I don't know how much RAM I really need to get.

[Tech_Novice]

My current laptop is 7 y.o. and VERY sloooow. I'm looking at buying a new laptop and was considering the amount of RAM. I'm debating whether I should customize and buy it with more RAM or buy it standard and add aftermarket RAM. I've been told that for my needs (daily computing, spreadsheets, social media, streaming - no gaming or anything like that) an i5 processor with 8GB would be plenty. I like to have multiple windows and tabs open simultaneously. My fear/concern is eventually surpassing the 8GB threshold and my comp slowing down again. For that type of usage, is 8GB sufficient? Would 12GB be overkill?

 

[mcnumpty23]

8gb is plenty

 

[ThatVietGuy]

You're never going to surpass 8GB judging on what you stated.

 

[USAFRet]

8GB is almost certainly fine for that use case. If you were going to be running multiple VM's at the same time, I'd suggest more.

 

[Stingerxxx]

I'm running an i5 2410 with 6gb's and it works fine for me, Win7 64 bit. I play several different games, even played Crysis 2 on medium and the new Civ Beyond Earth. I have done video encoding, I run dual monitors (sometimes, when I wanna do multiple things) and I've even been known to play a game and watch a movie at the same time. (It wasn't too successful, I don't remember the movie xD). My biggest issue is not RAM, it's graphics and my CPU.

While RAM is definitely important, going over the 8gb mark is really only necessary if you're running multiple intensive processes at the same time, I.E encoding a video while playing Elder Scrolls Online, and you have a second monitor to browse the web on at the same time, not to mention a few active downloads. If you're looking to do that, I'd recommend 16+, but with what you describe, there shouldn't be any issues at all with 8.

 

[TechNotGuy]

8GB RAM is more than enough for your needs I'm pretty sure.

 

[orlbuckeye]

The more memory the faster the multi-tasking. Examples opening many tabs in a browser. Switching between tabs is moving data in and out of memory. If you machine in memory challenged then the tabs in background get save to Cache (which is on the hard drive) and the transfer rate of memory is many times more then the transfer rate of hard drives. I purchased a laptop a few years ago with 8 gb of ram with the capability of 16GB. So I started first going to 12 Gb and the increase was noticeable without even doing much. Then I went to 16 gb and the increase wasn't noticeable at all. I also added a SSD and upgraded my wireless card. I had a laptop with 2 drive bays so I cloned the HD with the OS to the SSD and moved the HD to the second bay.

 

[mrAA]

8GB RAM is great that will do for you It is enough for gaming video editing and other stuffs you don't need to get more RAM I only suggest you to go for i7 processor for ex "i7 4510u"

 

[daddywalter]

I agree with the other posters: 8GB is almost certainly adequate for anything you're likely to do with a laptop.

If you're on a budget, consider getting a laptop with 4GB of RAM installed and either a second, empty RAM slot or the ability to replace that initial 4GB with an 8GB module later -- most Windows laptops these days use SODIMM slots that are user accessible through a panel on the underside, while a Macbook might require installation at an Apple Store. RAM prices are volatile, but in general aftermarket RAM upgrades cost less than the difference between 4GB and 8GB factory-installed.