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Did future-proofing pay off for you?
- Thread starter m1maverick
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Dreamholde
Contributor
Since you specifically requested responses from future-proofers, I don't think these results are too surprising. You're only going to pay for upgrades if you're inclined to think they're worthwhile, and once you've done so you're probably going to credit the longevity of your machine to the fact that you bought those upgrades.
Agreed that this is has been and remains the smartest move for users with typical consumer workflows who intend to buy new machines on a regular cadence (though the recent price increases are going to make that purchase pattern rather more painful).
Having bought both upgraded and (nearly) base models in the past, I do think there are a lot of people who genuinely benefit from future-proofing the components they expect to outgrow. Since trade-in value seldom rises commensurately with the cost of upgrades, this is especially true if you're already paying to upgrade some other part of the machine to do what you need it to do. (For example, someone who knows they need an SSD with more space to take lots of files on the road may decide to also upgrade the RAM to help extend the useful life of the machine.) That said, to this day our 8GB M1 MacBook Air continues to handle everything we throw at it so impressively (even while paging/swapping to its SSD) that I was perfectly comfortable sticking with the base 16GB of RAM on this year's M5 MacBook Air. Maybe I'll live to regret that decision, but I'm guessing it will be replaced for other reasons (processor? battery?) before we start to feel constrained by the RAM inside it.
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Matsamoto
macrumors 65816
You can’t possibly know that for sure.
With the M-series we can’t know for sure.
We can only guess.
My 2011 11" Macbook Air still does the job for me. My previous machine went from 2006 - 2016. If the average lifespan of a Mac is 10-15 years then I'd say anything brought since 2020 is futureproof.
You can't make computers future-proof. You can make them future-resistant to a depth of 5 years.
My usage has been broadly the same since I bought my M1 back in 2021, but I needed 32 GB of RAM then, and I still need it now.
My usage has been broadly the same since I bought my M1 back in 2021, but I needed 32 GB of RAM then, and I still need it now.
keksikuningas
macrumors 6502
I skimped on storage but not on RAM and often wish I'd've gotten the 1TB SSD. At the time I was thinking I'd store all the garbo on a NAS or an external SSD hooked up to my dock or god forbid SD Card , but that stuff is so expensive now. I am wondering sometimes if I should cut my losses and resell while it still has some value due to AI ram amount hysteria
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
I'm a firm believer that future proof (for the most part) is a marketing strategy that apple and others employ to manipulate people to over buying.
Apple Silicon is so powerful, there is almost no reason to pay apple upgrade prices when the base model is almost always sufficient for most people.
I have a M1 MBP, base model, its been working great for 6 years, I'm glad I didn't pay for increased storage/ram.
The Neo, people are happy with 8GB of ram, and an iPhone processor. They're editting videos, photos, doing things that were once used to justify the upgrading the ram/processor. Thunderbolt storage is a viable alternative to paying the apple tax for more storage.
Apple Silicon is so powerful, there is almost no reason to pay apple upgrade prices when the base model is almost always sufficient for most people.
I have a M1 MBP, base model, its been working great for 6 years, I'm glad I didn't pay for increased storage/ram.
The Neo, people are happy with 8GB of ram, and an iPhone processor. They're editting videos, photos, doing things that were once used to justify the upgrading the ram/processor. Thunderbolt storage is a viable alternative to paying the apple tax for more storage.
inventor7777
macrumors newbie
Mac Studio M4 Max with 48GB of RAM, 512GB of storage. (I keep most of my files on NASes)
Part of me wishes I had gotten 64GB to run larger AI models, but for normal use I hope to keep this machine for quite some years.
On Sequoia, it is incredibly snappy and powerful enough for anything I throw at it. I have had no regrets for normal use whatsoever.
Part of me wishes I had gotten 64GB to run larger AI models, but for normal use I hope to keep this machine for quite some years.
On Sequoia, it is incredibly snappy and powerful enough for anything I throw at it. I have had no regrets for normal use whatsoever.
MisterSavage
macrumors 603
I definitely feel this. I always assumed I needed a pro for app development but a lot of my dev friends get by fine with an Air.
dmr727
macrumors G4
I usually buy more RAM than I figure I'll need, but I'm not sure it ever pays off since I tend to succumb to FOMO on the processor/GPU side after 3-5 years anyway.
Abydos
macrumors 6502a
'what fools these mortals be', I bought what I needed then - assuming it would be unsupported in 7 years, it turns out it went longer (dumb luck) . I'll buy again with the same outlook. (not sure what the pace of innovation will be so I'll stick to the present needs and buy when I have a compelling reason)
AppleTO
macrumors 68000
For anyone who tried to future proof a MacBook Pro 16-inch, 2019... I have some bad news.
Hmmm… I’m quite a basic user and was noticing the 8gb in my m1 mbp were clogging things up and leading to a lot of slower swap. It was very noticeable, especially with a few safari tabs open along with music/mail/messages going on. I bumped my new MBA up to 24gb RAM and am loving it.
16gb is the complete bare minimum for me & future versions of macOS. Other than that the M chips are pretty good. I worry people may come to regret the Neo purchase sooner than they should with those 8gb.
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
Don't post that in the Neo forum, you'll be castigated, or castrated - not sure which 😵
jz0309
macrumors P6
I really am unsure what "future proofing" really means tbh ... when I got my M1Max Mac Studio I looked at mythes current needs and did some projection over 4-5 or so years, primarily from a storage perspective. At the time I had a 2017 27 iMac with 40GB and 1 TB and I had to move my photo library off to an external drive a couple years earlier. I am using LRC and PS and PS has always been a RAM hog ... So I spec'd it to 64GB and 4TB and today, I'm using ~ 2TB of data, so still way to go.
And I am on the photographers plan for Adobe so running the latest versions and they still run fine, no slowdowns or anything like that.
I did get AC+ for the Studio and I was about to not get another year (at the end of last year) but where pricing has been going, I'll be extending AC+ for as long as I can, it's $60 per year so it's worth it to me to run my Studio for another 3-4 or so years, longer than I had planned for
And I am on the photographers plan for Adobe so running the latest versions and they still run fine, no slowdowns or anything like that.
I did get AC+ for the Studio and I was about to not get another year (at the end of last year) but where pricing has been going, I'll be extending AC+ for as long as I can, it's $60 per year so it's worth it to me to run my Studio for another 3-4 or so years, longer than I had planned for
conmee
macrumors 65816
Mine worked great (Tahoe slowed it down a bit) for nearly seven years until I upgraded in March. I guess it depends how far into the future one would like to proof. I’d say don’t expect to go longer than OS support unless you’re ok with lack of security updates or you expect to tackle Linux. I bought a Core i9 64GB/2TB/5500M and probably would get another year or two out of it depending on one’s use. My main reason for upgrading was macOS Tahoe is the end of the line for that machine and Apple didn’t really put much effort into optimizing for Intel and I don’t necessarily blame them. My other reason was getting into local LLMs. AI and local inferencing just wasn’t a thing in 2019. But aside from Tahoe and AI, that 2019 16” was a beast as far as Intel systems are concerned. It ran all my virtual machines and apps just fine.
What are folks’ time horizon for future-proofing? 3yrs? 7yrs? 10yrs? I like to at least get 5yrs without issues.
I futureproofed a little and then Apple upgraded me even further for free because my machine was DOA. Plenty of storage and power for the foreseeable future for my needs.
TarkinDale
macrumors regular
I figure 5 years. When I was buying systems for businesses, I assumed a three year turnover. Buying for my own work, I figure 5 years without it becoming g painful to use. Anything after that is a bonus. I am hoping mine lasts until the end of 2027 as I don’t want to buy in the mess that is the current tech market.
poorcody
macrumors 68000
I used to future proof but no more. The problem I found was there were new technologies that would come along that you couldn't anticipate like Retina screens or Apple Silicon, that greatly diminished the value of the upgrades. Plus the upgrades come at a premium delta, which is usually not recoverable in resale. I came to the conclusion buying less but more frequently worked best for me.
Of course with AI work, now you can never have enough RAM or GPU, so, these days I end up getting expensive upgrades and upgrading more often! 😕
Of course with AI work, now you can never have enough RAM or GPU, so, these days I end up getting expensive upgrades and upgrading more often! 😕
In 2013 I purchased a 13" Macbook Air with the max RAM of 8 GB and max CPU of 1,7 Ghz i7.
This laptop has given me 13 years of good office use. (Even running Sonoma with OCLP.)
Battery life was down to about 4 hours though.
I retired it a few weeks ago. Now a Neo is my daily office driver. So long, old friend.
This laptop has given me 13 years of good office use. (Even running Sonoma with OCLP.)
Battery life was down to about 4 hours though.
I retired it a few weeks ago. Now a Neo is my daily office driver. So long, old friend.
I love the 2TB but should have gone 4TB but it’s so hard to justify. In hindsight I half think I should have got base storage and an external drive I just got use to doing that.
It’s seems a lot of reviewers and forum members do that now..
The SSD cost still leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
Also funnily enough, I re purposed my old 2014 iMac on big sur as my office Mac… and I’m surprised at how well it performs at medic office and email etc. which goes to show we don’t need mad specced up machines for everyday use
Larsvonhier
macrumors 68000
Bought the M1 Air in 2020, no limits there yet.
Also running several Mac Pro 5,1 (maxed with 96GB RAM and Nvidia metal capable GPU) with OCLP / Sequoia. No real-world limit there as well (waiting for the Tahoe patches, but that´s not crucial).
So no, I am no friend of over-spec´d buying to stay "future proof".
Also running several Mac Pro 5,1 (maxed with 96GB RAM and Nvidia metal capable GPU) with OCLP / Sequoia. No real-world limit there as well (waiting for the Tahoe patches, but that´s not crucial).
So no, I am no friend of over-spec´d buying to stay "future proof".
I’m exactly the same. I’d rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. With that being said I have no FOMO about upgrading at the moment as it’s still and enough and the computer is pretty much the same but with a different processor.
Finding the sweet spot seems to be the trick. Back in 2019 I got myself a fully loaded iMac with 128GB RAM. Approximately 96GB more than I needed. Since I ended up requiring a laptop, and overprovisioned the heck out of that iMac, I sold it within a year. So not worth it. My M1Max has 32GB RAM; had 24GB been available I may have gone with it as this setup replaced an M1 mini with 16GB RAM that was not up to my needs. I had also debated 64GB. Coming up on five years later, I still haven’t exceeded my RAM cap. So worth it. (I keep track of system performance and 24GB would not have been enough by now.)
It’s a weird world for tech at the moment. I expect to begin feeling the limits of my setup with macOS 27 (I’m still on 15) but it may well be a few years before I can replace my MBPro. While 64GB RAM would undoubtedly make for better longevity, I expect all other elements of my Mac to be the ones clamouring for replacement: single core performance, mesh shading, ray tracing, outright GPU performance, Thunderbolt 5 to name some of the most prominent for me.
But I recall my 2014 iMac with warm fuzzies; seven years later is when I started to notice it not being able to keep up anymore. Perhaps the MacBook will go that distance as well, however I have desires to replace it now. Those desires will not be met…
It’s a weird world for tech at the moment. I expect to begin feeling the limits of my setup with macOS 27 (I’m still on 15) but it may well be a few years before I can replace my MBPro. While 64GB RAM would undoubtedly make for better longevity, I expect all other elements of my Mac to be the ones clamouring for replacement: single core performance, mesh shading, ray tracing, outright GPU performance, Thunderbolt 5 to name some of the most prominent for me.
But I recall my 2014 iMac with warm fuzzies; seven years later is when I started to notice it not being able to keep up anymore. Perhaps the MacBook will go that distance as well, however I have desires to replace it now. Those desires will not be met…