How Much RAM Is Enough RAM in 2022?
When you buy a new laptop or desktop computer, you will eventually have to figure out how much RAM to buy. The problem is, it’s not easy to know how much RAM you might need, and computer manufacturers just don’t know how to tell you that. Do you need to buy more RAM to get decent computer performance, perhaps pushing the purchase price out of your budget, or can you get by with what’s included in the base model? Consider the data.
What does RAM do
Random Access Memory, short for “Random Access Memory”, is your computer’s short-term memory, as opposed to the hard drive’s long-term memory. Thus, RAM allows your computer to multitask; this is what allows you to keep multiple windows and applications open at the same time, and switch between them quickly and efficiently.
The more RAM your computer has, the more ability it has to run these types of processes without slowing down. This doesn’t mean that RAM is entirely responsible for the overall speed of your computer, but it can help you feel like your computer is performing well.
The bottom line is to figure out how much RAM you need so that your machine can do what you need. Memory is expensive, and like most things in life, there’s no need to spend money on things you don’t need . However, if you’re buying a device without upgradable RAM (like most Macs and many thin and light laptops), you need to consider not only how much RAM you need today, but also how much you might need in the future. .
Care for the future vs. overspending
All in all, if you’re hoping to protect your device from the future, it doesn’t hurt to buy as much RAM as you can afford. You might be fine with less RAM today, but as apps and programs become more demanding over time, your computer will start to show its limitations. Not needing extra RAM can leave you worrying about upgrading after only a few years.
So, how much RAM are we talking about? For most users who use their laptops for normal tasks – surfing the Internet, making video calls, running programs like Excel – 8 GB of RAM will do the job. You’ll be able to comfortably surf the web with multiple tabs open, manage budget spreadsheets, and even play some games (although RAM is far from the only consideration when it comes to building a gaming rig ).
However, remember: while 8GB might be fine in 2022, what about 2024? In 2014, 4GB was more than enough to get the job done, and that’s exactly the amount of RAM offered on an entry-level MacBook. But as time goes by, RAM tends to start showing its age long before other computational problems start showing up. I have a friend with a 4GB MacBook Air which is perfectly usable, except for the fact that too many open Chrome tabs was all it took for it to freeze with an error that the computer literally couldn’t enough system memory.
Developers are not going to stop increasing the power and functionality of their applications, and while it would be great for them to create programs that use RAM more efficiently, this certainly has not become a trend. As my friend’s poor computer was well aware, Chrome is already notorious for eating up memory, and you can probably expect it to continue to take up more of your resources over time. When you try to watch YouTube, these freezes are annoying; when you rely on your computer for work, they can become a real problem.
So if you can afford it, 16GB of RAM won’t be an unreasonable base for your 2022 machine. You may not be able to take advantage of all this power right now, especially if you don’t use your PC for resource-intensive tasks. But these are expensive machines that should last us longer than the refresh cycle of a smartphone, and an extra $200 for RAM today is a lot better than $1,000 for a new laptop three years from now.
If you can comfortably upgrade to 16GB of RAM, you may be wondering if you should actually go up to 32GB if the option is available. The MacBook Pro M1 tops out at 16GB, but the MacBook Pro M1 Pro and M1 Max will certainly be bigger, and 32GB of RAM ensures your laptop or computer will comfortably run multiple tasks, apps, and windows for years to come. .
The advice at any level is the same: buy as much RAM as you can afford. After considering your CPU, HDD or SSD, and other computing needs, is there room left in the budget to upgrade from 16GB to 32GB? For most of us, especially if we don’t plan on using our computers for intensive graphics work or intensive gaming, there may not be. Don’t be discouraged if your budget doesn’t allow you to make the leap, or if the device you’re looking at doesn’t offer that option. Upgrading to 16 GB will keep you running smoothly for a long time.
Save money by buying third party RAM
The advice to buy as much RAM as you can afford sounds reasonable, but needs context. If the computer you’re buying doesn’t allow for RAM upgrades last time you buy – like most all Macs, hell, Apple controls the minimalist aesthetic – then getting as much RAM as possible is a higher priority. However, machines that can be upgraded later give you the opportunity to save money as well as extend their lifespan.
Buying RAM from computer manufacturers is expensive. Apple charges too much for its RAM during the initial purchase because it can . You can’t upgrade in the future, so what else should you do? But computer parts stores will sell you sticks of RAM for much less.
Installing additional RAM yourself has been a common practice for people in the know, even when buying Apple computers. Now, only a few Macs allow you to upgrade RAM after the fact. If you’re interested in the future on a limited budget, look at devices that allow you to increase the amount of RAM.
But how much RAM do I need for gaming and graphics work?
The issue of RAM gets a little more complicated when discussing more powerful machines designed for tasks like gaming and graphics work. For high-quality video editing, 3D animation work, and other similar graphical tasks, you will definitely need to significantly increase the amount of RAM; 8 GB will not fit here, maybe 16 GB too. For a task like editing an 8K video, you’ll need at least 32GB, if not 64GB.
When you start demanding more from your machine, you also need to worry about more than standard RAM. For graphics-intensive computing, VRAM (video RAM), the memory for your computer’s graphics processing unit (GPU), is also important. My own MacBook Pro has 16GB of RAM and 2GB of VRAM. While this combination is more than good for basic video editing, if I needed the laptop to be more of a graphics workhorse, I would upgrade it to at least 32GB of RAM and 4GB of VRAM.
When it comes to games, memory requirements vary from title to title, so your needs will also depend on the level of quality you want to experience. 1080p gaming can easily get by with 16GB of RAM (some games run fine even on 8GB). But just like with graphics, the more intense the graphical demands of a game, the more hardware you will need to support it. 4K gaming will require more RAM and VRAM, especially if you want to increase all settings. And then there’s the question of your graphics card, processor, solid state drive versus hard drive, and more. All of these parts are important and it will take time and research to find the right balance for your setup.