If you can afford it I would get 32 GB.I know, right? Now thinking about whether 16GB ought to be enough or should I go with 32GB to make sure I can do other things with the computer.
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PSA: you probably don’t need 32 or 64Gb RAM unless you know you need it.
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I will get the M1 Max 10/32/32/1TB config and call it a day for the next 5 years easy.
Base with 16GB will be enough for me, but I am not the one to do enough. I like headroom to play with to allow me freedom to make calls. I don’t want to be forced into early upgrade due to the ‘enough’ not being enough 3 years later.
I’m not a frequent upgrader just for the sake of it. Apple isn’t exactly normally priced anywhere in the world but in my country it is downright obscene due to whatever reasons. Adoption isn’t enough so resale doesn’t yield very good payback either. So, I like to keep my machines for some years before upgrading.
Commenting on my own post:
I played around with Lightroom some more on the base 16GB 14", using large (180Mpx) photos, rapidly applying multiple masks and repeatedly zooming, to see what it takes to make it choke. Lightroom got up to about 22GB of memory usage with about 10GB swap file, lots of beach-balling and "Lightroom not responding" messages.
But the interesting thing is that anything that choked on the 16GB 14" MBP, also choked on my 2020 iMac (with 32GB RAM plus 8GB VRAM).
Edits on normal (45Mpx) photos were just as smooth and responsive on the 16GB 14" as on my 32GB iMac.
I now feel much more comfortable with 16GB RAM on the 14".
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A couple of weeks in now, and I find my 16" M1 Max routinely using 16-20GB ram with a handful of Apple apps open and multiple browser tabs. While you may not NEED 32GB RAM, there's no doubt your system will use it if available, even with light use. I'm very glad my machine is equipped with 32GB, even if there's no perceptible performance benefit under light loads.
Tim
Tim
There is a tool. It's the activity monitor with memory pressure. Just have it open whilst you're doing your day to day and look at it occasionally!!
The tool I have in mind is one that would be left running, accumulate information over the course of a number of weeks, and then provide a report.
We often consider anecdotal evidence as predictive. Your approach to using an occasional glance at a memory reading is similarly flawed.
I highly encourage watching the linked video in the OP. We can't even just do this and make any assumption on the need for more memory if at the end of the day, performance is all that really matters.
The extra bandwidth from the bus, coupled with the speed of the SSD, means we have a fairly efficient additional memory subsystem. If we have fairly extreme paging but little notable slowdown - as shown in that video - there really is no other conclusion.
There are certainly use cases for additional memory, but with this generation of machines they've greatly shrunk. Naive use cases like a bunch of tabs in a browser is a poor one.
Given I've just retired my 2013 MBP and will use the '21 MBP until 2030+, I'm confident buying 32gb was the right decision for me. I only occasionally brush up against 16gb now, but I'd be uncomfortable spending so much on a once-a-decade purchase in the knowledge that I could hit a wall in a few years.
I do think the whole future proofing thing is fomo for a lot of people though. If you're replacing your laptop every 3-4 years and don’t foresee much of a workflow change during that time, future proofing is a complete waste of money.
I do think the whole future proofing thing is fomo for a lot of people though. If you're replacing your laptop every 3-4 years and don’t foresee much of a workflow change during that time, future proofing is a complete waste of money.
thing is, fast and efficient swapping, might be very good and mask a lot, and in new MacBooks bandwith to ssd is on the level fast DDR2 memory, so, technically not that far ago we would consider that RAM…almost.
but all swapping in the world will not help, once you need to have relatively random address to the large chunk of memory. because ssd is not ram ) and because even if ssd would have the same lattency and random access performance as ddr2, there is still caching mechanics on top of that, and that one works with pages.
but all swapping in the world will not help, once you need to have relatively random address to the large chunk of memory. because ssd is not ram ) and because even if ssd would have the same lattency and random access performance as ddr2, there is still caching mechanics on top of that, and that one works with pages.
I got the 64gb in the end. Saw some other benchmarks focusing more on software development. It seems like 32 vs 16gb has quite noticeable build time difference for Xcode. Even 64gb vs 32gb has marginal difference.
32 gb is probably the sweet spot for my purpose, but configuring a 14” ends up at 2800. A 64gb config is 3500. For just 25% more I said screw it and got the maxed out config instead.
32 gb is probably the sweet spot for my purpose, but configuring a 14” ends up at 2800. A 64gb config is 3500. For just 25% more I said screw it and got the maxed out config instead.
No he doesn't. Unless he's a bleeding edge professional working with the largest files in the world, and in that case he wouldn't have bothered asking a forum for advice.
You have a specific use case in mind so it may be the right decision for you, but for the vast majority of users "just 25% more" is an insane argument. For them, they could buy a base model now and buy another base model in 2 years for about the same price as a max config now.
Nothing more "future proof" than multiple machines and one of them being brand new when the other is 2 years old.
I haven't read this entire thread, but I'm a big believer in getting as much RAM as you can afford. I think it's better to get more RAM than storage because there are always external storage options, but you can't add RAM to these machines.
When I got my 2012 retina 15-inch MBP in late 2012, I went for 16GB not because I needed it then, but because I wanted it to last. I had no regrets over the 4 years I used it. I did the same with my 2016 MBP and this past year I realized I could really use some extra RAM.
Given my own experience, I have no regrets ordering the 14-inch MBP with the M1 Max, 32GB of RAM, and the 24 core GPU. I am thankful I can afford it and since I intend to keep it at least four or five years, I will feel better knowing I should have enough of a buffer in terms of RAM.
When I got my 2012 retina 15-inch MBP in late 2012, I went for 16GB not because I needed it then, but because I wanted it to last. I had no regrets over the 4 years I used it. I did the same with my 2016 MBP and this past year I realized I could really use some extra RAM.
Given my own experience, I have no regrets ordering the 14-inch MBP with the M1 Max, 32GB of RAM, and the 24 core GPU. I am thankful I can afford it and since I intend to keep it at least four or five years, I will feel better knowing I should have enough of a buffer in terms of RAM.
Rene Ritchie is only one quarter step removed from the Apple marketing department 😅
My iMac has 64GB and it's incredibly rare that I've used that much. These two screenshots should tell the story that OP started in the 1st post:
This is with four 16GB DIMMs for the most bandwidth. each are 2667 Mhz and it's nice to have a high ceiling but I only use around 8GB during the day doing work activities. Then when I'm editing video & Photos, I use about 16GB. so for me, 32GB is really what I 'need' worst case scenario or to grow with over time.
I ordered a 64GB MBP because I can afford to but 'need' no I don't need it.
This is with four 16GB DIMMs for the most bandwidth. each are 2667 Mhz and it's nice to have a high ceiling but I only use around 8GB during the day doing work activities. Then when I'm editing video & Photos, I use about 16GB. so for me, 32GB is really what I 'need' worst case scenario or to grow with over time.
I ordered a 64GB MBP because I can afford to but 'need' no I don't need it.
So I have the 14" Mid-tier M1 Pro 10-core/16gpu cores, with 16GB and 1TB SSD. I also got in my 16" m1 max, 10-core/32gpu, 32GB, 1TB SSD
I loaded the same FCPX project with luts, color correction, and basic transitions. The 14" M1 Pro stuttered and also got low memory warnings with also using 40+gb of swap memory. The M1 Max was at 10GB swap and never stuttered a bit. It pains to keep the M1 max but I do video editing and motion graphics for a living. Export times don't matter to me it's UI smoothness. I'll pay $900 more for the Max if it gives me more responsiveness editing.
This is just running FCPX and nothing else in the background. Both MacBook pros were plugged into the wall.
I loaded the same FCPX project with luts, color correction, and basic transitions. The 14" M1 Pro stuttered and also got low memory warnings with also using 40+gb of swap memory. The M1 Max was at 10GB swap and never stuttered a bit. It pains to keep the M1 max but I do video editing and motion graphics for a living. Export times don't matter to me it's UI smoothness. I'll pay $900 more for the Max if it gives me more responsiveness editing.
This is just running FCPX and nothing else in the background. Both MacBook pros were plugged into the wall.
I definitely do regret when I get too much RAM or processor. I have gotten sucked into buying a top-spec model, then several years later I feel I am stuck with it, having sunk so much money into it, when I would rather have replaced it with a new model with newer features that were not available on the older model - or my needs have changed. Also, you never get your money back for the upgrades when selling an old machine: people buying used machines just want to spend as little as possible, and get the upgrade options for (nearly) free.
Now I much prefer to target at most 3 or 4 years out, spend 1/3rd less, and replace 50% more often. It actually works out costing less in the long run, as I am able to sell a 4-year old model for much more than a 6-year old model.
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honestly, this while soldered memory seems like a scam, especially at these price increments. most people are confused, people will overspend, all because you need to make a decision like this at the time of purchase. especially when it comes to this brand new architecture most arent familiar with... a better job needs to be done.
So, because I've joined the ranks of the worriers about which spec to get, I've been lost in reviews and forums. And because I've just come across this guy who actually knows what he's talking about and is clearly a genuine 'real' person rather than a bouncing YouTube tigger, I thought I'd put links to two of his videos up. He's an actual sound engineer rather than an influencer, so that get's him real credit, and he's just really down to earth. So glad I found this!!
This one explains about choosing between an Air with 8GB and an M1 with 16GB from January this year. Puts 16GB into perspective.
This one explains how memory swapping works for those worried about the SSD
Largest files in the world? you can see slowdowns working on panoramic photos. There are videos out there about it. Don't even know if you ever used photoshop beside basic functions.
So you think someone should spend multiple hundreds of dollars to avoid having to see the occasional slowdown in one app they use infrequently?
Are you reffering to that one with a 27000x10000 photo, where 32Gb RAM Mac is a bit more smooth when using a brush in Lightroom?
If you work with such large photos, yeah, might be worth it (and it’s not like the 16Gb model couldn’t do it, but still).
How many people edit 200MP panoramic photos, though?
I’ve been working in Photoshop profesionally for two decades. The answer is: today, for 99% people, you need 8Gb RAM for Photoshop work.
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