Will 16GB of Memory Finally Come Standard Alongside the M3 Chip?

[sam_dean]

And yet Apple reduced their use of Nand flash chips

Margins!

 

[salamanderjuice]

I'm not convinced there is currently a need on either the Mac OS or Windows side to make 16GB the new baseline for RAM. Many people aren't using their machines for anything other than email, web browsing, and watching streaming media, none of which would really benefit from 16GB of RAM at this time. You can still find Windows machines at retailers such as Best Buy and Office Max that ship with only 4GB of RAM, and I think that that will continue until Microsoft makes 8GB the absolute minimum amount of RAM needed to run Windows.

And it's becoming harder and harder to do so. The Windows machines with 4GB left seem to mainly be Celeron/Pentium models which have awful CPU performance too. Best Buy has multiple machines available right now with 8GB RAM and a 256SSD for sub-$400 which means the only space a 4GB machine might make any sense is sub-$300. I think in a year or two you'll have difficulty finding any 4GB models that have been recently introduced unless they're absolutely bottom barrel. At some point Apple is going to have to boost the base config because it looks pretty bad when the $400 PC laptop has the same RAM/Storage as the $1000 Apple one and the $800 PC has double.

 

[Gudi]

LOL? Apple is leaving every single piece of crap background activity in the memory, even when completely disabled.

I meant hardware features. But yes, there is still high-capability to optimize macOS for 8GB memory. Safari alone could completely solve every issue I have with swap memory. It's merely a question whether they will optimize the OS more or add more useless features. Overall OS X has become better since when I started with Snow Leopard.

 

[sam_dean]

Dell XPS. With the filter I see 30 laptops that offer greater the 8GB and only 5 with
View attachment 2153391

HP, looking at laptops at a price point of 1000+ dollars and above (to try to get to an apples to apples comparison) and all of them at 16GB of ram if not more. Yes, 300, 600 dollar laptops will have 8gb, but Apple offers a premium brand and so using similar price points to get as close to the type of laptops that apple sells shows 16gb

Lenovo, they shockingly sell a laptop with 4GB, clearly a horrible option, regardless of what price point we're talking about. I think most of the 8GB models on lenovo are sub 1,000 laptops, but I did find 2 or 3 that were over that 1,000 price point
View attachment 2153394

Comparing Mac Mini price points, there are consistently more 8gb machines, so from that perspective I was wrong.

All laptops at any price point filtered by RAM on BHPhoto.

For those who aren't aware of it BHPhoto pretty much caters to creatives that cater to people at the core of the Mac market.

To be fair to Apple... I filtered for $999 & higher laptops + RAM for all laptops

 

[Gudi]

Best Buy has multiple machines available right now with 8GB RAM and a 256SSD for sub-$400 which means the only space a 4GB machine might make any sense is sub-$300. I think in a year or two you'll have difficulty finding any 4GB models that have been recently introduced unless they're absolutely bottom barrel.

I have difficulty finding Windows laptops below €700. PCs simply stopped being cheaper without getting any better.

At some point Apple is going to have to boost the base config because it looks pretty bad when the $400 PC laptop has the same RAM/Storage as the $1000 Apple one and the $800 PC has double.

That's just your opinion. Mac users don't compare with PCs. Like Mercedes drivers, don't complain that Fords are cheaper with more cup holders.

 

[maflynn]

Margins!

Yes, but you were making the point that its so cheap for them, they should be doubling it

 

[smirking]

I sure hope it becomes standard because I might die if I have to sit through one more season of "I can't even open two tabs in Safari without my memory pressure turning periwinkle on 8GB."

 

[maflynn]

All laptops at any price point filtered by RAM on BHPhoto.

Put in 1,000 and above in the and then see how many 8GB laptops they sell (hint 1)

 

[sam_dean]

Put in 1,000 and above in the and then see how many 8GB laptops they sell (hint 1)

View attachment 2153407

These are the Windows Laptops that fit into

- $998-1001
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB SSD

Apple Laptops, Dell, Lenovo, HP, Laptops & More | B&H Photo

Shop B&H for laptops from the best brands like Apple, Dell, Lenovo and more. Solutions for home, work, or play.

www.bhphotovideo.com

They number 5.

It can be done.

2020 MBA M1

- $999
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB SSD

It's a f_ing value. Apple Silicon is great great value. No need to bump them up but Apple's so stingy with RAM & SSD.

 

[AlixSPQR]

”Will 16GB of Memory Finally Come Standard Alongside the M3 Chip?”

I really, really do hope so! And if so, I will buy one, not until then.

 

[sam_dean]

”Will 16GB of Memory Finally Come Standard Alongside the M3 Chip?”

I really, really do hope so! And if so, I will buy one, not until then.

2024 MBA M3 3nm

- $999
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB SSD

Would be a powerhouse of

- raw performance
- performance per watt
- battery life
- power consumption

More than a day's battery life?

 

[maflynn]

It's a ***** value

I think my point is getting diluted with all of this back and forth.

My point is the PC world has largely moved on to 16GB as the standard ram amount, that's it.

 

[sam_dean]

I think my point is getting diluted with all of this back and forth.

My point is the PC world has largely moved on to 16GB as the standard ram amount, that's it.

That's why I was pushing the M1/M2/M3 chips to standardized to

- 16GB RAM
- 512GB or 1TB

It's 2023 already! That should be the base models at the current MSRPs.

Pro chips

- 32GB RAM
- 1TB or 2TB SSD

Max chips

- 64GB RAM
- 1TB or 2TB SSD

Ultra chips

- 128GB RAM
- 2TB SSD

Extreme chips

- 256GB RAM
- 4TB SSD

 

[ian87w]

Apple is cutting the speed of the SSDs, (my guess to protect their profit margins). I highly doubt they'll basically double the ram for the base unit for free.

This. If Apple is already penny pinching their "Pro" laptops into having less nand chips (resulting in 1/2 the performance of last year's model), they won't bother giving more RAM to their customer models.

8/256 will continue to be the baseline. For me personally, it's alright IF Apple actually provide an upgraded pre-configured model with 16GB of RAM. The problem is, Apple keeps all their pre-configured models of the consumer lineup with 8GB of RAM. In many markets, we don't have the options for BTO, so if we want 16GB of RAM, we end up having to buy the Pro models for a lot more.

 

[ian87w]

I think my point is getting diluted with all of this back and forth.

My point is the PC world has largely moved on to 16GB as the standard ram amount, that's it.

To put it more correctly, PCs within Apple's base price points have largely put 16GB as standard. There are still PCs with 8GB RAM or even a paltry 4GB. But of course they are at a much lower price points than Apple's.

 

[leman]

Dell XPS. With the filter I see 30 laptops that offer greater the 8GB and only 5 with
View attachment 2153391

HP, looking at laptops at a price point of 1000+ dollars and above (to try to get to an apples to apples comparison) and all of them at 16GB of ram if not more. Yes, 300, 600 dollar laptops will have 8gb, but Apple offers a premium brand and so using similar price points to get as close to the type of laptops that apple sells shows 16gb

Lenovo, they shockingly sell a laptop with 4GB, clearly a horrible option, regardless of what price point we're talking about. I think most of the 8GB models on lenovo are sub 1,000 laptops, but I did find 2 or 3 that were over that 1,000 price point
View attachment 2153394

Comparing Mac Mini price points, there are consistently more 8gb machines, so from that perspective I was wrong.

Looking at premium lines from the popular manufacturers:

Dell XPS starts with 8GB (https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/laptops/xps-13-plus/spd/xps-13-9320-laptop)
Lenovo ThinkPad X10 starts with 8GB (https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/lapt...-x1-carbon-gen-10-(14-inch-intel)/len101t0009)
HP Envy, EliteBook and Elite all starts with an 8GB configuration

Some of these base models are cheaper than Air, but the price is very similar once you add in a good quality display.

 

[maflynn]

Dell XPS starts with 8GB (https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/laptops/xps-13-plus/spd/xps-13-9320-laptop)

Sheesh, you're bending over backwards and yet failed to read what I posted. Go back and reread what I said.

I never said Dell didn't sell laptops with 8gb. I posted that out of 30 laptops, dell is selling 5 laptops with 8gb.

Dell XPS. With the filter I see 30 laptops that offer greater the 8GB and only 5 with
View attachment 2153391

 

[sam_dean]

View attachment 2153454

You also won the Internet!

 

[unrigestered]

yes, but the base models often are 8GB, especially on their premium lines of laptops.

if you were filtering through all Apple's offerings, there would be more configurations with 16GB and greater too, since there simply are more BTO configurations than base models

 

[leman]

Sheesh, you're bending over backwards and yet failed to read what I posted. Go back and reread what I said.
View attachment 2153454
I never said Dell didn't sell laptops with 8gb. I posted that out of 30 laptops, dell is selling 5 laptops with 8gb.

You know, if you enumerate all possible Apple laptop configurations, 8GB ones will also just be a small fraction. Simply because there are more Pro/Max model configurations and those start with 16GB. It’s a really weird benchmark to use. I thought we were looking at base models and not at how many different configurations they sell?

 

[gpat]

The M3 evolution will be spectacular enough to keep selling Macs even with the absymal 8/256 configuration.
Maybe Apple will bump RAM with the M4 which will be a much lighter upgrade.

 

[maflynn]

I thought we were looking at base models and not at how many different configurations they sell?

I've been saying PC market in general. The PC market in general has moved on to 16GB as the base amount. Outside of 400 dollar laptops and some other outliers like the 13" Dell you posted.

 

[unrigestered]

i just hope i don't have to worry about 8/256GB when my next MBA is in order in 2028-2030 or so.

 

[maflynn]

i just hope i don't have to worry about 8/256GB when my next MBA is in order in 2028-2030 or so.

In all seriousness, this sort of conversation dates back to PPC and before. Apple fans have long complained about how apple under-spec'd their computers. The big difference between then and now, is the consumer was able to upgrade the ram and storage themsevles. (outside of the Macintosh series, i.e., Macintosh 128k,512k, plus, etc)

 

[gpat]

I've been saying PC market in general. The PC market in general has moved on to 16GB as the base amount. Outside of 400 dollar laptops and some other outliers like the 13" Dell you posted.

It would be more accurate to say that Walmart midrange laptops have moved on to 16GB, while premium designs like Surface and XPS keep offering 8GB models to upsell the most expensive configurations and increase profitability.
A business model which was inspired by Apple obviously.