Will Apple's move to 16GB of RAM improve gaming performance on the MAC?

The gaming industry continues to gather pace. The latest advances promise an even more comprehensive gaming experience. However, open-world games with detailed graphics and 360-degree viewing angles demand a lot of performance. One reason why Apple has decided to upgrade its upcoming MACs with 16 GB of RAM. Is this an exaggeration or is there even a lack of performance to keep up with the times? This article gets to the bottom of this question.

Why is RAM so important in gaming?

RAM is one of the most important criteria for MAC and PC. The size of the RAM determines whether daily tasks can be carried out smoothly and without long waiting times during regular use. RAM is even more important for gaming. Many free games to download today are equipped with graphics elements and functions that simply require higher performance

Better graphics cards and complicated game sequences and processes require sufficient RAM so that all requests can be processed quickly and without interruptions. RAM is a temporary memory that only remembers data for a short time. This means that data does not have to be laboriously stored on the hard drive and then retrieved.

From 8GB standard to 16GB for more MAC performance

For many people, Apple is not immediately associated with video games. In fact, Apple devices are the absolute standard in the design industry. Creatives, artists, designers and all those who see themselves as free thinkers swear by the Mac. In recent years, however, Apple has focussed specifically on the gaming sector and developed powerful models with in-house M2 Pro and M2 Max processors. These also manage the extensive and detailed graphics of the new AAA games without any problems.

However, the next MAC models will still be equipped with 16GB RAM as standard. Of course, this has a lot to do with the new games, which require more power. Apple itself is also using more and more AI on its new devices, which can only fulfil their tasks with sufficient RAM.

The new models with M4 are set to shine with the new RAM performance of 16GB from this year. The new models to be launched in autumn include the MacBook Pro and the Mac Mini. The Mac Mini in particular is seen in-house as an ideal choice for gaming, even if Apple's price is always slightly higher than that of the competition. These new models will be followed next year by the new Mac Studio, MacBook Air and Mac Pro, which will then in all probability also be equipped with 16GB RAM as standard.

Who needs 16GB RAM?

How much RAM is used for gaming depends a lot on the games. There are some differences in the requirements between titles such as Roblox, Counter Strike or a simple platform game. For example, games such as Counter Strike: Global Offensive or Fortnite tend to be games that get by with very little RAM. 4GB should be sufficient here. But with Rainbow Six, the minimum requirement should be 6GB.

However, these specifications are only the minimum requirements. If you want to guarantee absolutely smooth gaming, you should provide more RAM. As a rule, 8GB is quite sufficient. However, the most modern games, which work with a lot of detailed graphics and complex scenarios, definitely benefit from 16GB of RAM. Anyone who has dedicated themselves to gaming professionally or semi-professionally will certainly be very satisfied with the increased performance. However, the RAM is not the only component that ensures perfect gaming. The graphics card, CPU and sound system also need to be upgraded to deliver the best performance.

Conclusion

Apple is certainly moving in the right direction with the 16GB RAM in order to gain a larger market share. Developments in the gaming industry are not slowing down. On the contrary, studios are designing ever more complex titles that surprise with top graphics and many parallel actions. To cope with these requirements, Apple will sooner or later have to increase the RAM. With the standard integration of 16GB RAM in the new models, Apple is paying tribute to the development of the industry and wants to further establish itself as a serious alternative in gaming.