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32GB of Ram or 16GB of Ram, Can't Decide!

iPad Retina

iPad Retina

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jan 6, 2013
762
66
Toronto
Hi, I will be receiving a replacement 2018 MacBook Pro 15' 512GB 2.6Ghz and 560 Graphics, but I can't decide whether or not to get 16GB of Ram or 32GB of ram.

Ill be using this computer for my yearbook class, and ill be heading into university the following year, Right now I'm having issues with my 2017 TBMBP when rendering videos, whole computer becomes unusable. But the extra 16GB of Ram (32GB ram in total) is an additional $400

I could get AppleCare with that instead, thoughts?

Also apparently I can choose a colour, currently have space grey, but I could get silver, thoughts?
 
iPad Retina said:
Hi, I will be receiving a replacement 2018 MacBook Pro 15' 512GB 2.6Ghz and 560 Graphics, but I can't decide whether or not to get 16GB of Ram or 32GB of ram.

Ill be using this computer for my yearbook class, and ill be heading into university the following year, Right now I'm having issues with my 2017 TBMBP when rendering videos, whole computer becomes unusable. But the extra 16GB of Ram (32GB ram in total) is an additional $400

I could get AppleCare with that instead, thoughts?

Also apparently I can choose a colour, currently have space grey, but I could get silver, thoughts?
Click to expand...

Stick with the 16GB and get AppleCare+ to completely cover you for the next few years. In terms of color, I would go with Space Grey as that is what Apple is designing for on the Pro side. I had a silver one, but it just felt to much like the 2015 model. BUT it is 100% your choice on color!
 
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New_Mac_Smell said:
University student, 16GB is plenty. Definitely get AppleCare instead, the speedy repair or help is far more valuable.
Click to expand...

Based on your experience. How much space does university classes use on our computer.
[doublepost=1532578194][/doublepost]Is there anything I should upgrade in praticular. Or just leave it normal spec.
 
iPad Retina said:
Hi, I will be receiving a replacement 2018 MacBook Pro 15' 512GB 2.6Ghz and 560 Graphics, but I can't decide whether or not to get 16GB of Ram or 32GB of ram.

Ill be using this computer for my yearbook class, and ill be heading into university the following year, Right now I'm having issues with my 2017 TBMBP when rendering videos, whole computer becomes unusable. But the extra 16GB of Ram (32GB ram in total) is an additional $400

I could get AppleCare with that instead, thoughts?

Also apparently I can choose a colour, currently have space grey, but I could get silver, thoughts?
Click to expand...


Anything less than 32GB is for sissies. I have been cramped for RAM on my 16GB MacBook Pros for 4 years now.

But I use my machine for work. On the other hand, hobbyists and beginners might be fine with 16GB.

Get the RAM now and buy AppleCare at the end of the first year to even out your cash flow.
 
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I could have recommended just going for it, if the extra RAM was only a few bucks more - but it is not. I would save my benjamins for something else - especially for a college student with tuition and rent to pay. Maybe later when you have a job that literally depends on the extra RAM (and is lucrative enough to pay for the hardware) would I recommend considering the top end RAM.
 
I think it depends on how long you expec to keep your computer. If you plan to keep it5+ years then you probably want the 32gb even if you don’t need it now. By the end of it’s life cycle you will probably be glad you got the 32, though the MacBook Pro sounds like it might be overkill for your usage case. Your video rendering issues may be software based more than hardware based.
 
iPad Retina said:
Based on your experience. How much space does university classes use on our computer.
[doublepost=1532578194][/doublepost]Is there anything I should upgrade in praticular. Or just leave it normal spec.
Click to expand...

Honestly you're talking about classes, not high end professional work. Even 8GB would be fine, just get the base spec and spend the money on other things. Don't worry about longevity, once you finish your school you'll go get a job - then you'll have little use for that computer, and the cost of upgrading to a new machine will be negligible at that point anyway. So just get what you need for now, if you want get the 256GB/16GB setup. But check what resources the school has and what is actually needed.
 
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New_Mac_Smell said:
Honestly you're talking about classes, not high end professional work. Even 8GB would be fine, just get the base spec and spend the money on other things. Don't worry about longevity, once you finish your school you'll go get a job - then you'll have little use for that computer, and the cost of upgrading to a new machine will be negligible at that point anyway. So just get what you need for now, if you want get the 256GB/16GB setup. But check what resources the school has and what is actually needed.
Click to expand...
I’m getting this computer for free basically. So I’m just paying for any upgrades
 
iPad Retina said:
Hi, I will be receiving a replacement 2018 MacBook Pro 15' 512GB 2.6Ghz and 560 Graphics, but I can't decide whether or not to get 16GB of Ram or 32GB of ram.

Ill be using this computer for my yearbook class, and ill be heading into university the following year, Right now I'm having issues with my 2017 TBMBP when rendering videos, whole computer becomes unusable. But the extra 16GB of Ram (32GB ram in total) is an additional $400

I could get AppleCare with that instead, thoughts?

Also apparently I can choose a colour, currently have space grey, but I could get silver, thoughts?
Click to expand...
The iMac 27 inch currently can be upgraded by the user to a max of 32 GB for the lowest end version and 64 GB for the higher end ones. The 27 inch iMac is cheaper by purchasing it refurbished with the minimum 8 GB ram with the ability o upgrade as needed and with that in mind the 16GB laptop should be sufficient and you can save towards an iMac to then be upgraded for heavy loads that need desktop. The 3.5 and 3.8 versions are upgradeable to 64 GB. It is cheaper in cost to pay for both Apple care and ram upgrade rather then having to buy a separate computer due to insufficient memory.
 
iPad Retina said:
I’m getting this computer for free basically. So I’m just paying for any upgrades
Click to expand...

Then get the upgrades if you want, entirely up to you, but you don't need them.

Your computer will be freezing up when doing a render because that's how computers work. Upgrading will not change that. The computer will use 100% of the CPU when rendering something...
 
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New_Mac_Smell said:
Then get the upgrades if you want, entirely up to you, but you don't need them.

Your computer will be freezing up when doing a render because that's how computers work. Upgrading will not change that. The computer will use 100% of the CPU when rendering something...
Click to expand...
Yeah I see your point. I guess I’ll stick with the standard configuration and maybe add the 1TB of storage.
borgranta said:
Assuming you plan to keep this after graduation upgrading it now can save you the cost of buying a Mac later on at full price.
Click to expand...
That’s true.
 
If you are finding it unusable for rendering your video's on your 2017 TBMBP - it is quite likely the new model will either exhibit the same issue, or not be much of an improvement. Maybe your workflow isn't compatible for MacBook and/or laptop use.

The new models do have a bit more power, but I don't see them going from "unusable" to "perfectly fine".
 
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If you are getting it for free, I would max out the RAM and as someone suggested, get the Apple Care before the 1 years warranty is up.
 
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iPad Retina said:
Right now I'm having issues with my 2017 TBMBP when rendering videos, whole computer becomes unusable.
Click to expand...

Check your memory pressure.

You need to be smart about upgrading a year old machine. Some "upgrades" will hardly make any difference in your experience; but others might. Find out where the weak point of your current machine lies, and spend your budget on fixing that.

For example, if you have two cores at present, and your workflow is both multithreaded and cpu-bound, stepping up to a four core cpu will help. If you have a small SSD-- but not enough free space to prerender video, then getting a bigger ssd will help. If you have a Intel HD graphics chip, discrete graphics (or even the latest iteration of Intel HD graphics) might well improve your prospects.

But if your machine "limps" around with 14 GB out of 16 GB in use, upgrading to 32 GB will just make your wallet lighter, with no real effect on performance.
[doublepost=1532621730][/doublepost]
Rafterman said:
Like with storage, there is no such a thing as too much RAM.
Click to expand...
Only if the people programming your machine share your enthusiasm for RAM.
 
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Mr. Dee said:
If you are getting it for free, I would max out the RAM and as someone suggested, get the Apple Care before the 1 years warranty is up.
Click to expand...
No. Basically I’m getting the standard configuration for free. It’s just the upgrades I need to pay
 
what you do will determine how much is needed.
The machine shows you what you are using at your most intensive point. If you are close to exceeding that number currently, then think about increasing it on the next purchase.
Then you weigh out the cost.
 
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