Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Bazais

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 28, 2016
4
3
Spain
Hello everybody,

I am planning to buy the new 13' macbook pro but I don't know if I should get 8 or 16gb of RAM.

I will mainly use it for office and some picture or full hd video editing.

What do you guys recommend? I want this computer to last 4-5 years!

Thanks in advance!
 
  • Like
Reactions: schmidti91

Hyloba

macrumors 6502
Sep 30, 2014
395
234
Sorry to ask the same question here.

I will be using mine for general stuff, browsing (often more than 20 tabs open), Office, Photoshop picture editing and Illustrator content creating. I will also run windows 10 in parallels.

Would also like to use the machine for at least 5 years.
Would prefer an explanation as to why 16 or 8 gb as well.
 

ascender

macrumors 603
Dec 8, 2005
5,025
2,898
If you can afford it, get the extra RAM as you can't upgrade it at a later date.
 

jerryk

macrumors 604
Nov 3, 2011
7,421
4,208
SF Bay Area
Sorry to ask the same question here.

I will be using mine for general stuff, browsing (often more than 20 tabs open), Office, Photoshop picture editing and Illustrator content creating. I will also run windows 10 in parallels.

Would also like to use the machine for at least 5 years.
Would prefer an explanation as to why 16 or 8 gb as well.

If you are running VMs like Parallels than get more memory.
 
Last edited:

Smoovejayy

macrumors 6502
Jan 20, 2012
380
258
If you are running applications like photoshop, etc, having 20+ tabs open, and just need or want to work on many different things concurrently, get 16GB. As another poster said, you can't upgrade it after you purchase the machine. Standard now is 8GB so you should be above standard :)
 

Kiwikat88

macrumors regular
Aug 16, 2015
249
384
Texas
If you're looking 4 or 5 years out, or are using Photoshop, definitely 16. Photoshop LOVES memory.
 

BenTrovato

macrumors 68040
Jun 29, 2012
3,049
2,223
Canada
If it's a twelve month machine get 8. If you're planing on keeping it more than one year then go for 16.
 

ghanwani

macrumors 601
Dec 8, 2008
4,829
6,153
I would have gone with 8 if the machine was upgradeable. But it's not, so 16 would be the recommendation. 8 is likely fine today, but will be limiting 2-3 years from now.
 

jav6454

macrumors Core
Nov 14, 2007
22,303
6,264
1 Geostationary Tower Plaza
Hello everybody,

I am planning to buy the new 13' macbook pro but I don't know if I should get 8 or 16gb of RAM.

I will mainly use it for office and some picture or full hd video editing.

What do you guys recommend? I want this computer to last 4-5 years!

Thanks in advance!

16GB... no question on this.
 

deadlystriker

macrumors regular
Jan 15, 2011
221
299
You can never have too much ram.

Definitely max it out since you can't upgrade it further down the road.
 

Howard2k

macrumors 603
Mar 10, 2016
5,715
5,672
For another 240 Euros I'm not sure it's worth it. You won't get that money back.
If you get the 16GB and don't need it, then it's wasted.
If you get the 16GB and find yourself running into memory issues then that means you'll need to be a bit more selective about closing apps.

For Office work you almost certainly won't see much benefit.
For heavy photo and video editing you might see some benefit, but an 8GB machine can do that stuff too.

I guess the question is how much photo and video work do you do? And if takes a little longer, does it matter more than having 240 Euros?
 

Starfyre

macrumors 68030
Nov 7, 2010
2,905
1,136
In this day and age, 16GB is an absolute if you want to ensure you can keep up and you like opening up a bunch of windows/multitasking.
 

Howard2k

macrumors 603
Mar 10, 2016
5,715
5,672
In this day and age, 16GB is an absolute if you want to ensure you can keep up and you like opening up a bunch of windows/multitasking.


Really? I have iTunes, Safari, Chrome, Lightroom, Mail all open right now on 8GB and am not seeing any issues.
 

grifftaur

macrumors regular
Jun 1, 2015
176
51
I'm confused by all of these answers. I've been referred to one specific thread here on Mac Rumors on the 8GB vs 16GB debate. Based on that thread it seems like unless you are running multiple VM's or doing hardcore 3D rendering it isn't necessary. Also that most people never even come close to hitting the 16GB.

I went with the a 2015 13 inch Macbook Pro 2.9ghz i5, 8GB Ram, and 512GB SSD on Apple.com. When I read that thread it made more sense for me to just get 8GB. Additionally I saw a video or something that using the 16GB can eat at the battery since you're using even more resources.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.