Is 4GB Ram enough for a new iMac?

I'm contemplating buying a new iMac. I see that the new iMacs come with 4GB of RAM installed. Is that enough for running programs like Pages, Numbers, iMovie, iDVD, Finale (music notation software), Toast, iTunes... as well as the usual web browsers and Mail.
Would I be better off upgrading the ram even before I take the computer home, or should I try getting by on 4GB first?
It used to be that the amount of RAM pre-installed was never enough. Is this still a truism?

Paul SanGregory wrote:
It used to be that the amount of RAM pre-installed was never enough. Is this still a truism?
You are correct. The system will run nicely on 4 GB of memory but for what you are planning to do and for new things you may get into, I’d make my original purchase 8 GB (4x2GB sticks). It’s not much more money and your applications will thank you. If you decide to wait before adding the RAM, you will be able to monitor your RAM usage using Activity Monitor. With 4 GB, you’ll see memory pageouts and swap file usage; with 8 GB installed, you may not typically have any pageouts or swap file usage and everything will run better when you have a busy machine.

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Ok, so i bought a imac 27 about 4 months ago, and now they release a new one! ****... So my question is, should I sell this one (which by the way is the i5 2.8 with 1 gb 5750 and 4gb ram) and buy the new imac 27 i5,or keep the one i have and buy more ram

ok, so i bought a imac 27 about 4 months ago, and now they release a new one! ****... So my question is, should I sell this one (which by the way is the i5 2.8 with 1 gb 5750 and 4gb ram) and buy the new imac 27 i5,or keep the one i have and buy more ram. I mostly use my computer for photoshop cs5 and illustrator cs5 for graphics out put as well as surfing the web and music.
Please give me you thoughts on what I should do!! Thanks lot!

The new iMac is about 25% or so faster than your current iMac(comparable model would be the 3.1ghz version). There are a couple of things that you will benefit from such as the dual Thunderbolt/Mini Display ports/ which may help with multitasking. The video card in the new iMac again the comparable model being the 3.1ghz is a lotttttttt better than the current one that you have. So thinking of the long run those few things may be beneficial for you to upgrade(but it depends on what is important to you).
I had the 2.93ghz i7 version that I just bought in March this year and I turned around and sold it about a week before the new iMac's were announced. I got about $1600 for it, yeah I took a loss but to me it was worth it because my new iMac performs that much better. Now keep in mind I went from i7 to i7...3.4ghz i7 with the 2gb video card. Now I have dual thuderbolt/mini display ports. I have noticed significant gains in my video editing and also in my gaming. So to me it was definitely worth the upgrade!
One last thing, I would not have sold my 2.93 i7 and then bought the 3.1ghz i5, the big reason is because HT(hyper threading), it's only on the i7 model(3.4ghz)... If you take a look at some of the bench marks on engadget, maclife, macrumors, macworld, ****Barefeats.com(they really get into benchmarking)*** you will see charts that will help you make a better decision.
In closing I would say look into it, if you can get a good price out of your current iMac to put toward a new iMac then do it. Like others have mentioned to you, tech changes and Apple will change the tech in these machines next year or do a speed bump later this year or so. One last thing if you go from the 2.8 i5 up to the 3.4 i7, you would definitely see the difference (HT is a must especially for programs that utilize it. You can go to my youtube channel(mob1278) and take a look at my geekbench results.... my 2.93 i7 scored around 10500-11000(8gb ram)...my 3.4 i7 scores from 12700-13000 with 4gb ram....so yeah as you can see big difference. Basically the 3.4 i7 would perform similar or just under a 2.4ghz 8core 2010 Mac Pro which runs you about $3500 with no monitor.... it's your money spend it how you want....and Lion is only going to push it even more when it is released!

Is 4GB ram enough for the 2.93 imac?

I'm buying a imac 2.93 gh, 4Gb ram, 640 hd. How much ram does the OS 10.5 use? How can I find this info?

I am currently running 4gb ram on a G5 dual 2.0
and am thinking about moving to imac 2.93.
Will I see much difference in performance?
How about performance difference between imac vs ppc on snow leopard?
I usually run at same time:
- safari
- mail
- ichat
- together
- The Hit List
- MacJournal
- NetNewsWire
- pages
I also run very frequently and sometimes at same time as above...
- iphoto
- itunes
Periodically I get a lot of page outs
but I haven't been able to detect a pattern as to why.
Does it seem like 4gb Ram will do ok with this on the imac?
I keep trying to find an article on how memory is handled in new imacs as opposed to how it was handled in ppc...any suggestions where I could read about this?
thanks.

Is 4gb RAM enough for me?

Hey guys, i just had a few questions, hope you can sanswer them? (i think this is my 7th question in 4 days )
1. I heard that the 256gb or higher model has a samsung PCIe ssd drive, while the 128gb model has a sandisk PCIe ssd drive . Am i correct?
2. If so, is the samsung ssd drive faster than the sandisk ssd drive? How fast? (is it noticably fast?)
3. I am not going to play any game on my air. I am only going to check my email, listen to music, use itunes, watch movies, and so on. I am not going to use Parallels, however i am going to use bootcamp to install windows. Anyways, do you think 4gb of RAM is enough for me? I think the most RAM-using activity i do is open up to 20 tabs, but that's only when i read the news(i press ctrl and left click because i dont want to wait for the news to load every time). Anyways, do you think it's enough?
4. Same question with number 3, except do you think i5 is going to be enough?
Thanks!

The I5 MOST CERTAINLY more than enough. 8 gig upgrade is only $90, if youre going to upgrade (you cant do it later), that is the most wise upgrade choice rather than the 256 over the 128, unless cost is no issue.
I5 vs I7 benchmark tests show little difference between the two.
Geekbench: i5: 5868, i7: 6287 (+7%)
Handbrake: i5: 12min12s, i7:12min5s (-1%)
Cinebench: i5: 11.13fps, i7:11.54fps (+4%)
iMovie: i5: 5min1s, i7: 4min56s (-2%)
PhotoShop: i5: 68.7s, i7:57.4s (-17%) <<<<only "real" improvement area of the I7
Final cut: i5: 2min7s, i7: 2min 4s (-2%)

Is 4gb RAM enough for os x mavericks?

I am on a limited budget and thinking of getting a macbook air 13 inch base model and wanted to know if 4gb ram is ok or does it run like crap.

Are the RAM requirements for Mavericks significantly greater than that for Mountain Lion? If not, than I can probably upgrade to Mavericks (strange name this. Sounds like some sort of nightcap) with the RAM I have.
My mid-2007 iMac can't be upgraded above its current 4GB - as far as I know. It is working fine with ML as long as I don't have too many apps open. I can still have three or four open at the moment depending on what they do and, interestingly, the pedigree of the company that originated the software. By that I mean if the originator a Mac only developer (possibly with PC as a secondary line) I experience no problems.
If the originator of the software is basically a PC developer with Macs catered for mainly as an afterthought I find apps from these developers tend to take up most, if not all, the available RAM I have even when nothing else is booted. Stereomerger.app is a good example of this.

Is a 4gb RAM enough on Macbook Air 2013 13 inch for OS mavericks?

I am thinking of buying a Macbook Air for my school work and have heard that 4gb of RAM isnt enough for mavericks - Is 8 gb RAM upgrade a must?

4GB is enough for a Macbook Air since it can't do any hard graphical or computational work, but as above, since its not upgradeable and only $100, there is no good reason not to.

Preparing for a new iMac

Hi,
I currently have an iMac from 2008 (running Leopard) and will be buying a new iMac next month. I'm not sure which iMac is the best option for me. I know I want the 21.5 inch screen, but i'm not sure if I should get the base model and upgrade the ram, or stick with the 2nd level model with no upgrades (I don't want to go over $1500.00 before taxes. My current model only has 1GB of memory, and i've never had an issue with it, so I'm thinking 16GB would be quite a significant difference - am I right? If I go with the 2nd model, the processer would be better but still only has 8GB of ram. My daily use of the computer is simply internet use, e-mail, iMovie, iDVD (which I know I won't have anymore), and iTunes. I don't play games but I guess the most powerful thing I use is iMovie (capturing video as well).
Any Suggestions? I'm not sure which model to go for.
Also, I currently use Time Machine to back up my computer to an external harddrive. I do not want my new computer to be a mirror image of the one I currently have. I only want iTunes and iPhoto to stay the same. How can this be done? Is it possible to use the same external hard drive for back up of the new computer also? I'd like to keep the old back up, and have a new one started for the new iMac. Will Time Machine simply start a new backup and leave the old folder as is? I'd like to keep it incase I ever want to get something from the old computer.
Thanks in advance!

8 GB of memory are enough for your uses, so you will have enough memory. Anyway, although Apple says that the Late 2012 21'5-inch iMac memory isn't replaceable, you can add more memory (it's difficult and you will void the warranty, but you can add memory) > http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/iMac/2012_21.5/DDR3L
When you want to restore a Time Machine backup, the Mac will ask you what you want to restore, so select only the folders you want to restore. For example, the iTunes library is stored in Music folder, so tick your Music folder, and iPhoto library is stored in Pictures folder, so tick the Pictures folder. You can unmark the rest of the folders.
Note that you will be running a new operating system, so Time Machine will have to make a full backup of your Mac with all changes from Leopard to OS X Mountain Lion (near everything of Mac OS X)

Is 2 gig of ram enough for a 2011 2,3 ghz mac mini for doing some games? Like GTA IV

Is the standard 2GB of ram enough for a 2011 2,3GHz Mac Mini for doing games? Like GTA IV.
Or do I even have to go for the faster 2,5GHz model?

I have a MacMini Late 2011 with 2.3 GHz I5 and 4GB RAM and I use it as media center... It's enough to play FullHD movies but it uses 256 on 512 MB of (shared)RAM... I don't think that you can use a mini for hard gaming...
But AngryBirds Space on a 60" FullHD TV looks great
edit:
welcome to discussions... i'm a newbie too

15" Macbook Pro i7 4GB Ram good for gaming?

Hi, I'd like to know if the 15" MBP i7 4GB Ram good for gaming? I'm not gonna be an intense gamer I would just like to play games during my down time. All I will be playing is like 1 MMORPG and maybe 1 or 2 FPS games. I will not be doing this all at once. I will be using bootcamp. I have some friends tell me that they wouldn't play games on the MBP because it could ruin it? Is this true? They tell me that it's not wise to play games on this laptop.

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If we're talking older games, that probably aren't all that demanding, then maybe. If we're talking newer games that are pushing the limits of the laptop's specs, I'd recommend against it.

HT1175 I am trying to setup my Time capsule via a ethernet cable as a back up for a new iMac. The on button on the time capsule set up window keeps failing to stay on. Any ideas what to do?

I am trying to setup my Time capsule via a ethernet cable as a back up for a new iMac. The on button on the time capsule set up window keeps failing to stay on. Any ideas what to do?

A PC can have more issues connecting than a Mac.
But it really should not matter.. so just try it in situ.. press and hold the reset.. once it starts up, it will return to default IP, 10.0.1.1 the PC should then be able to find it via the airport utility.
If not drag it over to the Mac and plug in there by ethernet.. or since it is a laptop, really should not be that difficult to drag the Laptop and plug it into the TC.
Important thing is to get access to the TC.
The Mac if it is running lion, then you MUST download and install 5.6 airport utility to do anything useful.
http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1482

How can i use my old iMac as a extended desktop display for my new iMac?

I recently purchased a 21.5 in iMac and wanted to use my old iMac as a extended desktop. My new iMac has thunderbolt and USB 3.0 connections while my old iMac has firewire (400 and 800), USB 2.0 and mini-DVI. Is this posible?

Welcome to Apple Support Communities
If your iMac has got Mini-DVI, you have a 17, 20 or 24-inch iMac that doesn't support Target Display. Late 2009 and Mid 2010 27-inch iMacs, and iMacs with Thunderbolt can be used as external displays. Read > http://support.apple.com/kb/PH11302?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
If your old iMac doesn't support Target Display mode, you can use ScreenRecycler to use your old iMac as an extended display for the new iMac. The only thing you need is that both Macs are connected to the same network

A UPS for my new iMac 21.5"

I've ordered a new iMac 21.5" with Fusion Drive HD.
Can someone advise me what is the proper UPS to buy for my new iMac please ?
It's important to have some kind of software ?
Thanks
Ronen

Please see their answer regarding my question :
Thank you for contacting APC’s Customer Care Team. We are here to ensure that your query is resolved as quickly as possible. Please find our response to your query below.
Dear Mr. Z,
Thank you for contacting APC.
The compatibility of the UPS with an OS is dependant on the installed management software the UPS communicates with.
1. BR900GI - PowerChute Personal - no compatibility with OSX, please find the compatibility chart below:
http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/JNOE-7GSAQJ/JNOE-7GSAQJ_R11_EN.pdf
2. SUA750I - PowerChute Business Edition - no compatibility with OSX, please find the compatibility chart below:
http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/ASTE-6Z5QEV/ASTE-6Z5QEV_R37_EN.pdf
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http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/SJHN-7AYQNP/SJHN-7AYQNP_R41_EN.pdf
http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=ap9630
http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=ap9631
Please let me know if I can assist with any further info.
Kind regards
<Personal Information Edited by Host>

I like the idea of auto back-up for my new iMac, Ipad and PC Netbook, particularly if I can access all files and data stored on any device. But I have a Conceptronic router. Will Time Capsule work with this and how?

I like the idea of auto back-up for my new iMac, Ipad and PC Netbook, particularly if I can access all files and data stored on any device. But I have a Conceptronic router.
1. Will Time Capsule work with this and how?
2. Can my printer USB be plugged in and then shared between the devices?
3. Can I create a network and how?
4. What happend when a visitor logs onto my existing wireless router?
I'm new to Macs (well a returning user having started with Mac Plus!!) and not very technical. Any help / advice will be much appreciated.
Ray

The key to what you seem to want to do is to be able to get Apple's Time Capsule router to "join" the network that your Conceptronic router. I believe that works with some third-party routers, but I've never seen a list of those that work in such a configuration and I have no experience with Conceptronic equipment.
You might be better off with a Network-Attached Storage (NAS) device instead of a Time Capsule.

I'm trying to set up a dual monitor for my new iMac. I'm using a second display I used with my old G5. My iMac recognizes the second monitor but the monitor won't turn on. Power button doesn't do anything on the monitor itself.

I'm trying to set up a dual monitor for my new iMac. I'm using a second display I used with my old G5. My iMac recognizes the second monitor but the monitor won't turn on. Power button doesn't do anything on the monitor itself.

If it won't turn on then the monitor is dead (power supply?, video circuits?). Not worth repairing.
If you have a new iMac then it has thunderbolt. So exactly what is that monitor you are trying to connect? For TB you can connect a mini-displayport monitor. Probably (not 100% sure with TB) can use dvi or vga too if you have the appropriate adapter.

Is there any way I can get IDVD for my new IMac?

Is there any way I can get IDVD for my new IMac?

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https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3673
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Is 4GB Ram enough for a new iMac?

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