My 2021 M1 MBP is currently fine, but, I will need to replace it in the next 2 years. Is it better to do so now, or will increased RAM and SSD prices make this unviable in 2 years?
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I have an M1 Air (8 GB RAM, 256 GB SSDā¦), so Iām in the same boat (or one that is sinking harder 
).
I hope Iām not being stupid by trying to wait for that rumored M6 (with OLED screen) at the end of the yearā¦
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Most US news reports the past few weeks say something like:
āSassine Ghazi, CEO of Synopsys, told CNBC that the chip ācrunchā will continue through 2026 and 2027ā
If I was reasonably certain that my M1 MBP will not be able to keep up with the demands of my job for another two years or so, that could be a problem.
If an M1 was enough and I was mainly worried about being able to afford a replacement, I might consider picking up a rebuilt MacBook āsomethingā now to put on a shelf, just in case. (A Neo would probably be enough for me.)
I think it would be better to wait if youāre not interested in the M5s. Agreed with Wayneās link that this RAM issue should be a 18-24 month cycle. Apple has good control of its suppliers and has the margin to keep prices mostly steady. If you end up paying 20% more in 2028, thatās not worth buying two years early.
That said: the M5s look to be very cool and capable and should last for quite awhile! The current form factor is at peak maturity.
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So am I!! 
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In the same boat. Iād say wait for an m6. With the Neo having only 8gb, Apple will keep that model as the baseline, so your M1 will be fine for at least two more years
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It depends what youāre using your laptop for. I always have bought used, or in the case with Apple, buying an older laptop (M2 MBA) and not the current version (M3 at time of M2 purchase). Everything Apple makes is so stupid fast anyway (a phone processor in the Neo ?!?)
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10 If you need a new computer/phone/ipad, buy it now.
20 If you donāt, wait.
30 Goto 10
No-one knows what prices may be in 2 years, and Apple commits to buying memory so far in advance that there may be no change in price in 2 years.
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About RAM prices?
(Upgrade to 256 GB costs much more now)
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My estimates put the current AI cycle to putter off in about 2 years, so prices should normalize assuming crypto or something else hardware intensive doesnāt take its place to the same scale (which is doutable).
Do with that what you will, but you should be able to get a few more years out of 'er.
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Yes, I posted that here yesterday:
Looks like we have a similar discussion in two separate topicsā¦
Yep, sorry ābout that.
I donāt think thatās needed.
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Upgrade it when it no longer meets your needs.
That could be when system resources , performance, or features are no longer adequate relative to your needs.
Or if you got a windfall of cash and want to treat yourself to a new laptop.
Either justification works.
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Good point. And with several manufacturers on-shoring operations over the next 4 years , the prices might shoot down in the US.
of course, we really donāt know the future, otherwise weād all be billionaires. So take that with a grain of salt.
Iām in the same boat.
I loaded up my M1 MacBook Pro with 32 GB of memory and 2 TB of Storage.
All of the YouTubers rave about the performance of later machines but they are primarily doing quite a bit of video work.
I may be doing some video editing in the future but right now Iām retired Iām just using basic office apps to manage my investments.
In the past I have noticed that new applications and expanded workload does tend to consume whatever performance improvements are made on the hardware.
One of the items on my bucket list is to someday work on a machine that snappy enough that allows me to stay in the zone, the zone where you are just getting things done and it feels good.
I recognized that I am important part of the problem in that Iām running applications like Devonthink and Backblaze.
I also have a somewhat beefy mac mini. But I have noticed that even it lags sometimes. Unfortunately sometimes feels that the amount of time I put into maintaining it is approaching the level of Microsoft Windows. It seems like almost every time I sit down to work at it I have to fix something first. Some things like file system errors I have not been able to correct, even with the help of Apple.
Model Name: Mac mini
Model Identifier: Mac16,11
Model Number: Z1JV000LELL/A
Chip: Apple M4 Pro
Total Number of Cores: 14 (10 Performance and 4 Efficiency)
Memory: 48 GB
Part of the reason I would like to upgrade my notebook because that instead of doing a transfer I would install everything from scratch and hopefully that would clean up some of the problems Iāve been experiencing.
In buying computers I tend to buy the best that I can afford because I will be using it for the next five years. That argues for waiting for the M6.
I watched a YouTube video reviewing the M5 Mac and they said that if youāre just typically using the office apps you might not even notice any difference in performance.
If any of you in the thread get the M5, could you share how it performs in day-to-day tasks. Does it help you stay in the zone?
Iām wondering if I would even notice the difference between the M1 and the M5 given my workload.
Iām starting to use artificial intelligence more. For some of the things I wanted to use it for I better serve my local LLMs. I wonder if the M6 would run them better than the M5.
I think Iāve talked myself into waiting, and Iām not necessarily happy about it.
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M1 MacBook Pro with 32 GB of memory
I have done video work in an M1 macbook Air, and it works fine.
That Mac should be pretty good to last you 5 more years, at least.
Video editors are not that heavy these days, and most of the workload is at the end, when exporting.
ā¦mac mini m4ā¦ Memory: 48 GBā¦ it lags sometimes
Those two are pretty pretty good machines.
What kind of issues have you been experiencing? Iād check what apss you have installed and if thereās something, some app that you installed in both, thatās being a CPU or GPU bottleneck.
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While Iām itching to upgrade from my M1 Max 32 GB, there is really no good reason to. Itās a beast and can deal with everything I am throwing at it, even multiple Claude Code sessions in parallel.
Iāll wait for the OLED screen, thatās a more tangible excuse 
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Yeah, I the past every Intel release was a leap in terms of speed, and upgrading was always useful just to keep things running.
Nowadays, in contrast to those dark ages, the M ones are holding up pretty well
I agree with the general notion that you only need to upgrade when you actually need extra speed/snappiness. Thatās rationally true. However, I learned a few years back that just wanting a new machine is good enough. No justification needed 
.
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