buying a new computer. should i get more ram or ssd?

[The Frozen One]

so i'm thinking of buying the new macbook. I currently have the 13" 2015 pro but it's getting sluggish and battery is dying as well.

i'm looking at the new macbook pros and debating between increasing the ram to 16gb or going with the 256 ssd drive.

I want the macbook to last me at least 5+ years. I only use the macbook for casual use and nothing else. Day to day web browsing, youtube, chrome etc. I'm looking at the space on my macbook and i've used about 70gb of the ssd, with majority being my iphone backup and photos. I also have icloud online backup.

So should i stay with the base mode 8/128gb ssd. or upgrade the ram or the ssd. it's about $200 for each upgrade. I'm leaning towards the 16gb ram over the ssd as i don't much use much space and i can always use an external harddrive/ usb drives.

 

[The Mad Titan]

Sounds like your get more bang for your buck with ram, at least you can have a easier time with chrome and other programs running all at once.

 

[Renkz]

Yeah, ram a good idea as long with those flaws

 

[Stir Fry]

It doesn't seem like a pro should be sluggish with casual use and an ssd. Have you checked if there are any rogue apps running in the background?

Here's our guide on how to Force Quit or view background apps on a Mac!

You could also try running a first aid via the disk utility app


How many chrome tabs to you keep open on average?

 

[The Frozen One]

Sounds like your get more bang for your buck with ram, at least you can have a easier time with chrome and other programs running all at once.

ya i am definitely leaning more towards the ram than the ssd. not sure the extra $250 is worth it to go with the 256gb ssd.

It doesn't seem like a pro should be sluggish with casual use and an ssd. Have you checked if there are any rogue apps running in the background?

Here's our guide on how to Force Quit or view background apps on a Mac!

You could also try running a first aid via the disk utility app


How many chrome tabs to you keep open on average?

i usually have 7-10 tabs open. and stream a lot and watch a lot of youtube.

 

[NotAnFBIagent]

Why don't you just add more ram and/or an ssd to the macbook you have and replace the battery?

 

[Child_Of_God]

Definitely more ram.

 

[Regular_P]

Always RAM. I got a MBP with 16GB of Ram 5-6 years ago and it's still running like a thoroughbred.

 

[Kamikaze Revy]

Why don't you just add more ram and/or an ssd to the macbook you have and replace the battery?

You can’t upgrade the ram on a MacBook.
The ram is soldered to the mother board.
In OP’s case, RAM is the easy answer. Hard drive space can be supplemented with an external drive.

 

[NotAnFBIagent]

You can’t upgrade the ram on a MacBook.
The ram is soldered to the mother board.
In OP’s case, RAM is the easy answer. Hard drive space can be supplemented with an external drive.

Doubt he would he need that much ram if all he's doing is casual use. Its more likely his hard drive is failing or he just needs to clean up the files on his computer if its slowing down. I put a new battery and ssd in my 2010 pro in 2017, with a clean install, and it ran like new. But if op wants to waste his money buying a whole new computer its not my pockets.

 

[Dorian Breh]

Doubt he would he need that much ram if all he's doing is casual use. Its more likely his hard drive is failing or he just needs to clean up the files on his computer if its slowing down. I put a new battery and ssd in my 2010 pro in 2017, with a clean install, and it ran like new. But if op wants to waste his money buying a whole new computer its not my pockets.

This. I got a 2009 MacBook, the baseline model lying around that I installed an SSD in and upgraded the RAM from 2 GB to 4 GB, and that shyt runs almost as smoothly as my 2018 MBP 15” for all casual purposes. CPU power is really not a bottleneck for 99% of people and the other stuff can be upgraded in older MacBooks.

To answer OP’s original question, tho, you don’t need more than 8 GB RAM for anything civilian, and flash memory is cheap as hell so just cop an external drive of 128 or 256 GB and you should be golden.

Edit: OP has the 2015 13” MacBook Pro which should be running like a champ even now since it comes with 8 gigs of RAM and a Pcie ssd as standard, something’s not adding up

 

[Kamikaze Revy]

Why is anyone buying a MACBOOK for casual purposes???

 

[IrateMastermind]

Why is anyone buying a MACBOOK for casual purposes???

serious question. school me. What would someone buy for casual use if you want it to last and you hate pop-ups and antivirus software sending false alarms all day? I had an acer that shyt the bed a year after I bought it. I had a hp i bought and it lasted 3 years 2003-2006. I've owned 2 MacBook pro's since 2008 and they still turn on. The 2008 is frustrating as hell to use so I don't but my 2013 is doing fine except i'm gonna have to replace the battery soon. Maybe I might cop one for my mom. Her 2010 MacBook is in bad shape and she's not gonna replace it.

 

[OH SOHH TRILL]

You can always download more RAM. Go with the SSD.

 

[King Khufu]

You can always download more RAM.

How?