16" rMBP[i7+32+512]OR[i9+16+1000]

[complaxneoda]

hello, thanks for reading my thread.

I am using 2016 dual core i5 8g ram 13 MacBook Pro, and considering a new Mac. I often use word endnote pdfexpert and a little spss. I recognise that my ram pressure is around 50-60% on daily use, if I open many pdfs, it would cause a lot of swap and the time of loading pdfs when I switch among them is recognisable.

so I want to buy a new Mac with more ram than my current model. I notice the price of two models I mention on title are same, I am curious which one to buy. I do not know whether 16g is enough for my case and could last for at least 5 years.

my situation does not allow me to have a desktop computer.

 

[profcutter]

You haven't really given enough information here. What kinds of PDF's are you working on? How full is your current drive, only you know if you need 512GB or 1TB. Large, poster sized PDFs with multiple layers can take up a great deal of RAM, but if you're just reading and composing text based articles, 16 should be plenty. If you have multiple book-length PDFs open, then more RAM might help, but you could easily overwhelm 64 GB if you have enough open.

 

[complaxneoda]

You haven't really given enough information here. What kinds of PDF's are you working on? How full is your current drive, only you know if you need 512GB or 1TB. Large, poster sized PDFs with multiple layers can take up a great deal of RAM, but if you're just reading and composing text based articles, 16 should be plenty. If you have multiple book-length PDFs open, then more RAM might help, but you could easily overwhelm 64 GB if you have enough open.

thanks for letting me know about how pdf cost ram. 100/256. I just read some papers and some ppt converted pdf, in fact, I just open 200 mb total file, but my pdfexpert use almost 6gb ram, so I am nervous about the ram amount.

both 512 and 1000 ssd are good, when I configure the 32gb on the base model, I realise the price is same with the base i9 one, so I am in a dilemma

 

[matram]

Disk usage increase very slowly over time, so let you current usage guide you.

As they say, if you are not sure you need 32GB, you dont need it. As MacOS will use all available memory, look at memory pressure as an indication that you are running out. If you are in the green with your current memory buy the same size.

 

[complaxneoda]

Disk usage increase very slowly over time, so let you current usage guide you.

As they say, if you are not sure you need 32GB, you dont need it. As MacOS will use all available memory, look at memory pressure as an indication that you are running out. If you are in the green with your current memory buy the same size.

OK, thx

 

[badsimian]

I am returning my 2.4 i9/64GB/2TB for an i7/32GB/1TB/5300....I realise that I bought for edge cases and I don't need that much power. The 6 core machine with the 5300 is still a beast. I would rather not pay the high RAM prices but I do work with VMs and 16GB isn't quite enough. I am saving £1000 roughly overall...and I honestly don't think I will notice the difference in the machine.

 

[filmak]

I am returning my 2.4 i9/64GB/2TB for an i7/32GB/1TB/5300....I realise that I bought for edge cases and I don't need that much power. The 6 core machine with the 5300 is still a beast. I would rather not pay the high RAM prices but I do work with VMs and 16GB isn't quite enough. I am saving £1000 roughly overall...and I honestly don't think I will notice the difference in the machine.

Do you think that 16gb ram are enough for a single win10 vm for office work (databases, scanning, excel etc.)?
My preliminary tests are positive but I would like a second opinion as I have a coworker with this specific need.
On mac side, Mail, Safari with a lot of tabs, preview, messages, Photoshop etc.

 

[badsimian]

Do you think that 16gb ram are enough for a single win10 vm for office work (databases, scanning, excel etc.)?
My preliminary tests are positive but I would like a second opinion as I have a coworker with this specific need.

yes it’s fine. You can easily do office work etc in a single VM with 8GB, you could probably even get away with giving it 12GB and MacOS would be functional.

 

[filmak]

yes it’s fine. You can easily do office work etc in a single VM with 8GB, you could probably even get away with giving it 12GB and MacOS would be functional.

Thank you, I really appreciate your immediate response and help.

 

[Hexley]

16" rMBP[i7+32+512] as you cannot upgrade RAM after. I expect to keep this for until 2026.