Graphic design + 3D and video: should I go for 32 GB RAM, or would 16 be enough? Advice?

[SilviaGraphics]

Hi everyone, newbie here, hope I'm not breaking any rules!

I am trying to understand whether I WILL actually need these 32 GBs of RAM or not.
I'm a graphic/product designer, at work I currently use a 2017 27'' iMac with 32 GB Ram, and my daily tasks consist mainly of:

• Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator, on files that can be very heavy (complex packaging, multi-page illustrated PDFs, high-res editing etc)
• 3D Modelling on Rhinoceros, rendering on Blender. I recently upgraded to Rhinoceros 7 and I noticed it performs quite poorly on my current iMac, which surprised me (Rhino 6 was smoother) but I have no clue of the reason why.
• Video editing, which is still fairly new to me, but I will be doing a lot more of it - next year about 50% of my projects will go from the current photo/presentation format, to video. Lots of 3D animation in my future too.

I am looking to get one of the new Macbook Pros, to replace/alternate with the iMac (work from home will become a staple in my workplace, and I can't be lugging the iMac around between home and office).
It needs to be able to handle the same type of files and workflow of the current work iMac, plus increasing amounts of video editing.
Duration: ideally, I would like this laptop to last me 5-10 years, and still be functional.
I'm not a "fan" buyer and I don't see expensive laptops as toys to collect; as long as I can still get my work done on this, I wouldn't want to trade it for a new one, no matter what new cool thing they come up with.
As a reference: my 2008 MacbookPro died in 2020, and up until the last few months when the screen started dying, I was still using it for lighter work tasks (InDesign, small web graphics like icons).
It was by far the most reliable and durable computer (not just laptop) I've ever owned, carried it around the world, lasted from my Uni days until most of my adult career, and ideally I would like something that comes close.

I'm leaning towards a 14 inch MacBook (I'm a small person and 16 is too heavy/big! I'll invest in a good screen for home instead), with M1 Pro, 10 Core CPU, 1 TB SSD; but I just can't figure out if 16 GB will be enough, or I might be safer with 32!
What do you suggest? My knowledge, as I'm sure you can tell, is limited.
Also I apologize for any mistakes - English is not my first language.

TIA to anyone!

 

[Woodcrest64]

Hi everyone, newbie here, hope I'm not breaking any rules!

I am trying to understand whether I WILL actually need these 32 GBs of RAM or not.
I'm a graphic/product designer, at work I currently use a 2017 27'' iMac with 32 GB Ram, and my daily tasks consist mainly of:

• Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator, on files that can be very heavy (complex packaging, multi-page illustrated PDFs, high-res editing etc)
• 3D Modelling on Rhinoceros, rendering on Blender. I recently upgraded to Rhinoceros 7 and I noticed it performs quite poorly on my current iMac, which surprised me (Rhino 6 was smoother) but I have no clue of the reason why.
• Video editing, which is still fairly new to me, but I will be doing a lot more of it - next year about 50% of my projects will go from the current photo/presentation format, to video. Lots of 3D animation in my future too.

I am looking to get one of the new Macbook Pros, to replace/alternate with the iMac (work from home will become a staple in my workplace, and I can't be lugging the iMac around between home and office).
It needs to be able to handle the same type of files and workflow of the current work iMac, plus increasing amounts of video editing.
Duration: ideally, I would like this laptop to last me 5-10 years, and still be functional.
I'm not a "fan" buyer and I don't see expensive laptops as toys to collect; as long as I can still get my work done on this, I wouldn't want to trade it for a new one, no matter what new cool thing they come up with.
As a reference: my 2008 MacbookPro died in 2020, and up until the last few months when the screen started dying, I was still using it for lighter work tasks (InDesign, small web graphics like icons).
It was by far the most reliable and durable computer (not just laptop) I've ever owned, carried it around the world, lasted from my Uni days until most of my adult career, and ideally I would like something that comes close.

I'm leaning towards a 14 inch MacBook (I'm a small person and 16 is too heavy/big! I'll invest in a good screen for home instead), with M1 Pro, 10 Core CPU, 1 TB SSD; but I just can't figure out if 16 GB will be enough, or I might be safer with 32!
What do you suggest? My knowledge, as I'm sure you can tell, is limited.
Also I apologize for any mistakes - English is not my first language.

TIA to anyone!

I used my 2012 Macbook Retina 15" till 2021. I got 16gb of ram back then. If you plan on keeping your laptop for that length I'd opt for the 32gb of memory. I replaced my 2012 15" with a M1 MacBook Air with 16gb of memory. I do use Photoshop, Lightroom and Final Cut Pro but I'm not a heavy user by any means.

 

[metapunk2077fail]

32GB minimum for your mixed workflow. I say this because the 32GB is shared with the GPU and a chunk of that will be used for texture memory.

 

[MarkC426]

Agree with above posts, 32gb.
You can never have too much ram when working with video or 3D.

This will give you extended life of the laptop (non upgradeable).
Also some apps you use may not be native M1 versions and use Rosetta which would use more resources.

 

[wilberforce]

Based on my experience using a 14" M1 Pro with 16GB in Photoshop and Lightroom, I think 32GB would serve you better. These apps consume a lot of the shared RAM for GPU usage, leaving less for the CPU. This does not occur on an Intel machine (like my iMac) which has separate VRAM dedicated for the GPU.
I find graphics editing on the M1 Pro uses significantly more RAM than on an Intel machine.