I apologise if this is the wrong community to post this in, I wasn’t sure which one was ideal.
I’m suffering a difficult decision of choosing between a Framework laptop or a Macbook Air (M1, 2020). I really like the ethical principles of Framework, i.e. you actually own it and can repair it any time, leading to an increased longevity. At the same time, I have heard people claim Macbook is superior in almost all aspects (especially battery life).
I know both Apple and Microsoft are greedy CorpGiants, but seeing as I have an iPhone, I figure it would be easier using a Mac? But then again, the prices really are not worth it, especially considering it costs a lot to repair them. I have 0 experience with Linux, and this computer will be used at school, so I suppose it stands between macOS and Windows.
I guess I just want some advice? Or some guidance and comparisons. Is 8GB enough for a Framework laptop? The 16GB version costs nearly as much as the Mac I’m looking at, hence my hesitance. If anybody has some experience using Framework and / or Macbook, I would love to hear about it. What are some pros and cons? Which people are better off with FW and Mac respectively?
Thank you!
*Edit, forgot to mention: I need a Swedish keyboard on the computer, and Framework apparently only offers English. This is the largest obstacle preventing me from leaning towards FW.
8GB of RAM wasn’t enough for me to use in either person or professional contexts in 2006. My work laptop has 16GB and I’m constantly running low on RAM when I’m working with spreadsheets and relatively simple Photoshop projects. I’m not talking about games or compiling code either.
I would not be looking at systems with fewer than 16GB of RAM for any user for any reason in 2024. And for myself I would not be buying any systems with fewer than 32GB of RAM.
(My personal desktop has 64GB and so far that’s been sufficient but I have nearly capped it out when running substance painter, blender, unity, etc.)
So it really all comes down to the software you use. But my advice is to consider 16GB the absolute minimum.
Apple claims their OS needs less RAM (I have no clue) but for OP running Windows 8GB is no where near enough.
Apple has low memory behaviour way better optimized than Windows, so running at 8GB will not be as painful as it is with windows - but in the background the OS will constantly shuffle stuff around to avoid running out of memory, which costs performance.
16GB is the bare minimum for computer nowadays - and that applies to macs as well. I’m currently using a 16GB air m1 for some things, and I also regularly run into performance issues due to memory limits without doing heavy stuff.
Just to note for anyone reading this later on. Being low on ram doesn’t mean you need more ram, Modern operating systems, especially Windows and MacOS prefer to utilise all available ram, it’s hard to guage how much you need because of this. To be safe if you’re buying a Laptop or Desktop for professional use in 2024 16gb is the minimum and 32gb is recommended.