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16GB RAM in an iMac?
- Thread starter luke.mac1
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so cheap now why not??
I always max out my RAM!
$2,879.99 for 4x8GB 1333MHz SO-DIMM
I agree...Safari is super HOG
The only time I see Safari using high memory amounts is when flash is running.
There is no limit. I don't think apple sells 32gb (or 24gb, 28gb etc.) because of the large price tag associated with using 8gb sticks. Plus, think about how much Apple will mark it up ($5,000 for RAM anyone?)...
Overkill? Yes, for most people. But very affordable overkill. ^^
After all these years, you can now finally make memory a non-issue (for the next few years) - for less than $200.
After all these years, you can now finally make memory a non-issue (for the next few years) - for less than $200.
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Another vote for Crucial. I've put 16GB in both iMacs I use daily, replacing the OEM memory entirely. (Have had issues with mixing brands im tge past; I don't chance it anymore.)
I spend most of my computing time in Fusion, running multiple VMs in parallel (lol no pun intended). 16GB for the host is a drop in the bucket compared to the ESX blades at work that are packed with half a TB
I spend most of my computing time in Fusion, running multiple VMs in parallel (lol no pun intended). 16GB for the host is a drop in the bucket compared to the ESX blades at work that are packed with half a TB
Good to know, my MBP is limited to 3gb which I've found really frustrating. The iMac has 12gb in it which is fine for now.
As for brands I've got Corsair in the iMac and Crucial in the MBP, both are fine.
There is very little difference between 12GB and 16GB performance wise, if any at all. No reason for the 4GB Apple Ram to go to waste. So you are paying essentially for a extra 4GB ram over the 8GB. Why not just get the 8GB?
You are actually paying more per GB by getting 16GB vs 8GB.
So 164.00 US for 16GB or 82.00 US for 12GB using Crucial Ram for example which is currently the cheapest and the best in my opinion. Once you do the math the 16GB doesn't sound to good if you ask me.
A year or two down the road you can put that money toward two 8GB sticks and have 24GB instead of 16GB. 24GB vs 16GB is a big difference, 12GB vs 16GB is not.
If you have 16Gb you are not likely to upgrade the ram if ever. With 12Gb you most likely will be then you can chuck the Apple 4GB ram then take that up to 24.
You are actually paying more per GB by getting 16GB vs 8GB.
So 164.00 US for 16GB or 82.00 US for 12GB using Crucial Ram for example which is currently the cheapest and the best in my opinion. Once you do the math the 16GB doesn't sound to good if you ask me.
A year or two down the road you can put that money toward two 8GB sticks and have 24GB instead of 16GB. 24GB vs 16GB is a big difference, 12GB vs 16GB is not.
If you have 16Gb you are not likely to upgrade the ram if ever. With 12Gb you most likely will be then you can chuck the Apple 4GB ram then take that up to 24.
I just upgraded my 21.5" 2011 iMac to 12GB and I have noticed a big speed increase in every day tasks (web browsing, e-mail, etc). Not so much the speed of the applications themselves but how fast I can navigate through them. They are more snappy and the internal hard drive isn't working as hard.
16GB is not overkill. Just do it. It makes a difference.
16GB is not overkill. Just do it. It makes a difference.
RAM Words of Wisdom
Buy the most you can afford.
Don't buy RAM that you might eventually replace.
Max out the computer if it's reasonably priced.
Buy 3rd Party RAM and install it yourself.
16GB on the iMac FTW.
Buy the most you can afford.
Don't buy RAM that you might eventually replace.
Max out the computer if it's reasonably priced.
Buy 3rd Party RAM and install it yourself.
16GB on the iMac FTW.
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)
Weird thing: on the other world computing page for iMac ram it says that 32 gigs is only for the 27".
It's not in the body, but if you look below the prices it says 27" only.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/iMac/2011/DDR3_21.5_27
Weird thing: on the other world computing page for iMac ram it says that 32 gigs is only for the 27".
It's not in the body, but if you look below the prices it says 27" only.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/iMac/2011/DDR3_21.5_27
20 gigs in a 2011 - i7 Problem
I have two 8's in two slots of the 27" i7 and just added the 4 gigs that came with on the machine in the other two slots. It recognized 20 gigs for about 10 minutes and then crashed. I removed the 4 gigs restarted OK, now running for about 2 hours. So there seems to be a firmware problem with the 2011 Macs running more than 16.
I have two 8's in two slots of the 27" i7 and just added the 4 gigs that came with on the machine in the other two slots. It recognized 20 gigs for about 10 minutes and then crashed. I removed the 4 gigs restarted OK, now running for about 2 hours. So there seems to be a firmware problem with the 2011 Macs running more than 16.