No question, and I can only think that the 560x may be better if you wish to play games, but since my usage isn't one that punishes a GPU, I don't have any information to impart ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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MBP 2018 15 - 2.2 or 2.6?
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I have a 2012 Air which I ordered the week of release in June 2012 with the upgraded 8GB max RAM. I don’t use this machine as my main computer as it was purchased for Grad school when I got my Masters. I also used to have an iMac with I believe 24GB RAM. In 2016 I needed to work from home more and needed an external monitor so I replaced my iMac with a Mac Mini with 16GB RAM and a Dell 34” curved ultra wide (non-4K) display. This allowed me to hook up my work laptop and switch back and forth seamlessly. When I use the Mini which is my primary machine, I see RAM in use around 10-14GB. When I reboot it gets down to around 7-9 on the low end and moves up over time. I tend to have a lot of Safari tabs open.
My goal here is to replace my Air and make that replacement my primary machine, relegating the Mini to a family iTunes/Apple TV server. And I will likely keep Photos on my laptop but my keep a copy of the library on the Mini as well.
Memory pressure is a better metric than in-use numbers. These systems will use unused memory to cache files and other stuff, and thus can appear to be "using" more memory than is really needed.
This article helps understand what you're looking at / what to look for in your usage: https://www.switchingtomac.com/tutorials/osx/understanding-memory-pressure-in-os-x-mavericks/
I often run concurrent VMs and its good to be able to allocate actual (wired) Ram to each VM vs having them use swap files. Additionally I have allocated 8GB just to my MacOS VM. With 16GB and file swapping running concurrent VM may not have been the best long term experience. In my case where I don't use internal SSDs for data storage but mostly only for program installs, 512gb gives me plenty of headroom. As I had said in my original post, everybody's use case will be different.
For my personal, travel stuff I still use a Late 2010 MBA for browsing etc that only has 4GB Ram & 128-SSD. It flies with High Sierra and basic stuff - again a different use case.
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That is definitely a use-case where the more RAM the better, and I'd certainly say 32GB would likely be worthwhile depending on the VM sizes.
Good article on upgrade comparisons ...
https://appleinsider.com/articles/1...ok-pro-compared---which-upgrades-are-worth-it
https://appleinsider.com/articles/1...ok-pro-compared---which-upgrades-are-worth-it
I originally ordered the base model with no upgrades, but after thinking about it I found use for a larger ssd so I don't need to carry my external drive everywhere, and the graphics performance is quite alot better on the 560X, then the price difference up to the 2,6Ghz model was not that much, so I ended up getting that one instead. I plan to keep this one for 4-5 years.
This is what I’ll be doing, after returning my base / 32 / 512 on Thursday. I still believe Apple will do more tuning and if not the various power limiting tools (e.g. Volta) make it easy enough to throttle down. In the end it was the $100 difference that bugged me with my previous purchase.
One good thing is you can walk into any Apple store and pickup the 2.6/560/512. Not so once you start down the custom building a 2.2 with a 512 GB drive and a ..... Also, if it has a problem they are likely to be able to just swap it out since they have the same model in the backfield the store so you can have minimal down time.
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The 2.6/16/512/560x is the sweet spot where you want to be. Tests have shown that the gap in performance between the base 2.2 and the 2.6 is the 560x. And the gap is not that close. SO if your going to spend $100 for the upgraded GPU now your only $100 from the 2.6 and at that point its worth it. With the EDU discount that just about anyone can get ordering online the 2.6 is only $2599 and you get a free pair of beats that you could sell for $150 essentially bringing the cost down to $2450.
That is what I wanted. But, it was not what I needed. So in the end I just could not justify to myself the extra $400 for the upgrade from 512GB to 1TB. I will use that money to buy a few extras shares of Apple.
That is what I wanted. But, it was not what I needed. So in the end I just could not justify to myself the extra $400 for the upgrade from 512GB to 1TB. I will use that money to buy a few extras shares of Apple.
That last mac I bought was in 2010 and I intend to keep this one for a while as well. At work I have a 256GB one and it's a pain in the ass (even with a 512 external SSD). So as far as I'm concerned, the 1TB is quite important.
While I can certainly order through my campus store, I'd definitely be interested in where online will sell the education package without a bunch of hoops to jump through.
Oh, my misunderstanding -- thought you were referencing a place that wouldn't add in sales tax to the price (as with Adorama or B&H). Already knew of the Apple site, thanks.
Yes, I'm aware -- I was comparing to the edu deal via my campus store, which oddly is just a hair less than direct from Apple.
Unfortunately my undergrad school, in another state, doesn't offer the 1TB option.
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Be careful ordering from shops that do not require sales tax. The Supreme Court just ruled that states can collect sales tax on online orders even when the retailers do not have a presence in your state. Also, some states already have statutes requiring you to list these purchases from retailers that did not collect taxes and you must pay the taxes directly.