Even die-hard Apple fans will be the first to tell you that the company has forever been stingy when it comes to entry-level storage and RAM configurations. As a recent example, many were not surprised, but disappointed, when they saw the specs for Apple’s new M3 13-inch MacBook Air, which was announced just last month.
The base-level 13-inch MacBook Air comes with 8GB of unified memory. And as you might expect, users who want 16 GB of memory will have to pay an additional $200. In contrast, Dell’s Vostro 16 laptop retails for $729 and comes with 16 GB of RAM.
With this in mind, Apple executives Kate Bergeron and Evan Buyze recently defended Apple’s RAM products in the following interview. IT Home. Mr. Bergeron is Apple’s vice president of hardware engineering. Buyze, on the other hand, is a member of Apple’s marketing team.
Addressing this topic, Buyze said that 8GB of memory is more than enough for most computing tasks. If you’re just browsing the web, doing some light streaming or light photo editing, 8GB is perfectly fine, Buyze notes. Perhaps that’s true, but it’s still frustrating that Apple’s RAM configuration covers the most basic use case situations. This is especially annoying considering Apple likes to position its machines for creative professionals.
Apple claims 8GB of RAM is equivalent to 16GB
Interestingly, Apple recently claimed that its 8GB RAM implementation is more powerful than the specs would lead you to believe. The company says the unified memory architecture optimizes performance to actually be on par with PC systems with more RAM.
A while ago, Apple’s head of marketing Bob Borchers emphasized this point in a YouTube interview with Lin Yi.
Comparing our memory to other systems’ memory is not really equivalent. This is because it uses memory very efficiently and uses memory compression. There is also a unified memory architecture. In fact, 8GB on the M3 MacBook Pro is probably equivalent to his 16GB on other systems. I just happen to be using it more efficiently.
So what I’m saying is, let people come and try what they want to do with your system. I think they will give a great performance. When you look at the raw data and the raw capabilities of these systems, it’s truly amazing. And I think this is where people need to go beyond the specs and go and see the functionality.
And listen to trusted people like you who actually use the system. I would say it doesn’t matter whether it’s 8 or some other number. And see how it works. And you’ll find that the M3 system is particularly capable when it comes to efficiently utilizing that memory. And for aspiring professionals and many others, this is the perfect system to use.
I personally think it’s worth paying the extra money to increase the memory to 16 GB, since Apple solders the RAM to the motherboard, making it impossible to upgrade after the fact. Spending an extra $200 to future-proof the machine is worth it, especially when the Mac will last him eight to ten years, if not more. seems like a worthwhile investment.