New Macs 2023

[tuga]

Out of curiosity, I just specced out the lowest-end Mac M2 Mini with 24 GB RAM and a 2 TB SSD, a 27-inch 5k display, keyboard and mouse. Getting 24 GB RAM is as low as I'd want to go given that I'm often using >60 GB on my current iMac. Screen grab from mere moments ago...

Is your current Mac an Intel-chip?

As far as I know the M chip architecture does not require nearly as much RAM as the "old" architecture, you may not need more than 8GB.

 

[Joe P]

Tuga,

Is your current Mac an Intel-chip?

<The Big Lebowski> Were you listening to the Dude’s story? </The Big Lebowski>

Joe

 

[tuga]

Tuga,



<The Big Lebowski> Were you listening to the Dude’s story? </The Big Lebowski>

Joe

Sorry, I missed 'that' post.

I have never had issues with RAM, and it's been years since I had it maxed out on one of my machines.
SSD access is very quick so virtual RAM is no longer a potential bottleneck.

 

[Joe P]

Tuga,

The posts were side by each, which is why I wondered.

I know architectures are different and there are huge efficiency and speed gains by having the whole computer on a single chip, but it's generally not a great idea to use SSD as a RAM swap, if the stories about the limited number of read/writes are true.

Maybe I wouldn't need 80GB of RAM in an M-based Mac, but I doubt I'd be OK with 8 GB. My current iMac regularly has more than 60GB of RAM gobbled up by applications.

Joe

 

[tuga]

Maybe I wouldn't need 80GB of RAM in an M-based Mac, but I doubt I'd be OK with 8 GB. My current iMac regularly has more than 60GB of RAM gobbled up by applications.

60GB is massive but if that's what you're using then you may have to max out whichever M1/M2 you end up getting.
Which software is using that much RAM?