well, to get more of them out there.

This is not their Pro SOC, not even close.

Yes, we all know it's not their Pro SOC, not even close

The point I am making is that these chips, unlike Intel, completely reimagine what ram is.

So, I am guessing, Apple saw that with only 8GB of ram their silicone machines were able to handle things the same as if it were an Intel computer with 2-3x that amount of memory.

Apple could have capped these particular entry-level chips because there might absolutely be no need for anything above 8GB for this class.

 

[chelsel]

I just got the 16GB/1TB MBA and Spotlight is currently indexing my files, email, etc. Currently 11GB/16GB used. I'm glad I went with more RAM. Your results may vary, I've got hundreds of thousands of emails and about 500GB in use on my disk.

 

[seadragon]

I just got the 16GB/1TB MBA and Spotlight is currently indexing my files, email, etc. Currently 11GB/16GB used. I'm glad I went with more RAM. Your results may vary, I've got hundreds of thousands of emails and about 500GB in use on my disk.

View attachment 1676815

A wise choice.

I have a 16GB Mini on order. No such thing as too much memory and it can’t be added later.

 

[NJRonbo]

I just got the 16GB/1TB MBA and Spotlight is currently indexing my files, email, etc. Currently 11GB/16GB used. I'm glad I went with more RAM. Your results may vary, I've got hundreds of thousands of emails and about 500GB in use on my disk.

View attachment 1676815

So, once again, fluctuating answers on how much memory you need.

You are pushing that 16GBs of memory in the M1. If that's the case then 16GB is handled like 16GB on an Intel, right?

Others can't even max out an 8GB silicone machine.

 

[aajeevlin]

So, once again, fluctuating answers on how much memory you need.

You are pushing that 16GBs of memory in the M1. If that's the case then 16GB is handled like 16GB on an Intel, right?

Others can't even max out an 8GB silicone machine.

So how do we do this? Ask the person to buy a 8gb and try? And see the difference? I feel maybe that’s the best way to go about it.

 

[tCC_]

Wow, a lot of ARM engineers here I see.

Nobody can tell how macOS handles memory on ARM after this couple of days. Virtualisation isn't even possible and only a couple of apps is running natively.

So I bought 16GB to be sure and ignored all the "8GB should be enough' bs. Since it's only 200 dollar, why argue about it anyway...

 

[IG88]

Apple could have capped these particular entry-level chips because there might absolutely be no need for anything above 8GB for this class.

It's not like it's that unusual, did they ever give a MBA more than 16 GB? What about the fake Pro MBP, pretty sure it was capped at 16GB too.

They're still selling the Intel Mini too, so guess what that means? There's gonna be a desktop class SOC in a Mini later on.

If you're a power user and truly need more than 16 GB of RAM, none of these M1 machines are for you anyhow.

These M1 are clearly consumer SOCs, that they're calling one of the machines a "Pro" doesn't change that. That version of MBP they put the M1 in was never a Pro machine anyhow, they just call it one for marketing. If anything its more of a MacBook Air "Pro" than a real MBP.

My prediction is that the M1X or M2X or whatever they're gonna call it is an 8 + 4 CPU with up to 32 GB RAM. It will go in:
The real 13" MBP (or 14")
iMac
Mini

They might have a 64 GB RAM variant for the 16" MBP and iMac Pro.