MacBook Pro 16 - i7 32 GB RAM or i9 16 GB RAM?

[rMBP2013]

I'm facing an interesting dilemma here.

I can either get a base MacBook Pro 16 and upgrade it to 32 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD. Or I can get an i9 with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD.

I'm what you call a "light" user: Office, MS Teams, Netflix, light photo editing.

Both cost roughly the same so price is not a factor (work is paying for it, but there is a set limit and I need to stay within it). My goal is to keep this laptop for the next 5 to 8 years.

So the question is: does it make sense to upgrade the RAM or the processor?

 

[Lobwedgephil]

Ram.

 

[LFC2020]

Base i7 and 32 gig ram. ? i9 is a waste of money.

 

[velocityg4]

Another vote for RAM. There is only a small difference in CPU performance. When the i7 is no longer fast enough neither will the i9 be fast enough. While double the RAM makes a huge difference in the number of programs which can run, longevity and tasks which can be performed.

 

[glenthompson]

RAM. Few people are CPU bound and the extra memory can help overall system performance.