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Hexley

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Jun 10, 2009
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Assuming two RAM slots I could see myself putting at most 2x16GB SODIMMs so long as they're under $120.

If SSD was user ugpgradeable I'd put in 2TB.
 
I dunno, I'd love the option of being able to upgrade on my own. But in the case of my gaming PC, I started with 16GB with the plan of upgrading later. I haven't yet felt the need for more then 16GB and suspect the same would happen with my MacBook Pro.

For the SSD, definitely! I would have started with the base i7 16" and upgraded the 512 SSD myself. The standard 1TB SSD is why I ended up purchasing the base i9.
 
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My 2017 MBP with 8GB RAM seems to be sufficient for my workload - office work, web browsing, email, editing videos in iMovie. I see no detectable permeance issues so 8GB RAM seems to work fine for my use case.
 
I have 8GB/256GB SSD base config.

If it weren't soldered, and I thought my 2016 non tocuhbar will be able to stretch its legs for a few more years, and if the price were right, I might stick 16GB in for the helluvit.And possibly a 512GB SSD even though 8 and 256 has been fine.

I used to love doing ram upgrades back in the golden apple days.

When I did that, and gutted the SuperDrive and replaced it with SSD so I have SSD for apps and OS, and mechanical hard drive for data, my non retina MacBook Pro felt unstoppable
 
Definitely 32 at a min and at least 1TB SSD. I miss the days were you could pop the back off and add those components!
Crazy to think that there are actually people out there who defend Apple for taking away user-upgradeable RAM and SSD in their top end 15"/16" laptops. It's unacceptable

Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Extreme also has second SSD slot in addition to upgradeable primary RAM and SSD slots

In respect to OP's question, I'd put in 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD
 
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Crazy to think that there are actually people out there who defend Apple for taking away user-upgradeable RAM and SSD in their top end 15"/16" laptops. It's unacceptable

Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Extreme also has second SSD slot in addition to upgradeable primary RAM and SSD slots

In respect to OP's question, I'd put in 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD
to keep to a certain weight and dimension I get why they want it soldered on. but I’d gladly give up 50 grams and 3 cubic centimeters more for expandability.
 
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In my Thinkpad P52, I have 64gb. On my MBP 15 and 16 and I have 16gb each. I don't use MBP for anything too intensive anyway. I just need something when I am traveling that can do things as needed. But if the units are user upgradable, I would always max out. I don't use it all, but why not have it just in case.
 
I have 16 now and see no imperative to change it. It would be nice to be able to put in another 16 down the road if I had to. It is what it is. I think 16 will be good, for me, for five years easy.
 
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"If RAM was user upgradeable, how much would be in your MBP right now?"

My (2011) MBP is upgradeable and it has 8GB in it (upgraded from 4GB years ago) and (before the GPU gave out) got used for web development, running VMs, image editing and some video editing/recompression. Of course, all of those things are "as long as a piece of string" depending on (e.g.) whether you're editing images and icons for a website or working on a massive 600dpi poster composited from umpteen layers of high-res bitmaps...

Point is, if I bought a new laptop with upgradeable RAM it could start with the default 8 or 16GB of RAM until or unless I found I needed more. With the current choice, I might feel forced to pay Apple's ridiculous 800% markup for 32GB "just in case".
 
Assuming two RAM slots I could see myself putting at most 2x16GB SODIMMs so long as they're under $120.
I would have the amount of ram, that I need, regardless if its user replaceable or not. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I think the point is moot, either way, you set the ram that you need either at time of purchase or afterwards. In both cases, I'll have the ram that I want
 
I have 32 GM in my non-upgradable 16" MBP. Really I could get by with 16GB for Premier Pro and Lightroom and some programming. I can do much of my heavy ML/AI work in the cloud, or in a pinch on my deskside system.
 
i would normally be all for a DIY up-grade path
but
the current state of macOS is not supportive in the office / professional environment

happy surfing, emailing, social media thingy... with 8GB
 
yep, the max,

i currently have the 2019 15" with 32GB, but sometimes when i run a few VM's that need 16GB each, it's struggling...
would have loved the 64GB option
 
Generally speaking, people want RAM to be user upgradable for two reasons: 1. So they can get the base model from Apple and then put cheaper third-party RAM in it for much less than Apple would charge for the same configuration (I used to do this all the time before the days of soldered RAM). 2. So they can upgrade a machine later on in its life.

So it seems to me that what the OP is really asking is, "how much RAM would you have if you only had to pay 1/4 of what Apple is asking?" For me, 16GB is fine, but if it was a matter of paying closer to $100 than $400, I would go ahead and get 32GB.
 
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If I could upgrade my late 2013 retina 13", it'd go from 8 to 16gb, the max it supports. SSD from 256gb to 1tb. If I would get a 16" now, it would be 64/1tb.
 
32GB, which is pretty much the sweet spot for me. And since my new MBP is not user upgradeable, I have ordered it with 32GB and pretty much payed the Apple tax...
 
I wonder if one day we will ever get an insider book that reveals all the a** rape the customer meetings apple has had over the years. Overcharging by a factor of 5 for RAM only scratches the surface. There should even be a machine leaving the line with less than 16GB and yet they still sell machines with 8GB when doubling that might add 5 dollars to the BOM. Also, How about always having ipads rolled out with half the ram you will need for the next iOS? One could go one for days....
 
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