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8 gigs of ram
- Thread starter tim1000
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More than enough... Don't sweat it and enjoy the machine...
Now I have no doubt you'll get responses telling you need 16GB just open Safari but for normal home type use 8GB is more than sufficient and will be for the life of the machine...
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These machines are disposable and are basically non repairable.. How future proof does a disposable machine need to be? 8GB is fine for your home style usage. If you want a warm and fuzzy - piece of mind feeling then get one with 16GB...
I love how people say Apple products are disposable. Yeah, they last 8-10+ years. Windows machines are disposable pieces of junk. That you can open up, and upgrade, and stuff crap into them. And they still die on you in 3 years or so.
Hmm, one has to wonder what you have done to make a machine die after 3 years or so. Our Windows machines last just the same as our Apple machines. Hmmm. Maybe it's because in many cases they use the same parts from the same manufacturers?
Huh? I said absolutely nothing about this applying to Apple only now did I? Nice rant but what does that have to do with anything? Most of these ultrabooks, Win machines included, are disposable...
Why you ask? Well lets use a bit of common sense shall we?
SSD fails = Might as well buy a new machine
RAM fails = Might as well buy a new machine
CPU fails = Might as well buy a new machine
The only real difference may be with the KB failure. Apple charges almost $800 for an out of warranty KB replacement. Not sure what a Win machine like a Surface Laptop would cost but it may be similar...
So 3 years from now if you have a failure are you going to pay $800 to repair an old machine when you'd be able to buy a brand new one for a few hundred more.....
Like I said, nice rant but care to discuss the actual topic now?
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You didn't get the memo? Apple uses magical parts....
Not exactly fair to compare a $1,199 MacBook Air to a $300 Windows laptop. There are good-quality Windows machines as well, and both will typically last a long time.
With the MacBook Air the 8 GB RAM will become a limiting factor in 7 years (think of using a 2 GB RAM MacBook Air from 2011 today). Software support is usually dropped quicker for Macs as well (7-9 years), while a Windows machine can get 10+ years on a current version of Windows.
I think 8gb is too little for a machine like this but if your budget is tight maybe you do that.
My 2014 MBA has 8GB in it and for what you're describing it's more than adequate NOW. Consider how long you want to keep it before upgrading and what your budget is. If you want use it longer into the future, I'd consider 16 if budget allows.
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Fast forward to the beginning of 2020 and the same question comes from the TS, I guess people will advice 32Gb of RAM, just to be future proof, right?
I’m glad I ordered my Air with 16gb of RAM. I like to keep safari or chrome open with a dozen or more tabs at all times, have steam running in the background (just for chat lol don’t expect the Air to play games), iTunes, Photos, Calendar, etc on a second desktop, and usually have finder open somewhere. With all this I sit at minimum 8.5gb and usually use 10gb. This much stuff open obviously affects battery life so away from home I keep less apps open.
While the Air has a fast SSD to page from this costs cpu time and further affects performance. Most people probably won’t notice I guess.
While the Air has a fast SSD to page from this costs cpu time and further affects performance. Most people probably won’t notice I guess.
I have 8 and it's never been a problem for me using iTunes, Safari, ms office, and mail.
People seem very happy with the 2017 and older air based on what I see at work and coffee shops all over town.
People seem very happy with the 2017 and older air based on what I see at work and coffee shops all over town.
Rubbish. I've got 4gb in my 2011 MBA and it still runs perfectly today, more than enough for light duties.
As others have already stated, 8GB is more then sufficient for your needs. OSX which is based off Unix has extremely efficient memory management. It’s really, really good. That being said, always get the most you can afford at the time of purchase since you can’t upgrade down the road. OSX will actually use all the memory available too it.
But yes, for your needs 8GB is more then sufficient, and will be for a few years.
But yes, for your needs 8GB is more then sufficient, and will be for a few years.
MacOS Mojave system specs require a minimum of 2GB RAM. I believe 4GB is adequate for day-to-day use, 8GB is lots, and 16GB is excessive. MacOS is exceptionally efficient with its memory usage; it uses on-the-fly memory compression when possible in order to get the most bang from your RAM. My best advice would be to stick with 8GB RAM but then take the $$$ you'd spend on more and buy a reliable HDD backup drive.
Same here and I do sometimes push the number of open browser tabs to 10 or so. Sure I’d like 8Gb, but 16 seems overkill in comparison. If you need it then you probably need the MBP’s processor too.
A few years ago I would've agreed with you, but these days apps are getting more demanding. 4 GB works fine for light use like web browsing on Safari with a small number of tabs, but 8 GB is the minimum I would consider adequate for day-to-day use on MacOS Mojave.
The problem I see with getting 8 GB RAM now is that it's soldered to the board, and you're stuck with that amount for the entire life of the Mac. This has long been a problem with the MacBook Airs, and the amount of RAM in the old 2 GB and 4 GB models is already inadequate for day-to-day use in 2018.