Upgrading to 8GB in net MacBook Pro

[tji]

I bought one of the new 17" MBPs when they first came out, and decided to stick with the 4GB of RAM until the prices for 8GB came down. But, as far as I can tell the price for an 8GB kit (2*4GB SODIMM) has not moved much.

Is anyone seeing different? Any bargains on 4GB SODIMMs, or any expectation that the prices are going to change? Maybe they are not high volume enough to ever drop to a low price.. they are really expensive now.

 

[thegoldenmackid]

Haven't changed in a while, ram is always weird on price changing.

 

[Scottsdale]

I would say that it's just now becoming mainstream RAM, so in a year it will drop by half... then in two years it will drop by another half... then will start going up again until completely obsolete as other RAM will become more prevalent.

So, $350 in a year and probably down to around $175-$200 in a few years. That is MY GUESS based on what I have observed from RAM pricing in the past. Although, it could vary based on how popular and the supply and demand of the RAM. I don't know that 8 GB of RAM will be deemed necessary in the future and maybe if that much never becomes the "normal" amount, the price will not drop to that low of range.

If I bought a MBP now, I would keep 4 GB of RAM in it unless I had too many page files from using up the full 4 GB on a normal basis, OR until the RAM prices fell so low it just became a "no brainer" and added positive and necessary value to my Mac that I wanted. Once it hits $200, if it makes your MBP last an extra year or two, it's a no brainer. If it adds no real value to the apps you're running, then it's not worth it.

Good luck.