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2024 MacBook Air still 8GB Unified Memory
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If that’s the case it’s a bad suggestion because if you need more than 10 cores you will be pushing it hard enough for the Air to throttle; and once it throttles you can’t take advantage of a more powerful chip. Get one of the MBPs which have fans and they start with 16/512.
They know. That is why there is an option to configure 16 or 24 GB.
It’s also ridiculous that iPads and Macs having the same CPU chips, and yet here we are…
Absolutely agree! If you need more then 10 core GPU and 24GB RAM, the MBA is not for you.
I think it’s more than a temporary imbalance in supply and demand. It’s certainly been apparent every time I’ve been looking at changing machines since we moved to soldered-on RAM. The difference is less noticeable on older devices, especially Intel Macs, which are not as desirable since the move to Apple Silicon.
Apple offering stock configurations with more RAM may reduce the premium. We should see some decent discounts on these machines now as more retailers will sell them and the supply should be greater.
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The cost of storage upgrades from Apple is exorbitant. As a result, I've adopted three logical strategies:
1. Avoid purchasing these overpriced upgrades.
2. Invest in AAPL.
3. Voice my complaints about this on MacRumors.
I am a grandma and a student, and I got my computers with 16 GB...
Word was stuttering in my last Windows with 8 GB lol
I'm after the same spec.
The last two MacBooks I've bought have been 'refurbished', but not from Apple. They were purchased three months after launch at between 25-30% off. I'm hoping to get a similar deal this time.
Your lesson is .. Don't buy Windows.
That I don’t mind too much. That is providing the iPads with an overpowered chip that is then underutilized. No real harm to consumers with that one.
Please don’t get me started on Apple’s offensive and obscene RAM/SSD price structure.
I was comparing base model iPhones to base model Macs…which is the standard configuration sold in all stores across the world…it is what most people experience when buying an iPhone or Mac…
Doesn't sounds to me like this is a "you're holding it wrong" scenario as much as it is "you can hold it different"
If you don't like hitting Swap you should have gotten 16 even though you're still going to hit swap with 16. That's just modern computing now and why you should always have your data on external. Your main SSD should have only your few vital programs and lots of room for swapping. Your Cached SSD Storage should be checked and cleared often. Using SSD everyone is burning TBWs. But with your workload, that thing will last longer than the suggested TBW limit by years. That's a 10-15 year machine with that workload.
If you're not doing that memory management yourself, I suggest using CleanMyMacX. Takes care of all that for you! Makes your computer feel snappy and new. If you are still pinwheeling and your computer is still dragging take it to a Mac Genius Bar or repair shop pronto.
Good Luck!
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Apple largely sells their base spec computers to either casual users who just want something for everyday tasks or in bulk to industry and education; either way it makes business sense for them to maximise profits on bulk items or where the average customer won't notice the difference.
MacOS is also coded differently to the resource hog that is Windows and doesn't need as much memory for anything other than transcoding video, coding or CAD and if you're business requires this done ASAP Apple has a whole line of Pro computers you will love.
It sucks that it costs so much money to upgrade something like the RAM which you could do for $30 on a PC
MacOS is also coded differently to the resource hog that is Windows and doesn't need as much memory for anything other than transcoding video, coding or CAD and if you're business requires this done ASAP Apple has a whole line of Pro computers you will love.
It sucks that it costs so much money to upgrade something like the RAM which you could do for $30 on a PC
I do. I plan to use the computer at different locations at home. I could go for laptop or Mini + a portable monitor. Too bad there is no M3/M3 Pro Mini announcement yet for me to compare different options.
Certainly, Apple earns expected profits from base spec sales. However, the real profit bonanza lies in their upgrade markups, particularly for storage, with markups sometimes surpassing 1000%.
There seems to be a limit to their pricing, likely based on market tolerance. The cost of upgrading to 2 TB can equal or exceed that of their base computers or iPad Pros.
It's intriguing why they don't opt for even steeper prices, like $200,000 for 2TB, especially since there appear to be numerous apologists here who would still be willing to purchase at such levels.
Why is this even a thread? It was obvious from the second the 14” Pro and iMac had 8GB that the Air would too.
I'd be the first person to call out Apple for removing value from their entry products to upsell to the Pro's but then again does anyone really care?
Stuttering how? 95% of the work done with MSWord is the user at the keyboard. I have a 200 page document with indexes, table of contents, alternating footers, images, multiple styles and I have never experienced "stuttering" with that document on Windows or Mac.
Yet people don't complain about the obscene prices for a cup of coffee at Starbucks. Priorities. That $200 upgrade to memory, amortized over 5 years, is $0.10 a day. Yet these same people find no issue spending $8.00 for a cup of coffee, each day, when said coffee could be made at home for $0.05.
I have run Lightroom, Photoshop, Topaz Photo AI, half a dozen web pages, FTP client, OneNote, and Mail open at the same time. Never an issue with 8GB of ram.
I suspect that most of the 8GB versus 16GB arguments are people that want something for nothing. A sense of entitlement.
Yes, Apple's prices for upgrades are high. So are upgrades to a new vehicle. So are upgrades to a house. So are upgrades to a recreational vehicle. For real insanity on pricing look at the prices of recreational tow boats. Simple upgrades are very costly. Want an extra battery, tack on about $1000.00 for a battery that only costs $100.00. Pulley for a marine alternator is $200.00 while the same pulley for a car is $15.00. The only difference is a stamp that says marine use.
Simple solution, if you don't want 8GB, then don't buy it. As long as Apple can sell 8GB machines, and charge $200.00 for an upgrade, Apple will do so. Much to the joy of their stockholders.
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Agreed. Apple can charge whatever it wants for upgrades. If it’s too high, people will stop buying. They seem happy enough with the balance of upgrade cost and people buying them.
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Except they never once stated outright that M chip was faster than RTX, period. They always said at the same power draw the M outperformed the RTX. In which case, if you can walk faster than Usain Bolt, then at a walk (same power draw) you are faster than Usain Bolt. They didn't state anything incorrectly; you missed what they actually said. Which was vastly more important than just being top end faster.