I feel lost

[macness]

I just bought a new MBP which will be my only computing device.

Base 16” MBP 16gb i7 512

• Uses: FCPX for editing YT videos 1080, 4K in near future + Learning LR & PS for photo editing + Chrome extensions for drop shipping

• Dilemma: Is 16GB Ram enough for the next 5 years?

• Options: Keep base & sell when new ARM MBP, Mini LED or Redesign comes out and get 32 GB at that time? ( or even just buy the base models and sell/ upgrade every 3 years) Or Swap this out for the 32GB Ram versión? (If I keep and sell in a year will the 16gb be worth a lot less then 32GB, besides the initial price difference?

 

[vladid]

I wouldn't sweat the small details. For what you described you intend to use the machine for now, 16GB of RAM is plenty. Aside from that, making assumptions over a future ARM release is utterly pointless. Enjoy your new laptop and don't waste time questioning your purchase.

 

[hallux]

There's a discussion of this from just recently - https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...gb-is-the-minimum-ram-required.2241500/unread

 

[Madhatter32]

I once bought a base model with the intention of upgrading in three years. That was six years ago. Turns out what I bought continues to get the job done.

 

[CalMin]

More is better, but only if you use it.

For your described usage, actually 8gb is enough and 16gb is plenty. I'm in the market too and while I keep telling myself that I need more than 16gb to 'future-proof' it, the reality is that I don't need it for anything I do.

- I use MS Office and other productivity apps for multiple client projects (at the same time...!)
- I'm learning to code, but it will be only for simple apps if I ever get to that level of skill.
- I edit FCPX (simple YT and family/friends stuff and some 360 or GoPro stuff)
- I run a Windows VM in VMWare because of a couple of legacy Windows apps, but I only do that a couple of times a month, and then only for a few minutes here and there to look stuff up.

If I get 32GB, most of the time it will just sit there sucking up battery. At best it might get a little sluggish over 3-5 years, but probably not. Plus, by then I expect I will be lusting after a new ARM-based MBP with 25-hours of battery life.

What I am considering is a bigger SSD. 512 is plenty today, but I always find that over time my space needs grow faster than my CPU/RAM needs. I hate keeping stuff off-device on my NAS or external drives because it never seems to be there when I need it.

 

[mr_jomo]

Summarizing the many YouTube videos om the subject, your selected MBP config will be up to all your current and listed future tasks.

Your first option is a variant of "Don't try to future proof; you get increasingly less value for the last spend dollar". Most notable with Apple that's sagely advise. I'd put those $400 in my pocket and rejoice knowing that I already had 1/6 of the required savings for my next upgrade 🥳.

 

[Dhock_Holiday]

Don't worry, the CPU will become a bottleneck well before 16GB of RAM does.

 

[CalMin]

You know, the problem is that Apple (and other PC manufacturers) create this anxiety by locking your hardware specs in at time of purchase. Instead of buying what you need now, then upgrading RAM and SSD when your needs change, we are "forced" into thinking about not just how we will compute today, but how we will compute tomorrow.

These questions are always difficult to answer because no-one wants to pay for functionality they don't need at these prices. A 16" MBP is minimally an over $2k investment and we want them to last us for years.

It never used to be that way. I bought the machine that I needed/wanted on a given day then, as my needs changed, I bought a bigger HDD or added more memory. I remember how great it was when you booted up a machine up for the first time with extra RAM. It felt like Christmas morning and like getting a whole new laptop.