New Mac Air system requirements for average use

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Level 1

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New Mac Air system requirements for average use

I will have to soon replace a MacBook Pro 13” 2015 model. This system has 8 GB of memory and 256 Gb of storage. Clearly the next system I buy will need a larger disk. We have years of files and pictures, although moving things to iCloud has allowed us to keep using it. It works acceptably, but time is not on our side! New OS versions are not supported.

I will probably replace it with a Mac Air. I am inclined to buy a system with 16 GB of RAM and a 1 TB disk. That maybe seems a system that can also be used for a long time. I am a little surprised they sell with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB drive storage. Of course the upgraded system is considerably more expensive, but even with only 8 GB of RAM, the new Mac Airs seem very fast.

I am curious how people feel about the performance of the 8 GB memory systems. I really have no special requirements that require “heavy lifting.” I can pretty much do anything I need on my also aging 2018 iPad… which does appear a bit sluggish occasionally when loading web pages with all the stupid ads. I suppose they will become obsolete faster, I’d guess more like 5 years.

It is hard to compare Macs to Windows systems. They have always done less with more and had a longer useful life. I see low end Windows systems ($500) still have 8GB of RAM and about 512 GB of storage.

Posted on Nov 24, 2023 12:37 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

dwb

Level 7

33,362 points

Nov 25, 2023 8:42 AM in response to A_Foaf

I’m not quite the power user that I was before I retired but I still tend to work with several active applications and lots of open Safari tabs. I borrowed a friend’s M1 MacBook which had 8GB of RAM and found that my typical usage pattern didn’t bog it down. That said, I know that memory requirements go up as time passes so I doubted 8GB would be sufficient 4-5 years down the road. I opted for 16GB on my new MBA. My last several Mac notebooks have had 512GB of drive space and that usage has creeped up very slowly these last few years, mostly with photos. So I opted to remain there. I think 16GB RAM and 512GB is the sweet spot for most college students, professionals, and home users who will share the computer.

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Answer 2

KiltedTim

Level 10

234,894 points

Nov 25, 2023 8:55 AM in response to A_Foaf

I saw an article citing an interview recently with an Apple engineer stating 8 GB of RAM in an M series Mac was more comparable to a Windows PC with 16 GB due to the superior memory management of macOS.

I don't have an M series Mac so can't comment directly, but I will say that 8GB of RAM isn't as limiting as many make it out to be.

I have a 2019 21.5" iMac with 8GB of RAM. The factory Fusion Drive is the real limiter on performance. I use an external Samsung T7 Shield SSC as my boot drive, which makes a world of difference.

I've spent the last week working from home while my wife recovers from knee replacement surgery. Connected to the office using a VPN, running multiple MS 365 apps including Outlook, Teams, Excel, and Word, a Remote Desktop connection to my servers, multiple browsers connected to web based applications, several native apps including calendar, notes, reminders, etc. all simultaneously with no problems at all.

In fact, the most limiting thing I ran across was the speed of the Internet connection when connected to the office network via VPN as we have it configured to route all internet traffic through the company's network for security. The connection from the office to the Internet is about half of what I have at home.

All that being said, you can never have too much RAM, too much storage, or too much processor power.

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Answer 3

Nov 24, 2023 2:18 PM in response to A_Foaf

While I realize "base" systems come with 8GB RAM, I think you'd have trouble finding many who'd recommend that. I went with 16GB with my MBA, as I do occasional photo/video editing...nothing very taxing, though.

So for sure, I'd go with 16GB RAM, if I were you.

Just my $0.02 worth.

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Answer 4

Nov 25, 2023 1:27 PM in response to A_Foaf

Just a tip....bhphotovideo.com has some good deals on Macs (including MacBook Airs) until November 27th. Unlike many other stores, they seem to stock a lot of upgraded models that would be special order elsewhere.

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Answer 5

A_Foaf Author

Level 1

4 points

Nov 24, 2023 8:54 PM in response to MacMikeInOK

Thanks for the comment. I was really thinking the same, but was a little curious if someone might say different.

Every new computer I have ever bought has had more RAM and a bigger disk than the last one, so I will probably continue the trend. As I said these days there aren’t so many new demanding tasks. Even an iPad can edit 4K video. More is always better with a system, though! My phone has 512GB of storage and the Mac 256 GB.

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Answer 6

A_Foaf Author

Level 1

4 points

Nov 25, 2023 1:10 PM in response to KiltedTim

Well that is a pretty good example of how Apple does less with more!

But, yes, I still kind of feel more is better and it is hard to convince myself the same RAM as my 8 year old system is okay… I also at least double the storage. 512GB is quite a bit. Syncing with iPhones does take up a lot of space, though and they are getting bigger too. iCloud storage seems to work reasonably if it comes to that.

So 16GB RAM and 1TB storage is more like $1800 USD. That is what I really want. 8GB and 512GB falls into what I paid for the last system, about $1400/1500. I think the 2008 was about $1200. I guess to be expected to cost more like everything else.

I appreciate the comments very much. Might come in handy if I have a tight budget and need a machine quickly.

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