I agree, 8gb is fine for a majority of the time. MacOS does such a good job at using swap that you'll most likely never even notice. I've yet to hear actually instances of ssd prematurely dying because of swap usage. My only hold up would be if they plan to keep the Mac for years to come, each OS update seems to be a little more ram intensive
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Thoughts on the 15" M3 and RAM?
- Thread starter tardman91
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If you plan to use your mac for 5+ years the ram is ~$40 per year. It's hard to predict how you will use it in the next 5 years. I would upgrade RAM (and SSD) if you can afford it now. The minimal configuration only makes sense if this is a secondary computer and you have a primary computer that covers all future use cases.
I would never downgrade RAM, so I would say buy the base spec, bump RAM to at least 16GB of RAM and be happy with it. You'll be more than fine with 16GB of RAM for several years it sounds like. I too have a base spec M1 MacBook Air with the 16GB of RAM upgrade. More than enough for me. But, I just bought a base spec 14" M3 Pro MacBook Pro. 18GB of RAM is more than enough for my work flow. I bought for the bigger display, extra ports, ProMotion display, and Space Black color.
I love that Space Black color, but I just can't justify the cost to get one. Plus I really love that the MBA doesn't have a fan. I hate that damn noise. lol
Agreed, if you don't need the sustained power, then no fan and no moving parts is a huge plus. Less parts to break and thinner and lighter. The M3 Pro MBP is on sale for $1699, so not as huge of a jump from the air as normally when priced at $1999, but still a chunk of change
Yeah I get that. I'm still really impressed by my M1 MBA size, weight given the performance. Regarding the fan, if this tells you anything about my workflow, it has never come on! I have never even noticed the computer warming up. I certainly didn't need a M3 Pro for performance, more so the extras over my M1 MBA.
The color is quite nice. Some lighting it looks black, while in others it just looks like a dark space gray. I do love that Midnight on the Airs as well though.
I really debated between the m3 pro MBP and M3 Air. I as well did not need the sheer power of the pro model, nor did I need the ports for my work flow(pretty basic), but I love the space black color and I love that mini led display. Was a very tough choice but in the end I went with MBA. Although I am in my return window and the M3 pro MBP 18/512 can be had for $1699 right now🤣
Yeah they are a steal! Obviously the M4 Pro are on the way, but I didn't even need the performance of the M1 Pro, let alone the M3 Pro. I did love the Space Black, ProMotion display, and USB-C port on the right side of the computer. All the other stuff was a bonus. But, I'm a resident and spend a ton of time on my computer in the hospital and clinic, so that is how I justified the purchase...at least to my wife. 😄
C'mon man, you are supposed to be talking me out of swapping this thing out for the pro. I'd have to tell my wife that the doc said I needed the pro....
That is a nice macbook and photo scene that caugt my attention, enjoy!
RAM determines how much your computer can handle being open and actively running at once. CPU is what actually crunches tasks and does stuff. These are not the same things. Therefore, one will not offset the other.
With 8GB of RAM, you will notice slowdowns as you open more things and attempt to do more at once. I would not get 8GB of RAM on a new Apple Silicon Mac in 2024. You may not feel it, but your computer will be using up most of, if not all of that 8GB of RAM just handling the basics (and it's always advisable to have some overhead in case a process or program ends up demanding more RAM).
Unified Memory doesn't negate the fact that 8GB of RAM is still 8GB of RAM. Nor that 16GB of RAM is still 16GB of RAM.
All "Unified Memory" means is that the same RAM that your CPU is using is also the same RAM that your GPU, NPU, and every other part of the SoC is using and that the data in that RAM can be read by all of those parts without having to go anywhere. It means your RAM is more efficient. It does NOT mean that your RAM is more voluminous or capacious.
16gb is by far worth the added cost, even for basic stuff. I have 7 safari tabs open and I'm using 12gb minus 3.5 cached files, so on an 8gb machine id be pretty close. Sure, swap will kick in and it will feel fine still, but this 16gb feels snappy. Could be a placebo effect, but it seems for fluid, quick to switch between tabs and just overall user experience. 16gb is really like having just "double" the ram of 8gb. think about it this way if MacOS uses roughly 4gb then on an 8gb machine you have 4gb headroom. On a 16gb machine, if MacOS is using 4gb then you have 12gb headroom. Roughly 3 times as much ram/memory to play with
the point or question that you haven't answered is do you plan on upgrading the OS with each new release?
it might not be apples to apples (pun intended) comparison, but I had the original iPad Air where they released the new 64bit chip. it came with 1gb of ram and it ran IOS7 wonderfully fast. I diligently upgraded to the newer IOS every year and by IOS9 so not even two years of using the iPad, it was running awfully slow to the point that I really wanted to upgrade but couldn't afford it as it was such a new iPad. By comparison, my father who is more a set in his ways guy kept ios7 and his iPad worked fine for almost 7 years until finally the security keys expired and wifi stopped working along with you couldn't get most apps to load for being so out of date.
I bring this whole long winded story as it is a clear picture into the mindset of Apple. Just saying that in the past 8gb could and would work for macOS doesn't mean that next year (macOS16) or the year after (macOS17) won't suddenly really require more memory to be able to function. the writing is on the wall with the newer AppleInteligence that functionality is tied to memory. Only the newest iPhones Pro with 8gb ram will even offer the upgrade to give that feature. it wasn't that the older processors in the iPhone 15 or 14 for that matter didn't have the processor power to pull it off, but just don't have the ram for it to work at a reasonable performance.
I would ask yourself do you want to spend $200 now for memory, or $2000 in two/three years to replace the whole MacBook because the newest OS simply doesn't work well enough to be usable?
I've pretty much decided to spend the $200 now, but I'll also probably buy a new one again in a few years since I can write it off on my taxes as a business expense. lol. But when I upgrade I'll hand it down to one of my children, so the 16gb is extra insurance for the future. 👍
Easy. Get more RAM if you are spending that much money to compute. What you did last year is not primarily relevant. What is primary is what you may want to do over the life cycle of the box; i.e. the future, not yesterday. For 40 years Mac OS/apps have constantly increased their RAM demands, and Apple's offering of 128 GB RAM in their better laptops is a very clear telegraph of where RAM demands will be going. If you may want to keep the box for the typical 3-5 years get 24 GB RAM.
If you intend to replace in under two years you can get by with 16 GB RAM, but avoid the 8 GB choice. Note that having plenty of RAM makes usage of multiple apps/tabs/windows concurrently much smoother.
Always get at least 16GB. Don't listen to the "Apple Silicon is efficient and uses 8GB well" people. 8GB Macs shouldn't exist at all. They're only there so Apple can have a lower price for the "Starting at..." cost for the various Mac models.
Not only will your system perform better overall, keeping more data cached but as demand for more memory increases in the next few years, you will do a lot better than if you'd gotten 8GB. It's not worth skimping on something that essential.
Not only will your system perform better overall, keeping more data cached but as demand for more memory increases in the next few years, you will do a lot better than if you'd gotten 8GB. It's not worth skimping on something that essential.
Nothing wrong with asking and if someone took the time to write it was beaten to death so has their response.
As for your topic - things are changing with the OS and some apps and of course the intro of AI. There are plenty who rightfully argue it is wiser to err on the side of a bit more than you think you may need than to get caught short. With various Chrome pages open to some memory-hungry pages, you can see where other apps open or engaged may pay the price. I admit I sit in the camp that the 200 dollar or whatever you mentioned in cost difference is 200 for peace of mind and would not be wasted if you got 16 (or more).
Those that say 8 gigs is enough are right with respect to amount really needed at any given time but that is with decent memory management. Without the latter, more* is better where RAM is concerned and here we are today.
This right here^^. 8gb is in fact okay for basic everyday light computer use, plus some heavier duty stuff, as long as there aren't a ton of apps open. 16gb is nice for some headroom not knowing what is going to happen in the future with AI. 16gb is also nice not having to be the warden when it comes to having browser tabs open(multipe ones)
+1 on the silence. I have an M1 Pro MBP and the fan has only popped on a handful of times, when I would render video (DaVinci Resolve or FCP, not iMovie) and/or audio. Based on OP's described workflow, the fan will never spin, at least audibly.
Although the MBP doesn't seem to be a good fit for OP overall.
Although we agree that "thinner and lighter" (and cheaper) are the [only] pluses of the MBA, we strongly disagree with the statement that "no fan and no moving parts is a huge plus." Fans only come on under heavy loads that would cause an MBA to choke or throttle, not a likely failure point or noise cause.
Again, that is why I said "if you don't need the sustained power". Not knocking the Pro in the slightest, its an amazing machine
I had both 16GB and 8GB ram M1 and M2 Airs, now have M3 Macbook Pro with 8GB of RAM.
Absolutely no difference in operations.
If you do video editing, 16GB is preferable, but not a must.
For usual office work, 8-16GB RAM makes no difference, so choose whatever suits your budget.
Don't believe all that hype about 16GB and future proof etc.
I actually downgraded from 16GB to 8GB and have zero difference in speed for any kind of office work and think that I made a right choice.
For you, I'd recommend to analyze your workflow and choose the suitable model.
I also found that stock configurations always sell better and are better value than those with added RAM and storage.
Absolutely no difference in operations.
If you do video editing, 16GB is preferable, but not a must.
For usual office work, 8-16GB RAM makes no difference, so choose whatever suits your budget.
Don't believe all that hype about 16GB and future proof etc.
I actually downgraded from 16GB to 8GB and have zero difference in speed for any kind of office work and think that I made a right choice.
For you, I'd recommend to analyze your workflow and choose the suitable model.
I also found that stock configurations always sell better and are better value than those with added RAM and storage.
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very elegantly put. memory use isn't an issue if you know how to manage it. I personally do have 16gb because I use my MBA for Logic Pro and multiple plugins that just push a bit beyond what 8gb reasonably can handle. I did try a MBA with 8 and it would overload on some of my music. but it was fine for general browsing and watching a Netflix movie on. to say it can't work well is saying that Apple doesn't know memory handling processes. My father was using an iPad Air from 2015 and I swear he had 200+ tabs open on it. that iPad had 1gb ram so the thought that multiple tabs needs 16gb is ludicrous. Apple does know how to compress memory, swap it out and around and can play quite some great feats for the average user. but the average user likely doesn't come to MacRumors and chat on forums.
That's like asking whether a sports car's stronger motor makes up for its lack of cargo capacity compared to a station wagon.