I recently purchased a MBP 16" with the M3 Pro but with 18gb, now I'm second guessing myself on the ram, I do not need a lot of storage on the laptop since I don't really keep things locally on it. My work flow is mainly utilizing safari with multiple tabs and a lot of spreadsheets using excel and lastly using mail a lot. I plan on keeping my laptop for 5-7 years, should I return the laptop and get the model with 36gb of ram or keep the current one I have and save the couple hundred dollars.
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M3 Pro 18 or 36gb
- Thread starter Delorean2006
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honestly I think the extra cost is not worth it for just Safari, Mail, Spreadsheets.
You can try a stress test with all your programs and tabs open, check out the memory tab under Activity Monitor and see if your memory pressure stays elevated in the red.
I deliberated 32GB over 16GB for awhile with my M1 Pro 14" and nearly 3 years on I'm glad that I didn't pay the exorbitant price for +16GB of RAM. My memory pressure usually maxes out in the yellow and I have never experienced any perceived performance dip.
It's hard to imagine what you'll be working with in 5-7 years. There might be something you get into that could actually benefit from more memory, but for the workload you described you should be more than fine.
Next time around, say maybe M5 Pro, I'll get at least 32GB just because I think it's getting pretty funny that I've been using computers with 16GB for an entire decade!
You can try a stress test with all your programs and tabs open, check out the memory tab under Activity Monitor and see if your memory pressure stays elevated in the red.
I deliberated 32GB over 16GB for awhile with my M1 Pro 14" and nearly 3 years on I'm glad that I didn't pay the exorbitant price for +16GB of RAM. My memory pressure usually maxes out in the yellow and I have never experienced any perceived performance dip.
It's hard to imagine what you'll be working with in 5-7 years. There might be something you get into that could actually benefit from more memory, but for the workload you described you should be more than fine.
Next time around, say maybe M5 Pro, I'll get at least 32GB just because I think it's getting pretty funny that I've been using computers with 16GB for an entire decade!
I think you'll be fine with the 18 GB. Most of the controversy has centered around the 8 GB base models not being enough but 18 GB is plenty for your use case.
thank you all for the help, I actually went to Best Buy and exchanged the 18gb for the 36gb, they discounted the 36gb cheaper than what I paid for the 18gb model. but thank you all again!
Yes!!!! This!!!! I had purchased the 14" 18/512 last weekend from Best Buy. Saw today where the 16" same spec model was $600 off if you are a member. I exchanged the 14" for the 16" 18/512 which was on sale for $1899. The 36gb model was on sale for $2299 but for my work flow I did not think I needed the extra ram. Either way one decides, these prices are crazy good.
I would say it all depends on what your workflow is. Apple is selling 8gb Macs still, so more than likely Mac OS is going to be able to run okay and do at least basic things for years to come. For my work flow, I do not need to have multiple intensive apps open at the same time, so 18gb is more than enough for me. If you have a need, then grab the 36gb model. They are on sale at Best Buy this weekend for 2399 and if you are a member you get it for 2299. That is $600 off. I doubt we will see prices like this again any time soon. These are the lowest prices I've seen
that's exactly why I exchanged! since I am a Best Buy member, I was able to get it for $2299 and I priced matched amazon for the 18gb model at 2325, saved even more money and I got double the ram. I am very happy with what I have now.
I have the same model you purchase got it a launch. with this huge sale thinking of picking up the 14 inch you returned as a 2nd Mac but am concerned about the lower ram.
Awesome, congrats!!! I may have ended up with the 36gb model if they had them in stock, but they did not. The nearest store with a 36gb was an hour away. I know I could have made the drive, or even had them order one, but I honestly don't think I need it for MY work flow. Had they been in stock, I'm sure I would have been very very tempted to pick it up just to have the extra headroom
If you were doing video/audio production, gaming, virtualization (which, honestly, isn't ideal on Apple Silicon Macs to begin with), or anything obviously resource intensive, I'd say that you'd probably want the higher RAM capacity. Barring ANY future-proofing concerns/rationale, I'd say 18GB is probably fine for your use cases for today.
If you plan on keeping this 16-inch MacBook Pro for longer than four years before replacing, I'd say you might want to return it. If your personal tech upgrade cycle is shorter than that, then I wouldn't sweat it.
Now if we're talking about 8GB of RAM vs. 16GB of RAM, that's an entirely different story.
My first M1 Mac was a 16 GB Mini that had no memory pressure issues. I ran activity monitor periodically with a lot of apps open and was surprised how well memory was managed (UMA) compared to Intel-based predecessors.
This week I acquired a slightly used/dinged M3 Pro 14" MPB 18GB/1TB. Apps that I typically have running: ARD, Google Chrome and Keep, iTerm2, LightRoom Classic (LrC), Microsoft Word 2021, Music, Obsidian + Excalidraw, Photos, VS Code, Zoc terminal (since 2010!) and others.
I often trounce around through my collections of ~50k of images in LrC and somewhat less than that in Photos. Every mobile phone photo I've snapped is in Photos and only the "winners" are imported into LrC.
18 GB will be more than sufficient in the next 3-5+ years for my purposes.
This week I acquired a slightly used/dinged M3 Pro 14" MPB 18GB/1TB. Apps that I typically have running: ARD, Google Chrome and Keep, iTerm2, LightRoom Classic (LrC), Microsoft Word 2021, Music, Obsidian + Excalidraw, Photos, VS Code, Zoc terminal (since 2010!) and others.
I often trounce around through my collections of ~50k of images in LrC and somewhat less than that in Photos. Every mobile phone photo I've snapped is in Photos and only the "winners" are imported into LrC.
18 GB will be more than sufficient in the next 3-5+ years for my purposes.
I usually keep my Macs for a long time. Only fall 2023 my 2015 core i5 iMac finally stopped working. Tried the iPad only “thing” for a while and it just wasn’t cutting it. Needed a laptop in our lives.If you were doing video/audio production, gaming, virtualization (which, honestly, isn't ideal on Apple Silicon Macs to begin with), or anything obviously resource intensive, I'd say that you'd probably want the higher RAM capacity. Barring ANY future-proofing concerns/rationale, I'd say 18GB is probably fine for your use cases for today.
If you plan on keeping this 16-inch MacBook Pro for longer than four years before replacing, I'd say you might want to return it. If your personal tech upgrade cycle is shorter than that, then I wouldn't sweat it.
Now if we're talking about 8GB of RAM vs. 16GB of RAM, that's an entirely different story.
personally I think it's worth it if you can. 20%+ off a MacBook Pro 16 inch, is a great deal, I was about to order it using my wife's teacher discount but it still isn't as lucrative as a deal as what Best Buy is offering. Also, the piece of mind of having a ton of ram for the long term for future updates puts me at ease. My 2015 iMac was still going strong with 32gb of ram before it finally died.
The Best Buy sale is pretty amazing. I just picked up this 18/512 16" MBP Saturday. I don't really need the 36gb but seriously debating exchanging it for the extra headroom. Im really trying my best to make this machine last for years to come vs being enticed to upgrade every year or so. I love shiny new things but, but the current sale on these MBP's is top notch
the Best Buy deals look great but is 18 gb of ram enough? also hope there isn't a redesign with m4.
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The Best Buy sale is pretty amazing. I just picked up this 18/512 16" MBP Saturday. I don't really need the 36gb but seriously debating exchanging it for the extra headroom. Im really trying my best to make this machine last for years to come vs being enticed to upgrade every year or so. I love shiny new things but, but the current sale on these MBP's is top notch
I suppose it depends on what your work flow is. I've seen some YouTube videos where 36gb vs 18 doesn't really increase the speed of a lot of real world tests/applications. If you do need 36gb those are on sale at Best Buy as well through July 17th. The 36gb model 16" is normally $2899 and is on sale for $2299. That is $200 cheaper than the retail price of the 18gb model. So that is a great deal as well.
We bought my wife an M3 MBA 15" 8/256. All she does is web browse and watch tv shows, some Apple Music. It's really perfect for her basic needs. Yes it's a glorified expensive cromebook but she likes being in the apple ecosystem. Many will say even 8gb isn't ok for even basic use, but it really really is. Again, all just depends on YOUR workflow
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I obsessed over Ram and spent a fortune to get more, but It was total overkill. Whatever memory is inside, the Macbook seems to use 80 percent of the allocation, so it always looks like it is struggling. In reality, once I closed down the activity monitor and used both computers side by side they performed the same!