If only the device wouldn't be marketed as "pro".
If only the ram upgrade wouldn't cost a leg.
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Is 8GB of RAM Enough for MacBook Pro?
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If only the ram upgrade wouldn't cost a leg.
8 GB is no longer up to date for a multipurpose desktop computer - not even with the Apple SoC. Memory compression and fast memory swapping don't always work wonders and if you buy an M3-Mac you are technical capable of multimedia stuff very nicely, but this needs RAM.
The RAM and SSD policy is nothing more than questionable profit politics on the part of Apple. If you only buy an 8 GB Mac for office stuff, you don't care about the money anyway (because you could get an office machine for less then the half of that money) … so why not buying a Mac with more RAM, showing Apple, that no one want’s a 8GB Machine in 202x anymore! Perhaps Apple will finally realize that the basic version of the Macs should be equipped with a reasonable amount of RAM.
On the one hand, Apple wants to be sustainable, on the other hand, they limit the long-term use of their products.
The RAM and SSD policy is nothing more than questionable profit politics on the part of Apple. If you only buy an 8 GB Mac for office stuff, you don't care about the money anyway (because you could get an office machine for less then the half of that money) … so why not buying a Mac with more RAM, showing Apple, that no one want’s a 8GB Machine in 202x anymore! Perhaps Apple will finally realize that the basic version of the Macs should be equipped with a reasonable amount of RAM.
On the one hand, Apple wants to be sustainable, on the other hand, they limit the long-term use of their products.
I think you just answered your own question. Not everyone is able to find an appropriately-specced M2 Pro laptop or an open box version at their convenience. Good if you can, but it's not something a person in the market for a new laptop is going to be able to count on reliably.
The problem is, the 8 GB machines are capable of nearly all the same things as the 16 GB machines, with swapping and ram compression. It’s only that they won’t always be able to operate as smoothly as the cpu spec would indicate.
I think the long-termism argument is a good one, if you’re going to be building machines which can’t be upgraded you should at least equip them with enough ram to remain viable for 10 years.
Even 16GB is way too limited for a pro user.I ordered min with 16GB after I used a Corei9 with 32GB for many years. My main workload happens now on my Linux wurkstation., so I though I could save the extra money and be happy with 16GB.
Two weeks ago a popup window showed up, telling me that "your system has run out of application memory" and I should close some applications. This crazy. So yes, 16Gb should standard.
Two weeks ago a popup window showed up, telling me that "your system has run out of application memory" and I should close some applications. This crazy. So yes, 16Gb should standard.
Why? Who are Pros? For example, can’t writers be Pros? Writers who use word processing software, bibliography tools, pdf readers, document management tools like DEVONthink can be Pros too, and may not need more than 8gb RAM.
People get too hung up on the word pro these days. It just means the more premium machine.
8g is enough for someone with basic needs that wants a nicer laptop with 120hz and mine led screen.
8g is enough for someone with basic needs that wants a nicer laptop with 120hz and mine led screen.
Does anyone notice how in this debate about 8gb that the words casual vs pro are being used to designate certain tasks as leisure or not serious (casual) vs. serious work or dedication (pro)?
Casual is illustrated as running Office, web browsing.
Pro is illustrated as mostly graphics oriented such as photo editing, video editing.
Since when were some jobs less important (casual) than others? Many serious hard work take place on word processing software. Think writers, scholars.
I think there’s some elitism going on here, designating only certain kinds of work as pro.
Casual is illustrated as running Office, web browsing.
Pro is illustrated as mostly graphics oriented such as photo editing, video editing.
Since when were some jobs less important (casual) than others? Many serious hard work take place on word processing software. Think writers, scholars.
I think there’s some elitism going on here, designating only certain kinds of work as pro.
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I'd say labelling a machine as Pro (professional) and pricing it as a high end device suggests it should be a high end device, where corners are not cut to save a couple of dollars. Unfortunately that isn't the case, as corners have been cut on RAM, storage, and the ability to repair and upgrade.
Your career choice example is flawed. A writer could write with a 10 cent biro and copy paper. If, however, he bought a $50 professional pen, marketed as such, there would be an assumption that such a device would be refillable, and not disposable. Suuuure, maybe another professional usually writes on a computer and the ink in the "professional" pen will last him 7 years, so you could argue his disposable pen is 'good enough', but marketing a pen as professional and charging a lot for it would still be disingenuous if they saved a few pennies and made it so it couldn't be refilled.
Pro items= haven't cut corners and are built to last. That's why they're more expensive than non-pro items.
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with a reduction in price. Its not like they kept the price the same. More choice isn't a bad thing.
Change the name too, and lower the price a lot more, if it's not going to live up to the "professional" billing in 2023/2024. And don't then screw your customers by charging a 900-1,000% markup on RAM upgrades.
The current base MacBook Pro should simply not exist with such cheap cost cutting/planned obsolescence. It's disingenuous billing. Finding a plumber or carpenter it is "good enough" for doesn't make it professional grade, just because those are professions. Bonkers logic.
One could argue that it was a price hike, not a price drop, as the base model MacBook Pro now costs a lot more than 1 month ago...
No. It is not. My 8Gb M1 struggles with blogging even. If the post I am editing has too many images or media, the OS just dies.
"PROfessional" is a mere moniker Apple uses to segment computer tiers by performance and price. Try not to get sucked in with marketing labels, and instead make purchases based on needs/requirements.
I'd wager to say there's a significant percentage of MacPro users who are not professionals.
If you mostly surf the web, email, need a calendar with reminders, etc. simply choose the base model. If your needs are more demanding, get more RAM - and PAY for it. Easy.
Choice is a good thing. Why get worked up about what makes sense for other people? Life is too short to get annoyed over mice-nuts issues.
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"Pro" is a marketing term. It doesn't mean built to last. It's marketed to make you believe or urge you to believe it is built to last etc. etc.
What would happen if those who find the "Pro" label has a certain quality about it engage in this thought experiment:
What if instead of marketed as a MacBook Pro is was marketed as MacBook II? Or what about MacBook B? Suddenly, would the whole idea that "8gb is wimpy for a pro machine" go away?
I'm not in the market for a new MacBook, but if I were to get one today, I'd get the MacBook Pro 14" because I like the number of ports, but otherwise I would get the MacBook Air but it doesn't have enough ports. There's nothing Pro or not Pro about ports. *shrug*
What if instead of marketed as a MacBook Pro is was marketed as MacBook II? Or what about MacBook B? Suddenly, would the whole idea that "8gb is wimpy for a pro machine" go away?
I'm not in the market for a new MacBook, but if I were to get one today, I'd get the MacBook Pro 14" because I like the number of ports, but otherwise I would get the MacBook Air but it doesn't have enough ports. There's nothing Pro or not Pro about ports. *shrug*
again pro doesnt mean professional anymore with apple. How is an iphone pro for just a professional?
Benchmarks have demonstrated that 8GB vs 16GB in the same chip and everything else the same makes a HUGE difference.
The device is meant to be "pro" grade, not the user!!! Clearly. It's not difficult to grasp.
Whatever the term, they're implying it's a good quality item, right? They're obviously not using Pro to mean bad or average.
Or maybe the people who believe MacBook Pro laptops are really for true professionals, also believe AirPods Pro are used by (and targeted by Apple towards) professional sound engineers for use in recording studios?
That makes about as much sense.
It's marketing. I think it's helpful to distinguish marketing from actual quality. So no, pro doesn't mean good quality if looking at the absolute scale. It doesn't mean necessarily bad quality either.
Exactly!
I can guess what the "Pro" moniker is trying to get consumers to think.
For me, the "Pro" lines (whether iPhone, AirPods, or Macs) really means that they have additional features or more of something. But, that doesn't mean they are better built; it doesn't mean they are better. For instance, Pro line of the phone has more camera lens; the Pro line of the MacBook has more ports compared to MacBook Air; the Pro line of AirPods has noise cancelling.
Take a set of features, say 10. Now draw a Venn diagram in which 5 items grouped together is the non-Pro, and then draw another circle around those 5 items plus another 5 items and that's the Pro line. That's kinda what it is in rough terms.