Just recently, Apple released their M3 MacBook Pros. However, the base model 14” sparked outrage since it only has 8 GB of memory. Of course, Apple Fanboys and Apple are gaslighting everyone, thinking that 8 GB is like 16 GB. We know that isn’t true, as an M3 MacBook Pro with 8 GB of RAM performs slower than one with 16 GB.
In 2023, it’s egregious to sell a MacBook, which costs over $1000 and only has 8 GB of RAM, unless you fork over 200+ dollars for more memory. The thing is, 8 GB is barely enough in 2023. This is because websites heavily use CSS and JavaScript, which causes tabs to use a lot of memory.
Also, Electron apps such as Discord, Microsoft Teams, Slack, Visual Studio Code, etc use a lot of RAM. Since Electron is inefficient and not native, I hate apps that use this. You can quickly run out of RAM, especially with only 8 GB. Even 16 GB is not enough for me as I hit the yellow in memory pressure, given how I use my computer for productivity. Most computers in the $1000 range usually have a minimum of 16 GB of memory. Software requirements, especially web apps, use more RAM due to inefficiencies. It’s not the early/mid-2010s anymore when websites don’t heavily rely on JavaScript and the widespread crappy and unoptimized Electron apps.
The 8 GB memory wouldn’t be a problem if Apple didn’t charge so much for RAM upgrades or allow users to upgrade the RAM themselves. The prices that Apple charges for RAM are egregious and show their greed. Regular memory DIMMs cost only around $190 for 64 GB of DDR5. To get that on a MacBook Pro, you must pay $900 over the base price of the 16-inch MacBook Pro (M3 Max 40-core upgrade and 64 GB of RAM). There is no excuse for them to charge this much from RAM, as there is nothing special about unified RAM. It’s just LPDDR5X, which probably doesn’t cost much to produce.
One of the reasons they can get away with this is that they have a monopoly on computers that run macOS. Sure, there is competition like other PCs running Windows or Linux. If your workflow depends on a Mac or you prefer macOS, you must buy a Mac. That means paying egregious prices on RAM and SSD storage.
Not only that, Apple engaged in their own shrinkflation in the pursuit of making more profit. The M3 iterations cut the core count and memory bandwidth on the M3 Pro. Starting with the M2 models, they also reduced the SSD speeds on the 256/512 GB MacBook Pro configurations unless you upgrade to 1 TB. Since retailers only stock the base models, which don’t have as much longevity, you are forced to buy the higher-spec models directly from Apple without any discount. Retailers only run deals on the base models, which don’t have enough RAM and/or SSD space, forcing the user to upgrade sooner than they have to if a higher-spec model is available at a retailer.
This is frustrating as there is really no alternative for me. I am never switching to Windows because I hate Windows. There is also spying, forced Microsoft accounts, poor user experience, etc. Also, I will never change to Desktop Linux as the UX is pretty bad, and the commercial software support is simply not there. Also, I don’t want to spend my free time trying to get something to work on Linux or fix something if it breaks. This only leaves macOS as my only option. If there was more competition in the OS space with the same amount of commercial software support, things would be different.
It’s sad that Apple is chasing after profits rather than creating great products and seeing profits grow. Apple Silicon is a good thing for Macs, which made the Mac platform exciting. However, it is frustrating with the changes with M2 and M3 to upsell customers to more expensive options while charging egregious prices for RAM and SSD upgrades, considering that the user can’t upgrade. This will only cause ordinary people to upgrade sooner, which will be bad for the environment. These 8GB MacBook Pros, Airs, iMacs and Mac Minis will get thrown away sooner because it can’t handle the latest apps and release of macOS.
As Steve Jobs said, it seems Apple is falling into the same trap they were in the 1990s, chasing after profits instead of creating great products. That said, I will simply increase the time I will upgrade my Macs since getting one with the amount of RAM and SSD I need without compromising on longevity. I like Apple products, but I’m frustrated by the amount of corporate greed as of late instead of focusing on creating great products. This won’t deter me from getting a Vision Pro when it comes out. Still, I’m concerned about the direction of the company and the Mac with the amount of upselling, corporate greed, and gaslighting everyone by saying 8 GB is basically 16 GB of memory.
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