Waiting for the 32 GB MBP

[Wildkraut]

There are people who do, regardless of what OP does.

The other thing is that these devices are awfully expensive. You're buying them for the specs you think you'll over the next 4-8 years, not for the resources you need today.

The last thing you want after spending $3000-$4000 on a laptop is to find that in 2-3 years, it's being bottlenecked by something like RAM.

I do think that as software demands are increasing at an ever slower rate, you should be able to get 8 years from a new high-end laptop today.

Well I don't need 32GB RAM, but there are scenarios where it could come handy e.g. OpenEXR 32bit Image editing, Rendering Big Images with e.g. Autodesk Maya, Autocad Drawings of complex technical Objects, PSD files with many many layers.

But then i7 is the wrong choice, these people need Xeon+Quadro Graphics like: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/workstations/zbook-studio.html

 

[Tanax]

There are people who do, regardless of what OP does.

The other thing is that these devices are awfully expensive. You're buying them for the specs you think you'll over the next 4-8 years, not for the resources you need today.

The last thing you want after spending $3000-$4000 on a laptop is to find that in 2-3 years, it's being bottlenecked by something like RAM.

I do think that as software demands are increasing at an ever slower rate, you should be able to get 8 years from a new high-end laptop today.

Considering hardware development pace is slowing down, I think devices will hold up much longer than before since software developers will optimize their applications better. But that's just me

 

[malko]

I am not sure if you can convince anyone you need more than 16GB.

And I don't. Right now I'd be OK with 12 GB. But 5 years ago I was OK with 4 GB so I'm not buying a 2 800 USD laptop with just 16 GB (as my current 5,5 years old MBP). It's just not future proof enough for me at that price tag.

When they release 32GB, people will demand 64GB...

Of course! My first computer had 2 MB ram. It was much at the time, but over the years people just demanded more and more. Maybe not you, I'm happy for you if you're still fine with 2 MB.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

Many of you have heard my story before, for those that haven't, here's a quick recap. I'm an assignment-based photographer that sometimes works on intense deadlines. I work deeply with 65mp Canon 5DsR images and full-frame 4K 60 fps video that weighs in at 5.7 GB per minute. I greatly prefer 32 GB of RAM now and I most certainly will need it even more in 2 years from now.

I am currently using a mid-2012 MBP when I'm traveling on assignment (which is about 150 days a year) and the specs are in my sig below. I will continue to use my existing MBP for up to one year and then I will assess whether or not I can continue to hold out or if I'm willing to wait any longer for a 32 GB option to become available.

For those that haven't seen it yet, we will not see 32 GB of RAM in a MBP until CannonLake processors come out, or later if the availability of those processors don't line up with Apple's refresh cycle. CannonLake will be the first Intel processor that supports 32 GB LPDDR4 RAM modules. We simply cannot and will not see it any sooner unless Apple starts designing their own processors. Currently, Intel is saying the CannonLake will be available in the 3rd Qtr of 2017, but keep in mind that Intel is notorious for delays.

 

[brynsmith23]

Many of you have heard my story before, for those that haven't, here's a quick recap. I'm an assignment-based photographer that sometimes works on intense deadlines. I work deeply with 65mp Canon 5DsR images and full-frame 4K 60 fps video that weighs in at 5.7 GB per minute. I greatly prefer 32 GB of RAM now and I most certainly will need it even more in 2 years from now.

I am currently using a mid-2012 MBP when I'm traveling on assignment (which is about 150 days a year) and the specs are in my sig below. I will continue to use my existing MBP for up to one year and then I will assess whether or not I can continue to hold out or if I'm willing to wait any longer for a 32 GB option to become available.

For those that haven't seen it yet, we will not see 32 GB of RAM in a MBP until CannonLake processors come out, or later if the availability of those processors don't line up with Apple's refresh cycle. CannonLake will be the first Intel processor that supports 32 GB LPDDR4 RAM modules. We simply cannot and will not see it any sooner unless Apple starts designing their own processors. Currently, Intel is saying the CannonLake will be available in the 3rd Qtr of 2017, but keep in mind that Intel is notorious for delays.

Cannonlake will be limited to 15 watts https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannonlake, so that might not work for the MBP.

I believe CoffeeLake https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_Lake is rumoured to be suitable for MBP.

Hopefully Intel, get there **** together and introduce MBP CPU with support for LPDDR4, as i can't see apple using DDR4 due to power limitations.

 

[Wildkraut]

Of course! My first computer had 2 MB ram. It was much at the time, but over the years people just demanded more and more. Maybe not you, I'm happy for you if you're still fine with 2 MB.

2MB? You were late to the party mate.
Anyway, its okay to demand more, but I doubt that most of these "32GB" moaners, will ever reach the end of 32GB by doing their daily work. My statement was to underline, that there is not a single company on this planet, that will ever be able to build a device that satisfies everybody. There will always exist people moaning around.

And if somebody isn't able to find the right tool for the job, with all the currently available hardware, then he is definitely doing the wrong job.

 

[malko]

CannonLake will be the first Intel processor that supports 32 GB LPDDR4 RAM modules. We simply cannot and will not see it any sooner unless Apple starts designing their own processors.

This is a myth spread by the Apple community. But it is simply not true, other laptop manufacturers have been providing 32 GB options for quite a while now. For example this one launched last winter: http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/p...1015us_4&model_id=precision-m5510-workstation

It is Apples decision not to provide professional workstations with the mobile Xeon line of CPU:s.

 

[CreativeC]

When they release 32GB, people will demand 64GB...

This is stupid and you should stupid

 

[Antairez]

The more RAM you use the more processing power you need. Maybe 32GB should be available on the 15" model because it has a quad core CPU. On my 13" I have plenty of RAM to spare for any VM (16GB is really a lot), but not cores tho ...

 

[Bryan Bowler]

This is a myth spread by the Apple community. But it is simply not true, other laptop manufacturers have been providing 32 GB options for quite a while now. For example this one launched last winter: http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/p...1015us_4&model_id=precision-m5510-workstation

Your statement is factually incorrect and not true. What I stated in my earlier post is correct: support for 32GB of LPDDR4 RAM does not exist yet. The link you provided is for a laptop with DDR4 RAM which is entirely different.

For those that might be unfamiliar, the LP in LPDDR stands for Low Power and it is a critical necessity for laptops that want to maintain battery life. Sure, you can offer 32 GB of regular DDR RAM, but battery life takes a very significant hit, measured in hours of loss. We simply have to wait until LPDDR4 is supported before we will see 32 GB of RAM in a MacBook Pro.

 

[malko]

Sorry, I shouldn't have quoted your sentence. I was addressing the Apple community in general, where there is a widespread and incorrect claim that there are no Intel chipsets for laptops available which support 32 GB of RAM.

 

[malko]

I've just ordered a new battery to my early 2011 MBP pro. I'll stick with it for another year, and then either upgrade to a new MBP with 32 GB RAM, or go PC if there is still none. Feels good to have finally made a decision

 

[maflynn]

I don't need to wait, as my usage is such that I don't need 32GB on my laptop

 

[ascender]

Of course there are people who truly need 32GB of RAM, but I don't believe the amount of people complaining about no 32GB option are truly representative of those. I remember the days when you absolutely needed as much RAM as possible because of bloated apps and unreliable operating systems, but with Apple in charge of the hardware and software, I suspect the majority of people will be just fine with the base MacBook Pro with only 8GB of RAM.

I totally get the future-proofing aspect to buying hardware and as an ex PC gamer and career IT person, I've been on that hamster wheel for 20 years, constantly upgrading systems as I go, yet the 11" MacBook Air I just sold had a mobile processor, 8GB of RAM and did 3 years of heavy and varied use which just wouldn't have been possible with systems in years gone by.

I'm not saying this applies to everyone because everybody is different in terms of how they use their software & hardware, but I do think a lot of people think they need more RAM than they actually do and a lot of the recent analysis of how much RAM is being used seems to bear this out.

But I thought the "arms race" of faster and faster CPUs, more RAM etc was over now and it was kind of a false economy (apart from those users who absolutely need the most powerful computing platforms they can get their hands on)?

 

[malko]

Sure, and I don't think many people actually need to pay the huge premium of a Mac over a Chromebook. Most people could easily get by with a USD 300 Chromebook.

But I want premium and I want speed. Therefore am I heavily vested in the Apple ecosystem. But there's a limit even for me and that's why I'm skipping this generation of MBP:s. USD 2800 is simply too much for a laptop with 16 GB ram. That's the amount I have in my almost six years old MBP and I know from experience of my current machine that RAM will be the first limitation to performance.

 

[thingstoponder]

I am kind of an Apple fanboy too, but honestly: Just because Apple doesn't deliver something it doesn't mean nobody needs it. In my work I need to open up 20-30 web browser tabs, move data from these into a database program and partly Excel. At the same time I need to have Mail and communication applications open. Plus Pixelmator since some data is graphical and need to be edited.

I am a professional and this is my workflow. It typically uses 10-13 GB of ram and my ram usage typically goes up 20% a year, meaning I will reach the ram limit of my current six years old MBP (16 GB) next year. If I buy a new laptop for 2 800 USD I just cannot accept that it will have the same limitation as my six years old MBP. I expect a 2 800 USD laptop to be satisfying for another 6 years, as my current one has been.

I have 4GB and will occasionally run 50 safari tabs without issue alongside photo editing apps and iTunes.

Your computer will use the RAM it has, as long as the memory pressure indicator isn't red then you're fine. Your workload doesn't even seem heavy. 8 would be fine for you...

 

[malko]

Your workload doesn't even seem heavy. 8 would be fine for you...

No, 8 GB is NOT fine for me. I think I know what's going on in my Mac more than you. When I start a project I usually have between 50-100 tabs open, every one of them using about 55 MB of RAM. At this point my total RAM usage usually peaks just above 12 GB.

 

[thingstoponder]

Yeah, I am a memory lover too. I have 64GB on my 4k iMac..

Did you mean 5k iMac? I don't think it's possible on 4k.
[doublepost=1480364825][/doublepost]

I don't mean to downplay anybody's computational needs, but:

Do that many of you really run into RAM limitations with 16GB?

No they don't, they just want to believe they do for reasons.
[doublepost=1480364900][/doublepost]

The more the better — I'd really like to see a 64GB ram option so I can finally use Chrome.

Hope you're joking.

 

[ForkHandles]

I have four 4gb ram chips in my iMac and I use Final Cut Pro for multicam editing. It runs the whole operation very well.

Recently one of the ram chips died so I am down to 12gb ram, the difference is not noticeable, still just as nippy.

You don't need 32gb of ram in a laptop, you just don't! 32gb is very big, about 6,000 photos in Photos App.

I wouldn't bother waiting for it, there any many more components in a system that make for faster processing on the fly b

 

[thingstoponder]

No, 8 GB is NOT fine for me. I think I know what's going on in my Mac more than you. When I start a project I usually have between 50-100 tabs open, every one of them using about 55 MB of RAM. At this point my total RAM usage usually peaks just above 12 GB.

Show me that your memory pressure indicator is red and I will apologize. Until you start getting unresponsive programs and programs freezing then you're not out of memory. I'd bet anything you would not notice a difference if you had 8GB of RAM. Again, just because your computer uses 12GB doesn't mean you need 12GB to do what what you're doing smoothly.

Btw.. You're moving the goalposts. Earlier you said up to 30 tabs and now it's 100?

 

[The Mercurian]

I have four 4gb ram chips in my iMac and I use Final Cut Pro for multicam editing. It runs the whole operation very well.

Recently one of the ram chips died so I am down to 12gb ram, the difference is not noticeable, still just as nippy.

You don't need 32gb of ram in a laptop, you just don't! 32gb is very big, about 6,000 photos in Photos App.

I wouldn't bother waiting for it, there any many more components in a system that make for faster processing on the fly b

Not everyone does photo processing. Why do people around here consider pro applications are only those involving image editing of some kind ?

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ro-myth-to-rest.2013366/page-10#post-23921014

 

[ForkHandles]

Not everyone does photo processing. Why do people around here consider pro applications are only those involving image editing of some kind ?

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...ro-myth-to-rest.2013366/page-10#post-23921014

Perhaps it's because video, photo and coding operations tend to be More processor, hard drive , memory hungry than Facebook.

 

[The Mercurian]

Perhaps it's because video, photo and coding operations tend to be More processor, hard drive , memory hungry than Facebook.

Yeah your gonna halve to click on the link buddy

 

[ForkHandles]

Yeah your gonna halve to click on the link buddy

Did that and saw a screen dump of a system that was gorging on Ram despite not seeming to be doing photo, video, audio or coding type work.

I don't get the relevance though.

 

[dk808]

32 gb ram most likely won't come until 2019. Enjoy the wait

http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/...-might-not-get-32gb-ram-option-until-201.html