expired Posted by Dr.W • May 6, 2025
May 6, 2025 8:28 PM
Item 1 of 1
expired Posted by Dr.W • May 6, 2025
May 6, 2025 8:28 PM
Apple MacBook Pro Laptop: 14.2", M4 Pro Chip, 24GB RAM, 512GB SSD (2024)
+ Free Store Pickup Only$1,650
$2,000
17% offMicro Center
Visit Micro CenterGood Deal
Bad Deal
Save
Share
Top Comments
35 Comments
Sign up for a Slickdeals account to remove this ad.
But an M3 with 32GB RAM should be plenty for most people. Even an M3 with 16GB RAM should be plenty for typical usage.
My rules of thumb are (i) that you get at least as much flash storage as you will need, because needing more later will suck, (ii) that you get more RAM than you need now because the OS and the apps just get fatter with time (and if you don't have enough RAM, that fat spills over into the flash at a much lower speed, called "swap" or "memory paging"), (iii) that extra GPU never hurts but unless you're doing things that specifically rely on the GPU (like 3d games e.g. first person shooters), the GPU doesn't matter as much, and (iv) more/faster CPU cores always helps (again, because the OS and the apps just get fatter with time).
With a Dell (etc.), the hardware is so shoddily built that it's only going to last a couple of years anyhow, so you buy what you need now and maybe a little extra. As a bonus, most Windows PCs are fairly upgradeable. But if you're buying a Mac, there's basically no way to upgrade, so you buy what you're going to need for as long as you intend to keep it.
I've been building and buying both Apple and PC hardware now for 40+ years, not that that means much.
But an M3 with 32GB RAM should be plenty for most people. Even an M3 with 16GB RAM should be plenty for typical usage.
My rules of thumb are (i) that you get at least as much flash storage as you will need, because needing more later will suck, (ii) that you get more RAM than you need now because the OS and the apps just get fatter with time (and if you don't have enough RAM, that fat spills over into the flash at a much lower speed, called "swap" or "memory paging"), (iii) that extra GPU never hurts but unless you're doing things that specifically rely on the GPU (like 3d games e.g. first person shooters), the GPU doesn't matter as much, and (iv) more/faster CPU cores always helps (again, because the OS and the apps just get fatter with time).
With a Dell (etc.), the hardware is so shoddily built that it's only going to last a couple of years anyhow, so you buy what you need now and maybe a little extra. As a bonus, most Windows PCs are fairly upgradeable. But if you're buying a Mac, there's basically no way to upgrade, so you buy what you're going to need for as long as you intend to keep it.
I've been building and buying both Apple and PC hardware now for 40+ years, not that that means much.
I'm probably the odd one in the bunch wanting the gpu for 3d modeling and the few applications that offer the gpu hardware accreditation.
Ram swap is no joke. It will freeze your computer like no other and you actually see your battery level falling and hear the fans blurring. I've tried to back out but it's too late. Once it's frozen like this you just have to sit it down and wait. I'm really hoping the m4 pro with 48 GBs of ram will help over my M1 Pro with 16.