8GB vs. 16GB, revisited for Retina MBP, advances in tech and low prices

Hi everyone. The "How much RAM is the right amount" has been asked for a long time, but I'd like to re-ask the question keeping in mind that the Retina MBP cannot be upgraded but it already gives you a generous 8GB. I know, I know, it all depends on what you use it for, so let me give you my usage scenario: I have at least two browsers open with about 30 tabs open between them. Safari and Chrome to be precise. I haven't used Firefox in a while, but may go back to using it again as well. I also like to keep Mail, Messages, Calendar, Notes, and some monitoring utilities open at all times as well.
I also want to ask the question with OS X memory usage and how Activity Monitor reports RAM usage. For example, I had 16GB on my late-2011 17" MBP just because it was cheap and Activity Monitor breaks down RAM usage in 4 areas: Active, Wired, Inactive, Free, where the first two is RAM actually used by the system, but Inactive RAM was often used to a fairly large degree. Sometimes it would report RAM as "Inactive" to the point where only 1 or 2GB were shown as "Free". Quick disclaimer: I know that inactive RAM can be immediately assigned to applications that need it, but what I'd like to know is as to whether the overall speed and stability of so many apps would truly benefit from 16GB of RAM or not. There must be some reason for this Inactive RAM being used as what, caching? It almost has to be of some benefit, because if there wasn't any benefit to it, why have the "Inactive" category at all, or am I missing something here?
Thanks everyone. :-)

I would say you will want the 16GB for a few reasons. You are working with memory-intensive datasets, and also you are running a virtual machine. VMs tend to use up a lot of RAM since it means you are running two complete OSs at the same time, on top of any other apps you might be running.
The third reason is that the Retina models cannot be upgraded after purchase. You would not want to have an 8GB forever if you discovered that your future work needed a bit more memory. You've already demonstrated doing some tasks that can be RAM-intensive, just max out the RAM and never worry about it again.
If you still have doubts, learn how to analyze RAM usage and particularly swap file behavior in Activity Monitor. If your Mac is already paging to swap files frequently, you already need the RAM. If you do work for several days and swap paging activity is low, you don't need the RAM.

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    I opted for the 15" retina, 2.6gHz, 16gb RAM, 768 Flash Drive.
    When I received the unit on Monday I loaded it up with my editors, compilers, programs from the AppStore, music, etc.   Of my 768 I'm down to about 210gb free which is plenty.  I was expecting to use more.
    The first thing I must confess about this new machine is how quiet the processors are.  I installed iStat Menus which I like so I can monitor how my MBP is doing.  With my 2010 just running a single VMWare Fusion VM had the processor at about 30% and the fan running say 3500 RPM.  It was hot and noisy.  This new machine, as I type this post has two VMs open.  A Windows 7 32 bit, and a Windows 7 64 bit.  I'm also listening to iTunes, I have mail, google chrome, calendar, contacts and a number of other apps open.  As I sit here the CPU activity almost non existent.  The rMBP isn't even struggling in the least with this load.  In direct comparison my 2010 MBP would have 30-40% CPU load and the fans would be screaming away, not at full bore but really loud. But here I sit with this new machine and it is quiet, only very slightly warm and I'm doing what I "normally" do.
    For this alone the upgrade was CLEARLY worth it to me.  The computing horsepower in this machine is insane.
    My unit came with (heaven forbid) the LG display that everyone in the "burn-in" thread says is HORRIBLE and some of these guys have gone through 5 or 6 replacements to solve their burn in problems.  I don't doubt they've had these issues.  I don't doubt they exist.  I have none of them.  This display is freaking amazing!  
    Now I've heard it said that the IR (image retention, ghosting, burn-in) can take weeks to appear.  So I'm not out of the woods yet.  But at this point in time the display is simply awesome and with the background I choose I see ZERO ghosting.  I'll say it again.  This display is freaking awesome!
    Now I'm not a graphic artist and I cannot and will not try to tell you if my color point is correct for the white or not.  What I can tell you is that this display looks good to me.  I can read even the smallest text easily.  The clarity is simply amazing.  I'm 55 and have certainly reached that age where my eyes work overtime.  I wear progressive glasses and I'm not having any trouble at all with the display.
    The only thing I could point a finger at is that this new retina display is bounded by a black area that for my eyes is the same color as my background.  I've found myself trying to slide windows into that area and being shocked that they are disappearing (because the display physically ends there).  This is just something to get used to or I could set my background to be a little lighter.  Anyway this is a pretty damned small negative if I must say so.
    Ok on heat.  As I mentioned above this machine just idles along 99% of the time so there is little heat being produced.  I'm not doing nothing either.  In my Windows 7 VMs I'm running compilers and when the are cranking on code the Windows CPU is showing 100% while the rMBP registers this as like 5%.  Not sure I understand how that is working yet but I see no speed loss in my VM and yet my rMBP is just coasting even though Windows is registering 100% CPU.
    The airflow on this new computer is to take air in from the sides and dispense the hot air out a vent in front of the display.  I personally think this is a design flaw.  I think this may be causing some of the burn in/ghosting issues because the computer is venting hot air right at the display.  I personally would have vented it out the back beneath the screen but perhaps the latch as it is designed for the rMBP may make that impossible.
    But as an engineer I have an idea for a way to fix the heat on the LCD panel issue.  It would not take much to make a small plastic piece that sat in that hinge area and took the outgoing air and sent it to the sides way from the panel.  I'm not gonna design this but if the heat really is the issue this simple $2 piece would probably save the panel.
    So my take is this:
    For me personally and acceptance of anything is a very personal choice, the retina MBP is exactly what Apple bills it to be.  The best, more amazing laptop I've ever owned.  It is cool (temp wise), fast (amazingly fast), small, thin, light, has an amazing screen visually and I predict this computer will satisfy my needs for quite a few years to come.
    I will not berate or downplay the issues some have had.  I honestly believe there have been bad retina MBPs.  Bad screens.  Heat issues.  Failures.  They happen and those people have suffered and I hope Apple will make it right for them.  But I'm one to say that my unit more than satisfies my goals and intents. Like any piece of machinery it has its small issues.  I'm sure my screen will have some IR.  I'm sure my unit will get hot but so far it doesn't work even 1/4 as hard as my older 2010 MBP.
    So my point to everyone is make your own choice.  Do not let the threads you see in these forums convince you that your retina MBP will be problem ridden.  Just because other people see and are bothered by a problem you might not be and the problem may not exist on your retina MBP.
    For me, this machine is simply amazing.  I can only hope my panel does not suddenly start to show massive ghosting.  I do plan to keep a close eye on that and on the heat.  But right now I'm not expecting issues.
    Good luck in your purchase and also to those that have purchased and are not satisfied.

    I need to add just one more thing and that is on battery life.  Last night I sat with the rMBP on my lap installing software, surfing the web, answering emails for close to 4 and 1/2 hours.  At the point I took it back to the charger it still was showing a computed battery time remaining of 3.5 hours.
    Today I had two VMs open and took the machine of the charger and sat outside with my dogs for about 30 minutes.  During this time I was working in both VMs, editing and compiling code.  My battery life estimate showed a good solid 4 hours. 
    This is roughly 6 times greater than what I had with my 2010 MBP and it too had a SSD.  I am not sure why but this retina MBP just seems to not work as hard doing anything that caused my 2010 MBP to struggle.
    While the battery life is certainly better than I expected it is clear that load can change that very rapidly. So I think I still need to visit clients with an external battery or charger in hand.  But I don't think I will be quite so scared that my laptop will simply run out of power before I can even get it plugged in.

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