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IMO, almost any user should go with 8GB of RAM - minimum.
I have eight tabs in Chrome open now, iTunes, a torrent client, Malware Bytes, and a gaming client open (but no games running). I am using about 8GB of RAM. I frequently hit 10GB of consistent RAM usage.
4GB will begin swapping with some music running and a few browser tabs. iTunes is about 550 MB RAM with Chrome well over a GB. That's not counting the other background processes and active stuff running on the system. The Windows store is consuming 73.6GB in the background.
RAM is cheap. 8GB should be the minimum, 16GB should be the mainstream, with 32GB or 64GB for enthusiasts. I went with 32GB for about another $120 over 16GB three years ago and I don't regret it.
yes, RAM is cheap. Problem is that you can't just buy a computer with more ram, given the way they're spec'd out. You'll get a faster processor, bigger HDD and who knows what else, at a big step up in price.
Yes, it is true that the programs you mention have a big RAM footprint. It's also true that the programs can page parts out when the program is not in an active window. This takes a few milliseconds so it is hard to notice.
Speaking personally, my desktop is 16 GB. I often have lightroom, photoshop, itunes, chrome, MS outlook in foreground. even editing a 100GB photo, my RAM use does not go above 12, to my great surprise. Yes, I page to a SSD, so the process is a bit faster. So what?
Swapping is not a slow process. The only times you'd see a slowdown would be with massive databases and video editing at a pro level, but the pros also have RAID arrays and humongous SSD to speed things up.
I stand by 4 GB is enough for most people. Most people are just surfing the web and watching Netflix.
But as a wise man once said "I'd rather have more then I need then not enough".
So I certainly don't recommend avoiding 8.
I want to thank all of you for your information and advice!
I think I'll make my decision in September.
why do you want an all in one machine. i would prefer a regular desktop over an all in one. if something like the optical drive fails it's much eaiser to pull one out of a regular tower than an all in one.. and personaly i would avoid dell at all costs to me. and personaly i would build one vs buying a premade POS you come out cheaper building your own and you know whats going in there and what you can do with it..
Why do we constantly question what people want? He wants an AIO. He asked for advice on an AIO, He didn't ask for advice And an AIO is actually pretty damn easy to work on.
I've been using a Dell Inspiron 3647 desktop (Pentium G3220 3 GHz - 4 GB RAM - 500 GB) for several years, and it's been fine for me. I do about what the thread starter does. It was the cheapest Dell desktop when I bought it ($350?).
On any modern AIO you just pop the back off and can remove the drive with one screw. It's EASIER then a traditional desktop.
Let's not over simplify. I did an SSD swap in a new Dell AIO a few weeks ago, forget the model. 4 screws to remove the stand, 2 holding the back cover on, and 7 holding the hard drive cage in. Wasn't hard by any stretch but certainly not one screw.
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. i would prefer a regular desktop over an all in one. if something like the optical drive fails it's much eaiser to pull one out of a regular tower than an all in one.. and personaly i would avoid dell at all costs to me. and personaly i would build one vs buying a premade POS you come out cheaper building your own and you know whats going in there and what you can do with it..
Cheap Dell desktop
