Apple's Regular Mac Base RAM Boosts Ended When Tim Cook Took Over

Apple used to regularly increase the base memory of its Macs up until 2011, the same year Tim Cook was appointed CEO, charts posted on Mastodon by David Schaub show.

macos sonoma feature purple green
Earlier this year, Schaub generated two charts: One showing the base memory capacities of Apple's all-in-one Macs from 1984 onwards, and a second depicting Apple's consumer laptop base RAM from 1999 onwards. Both charts were recently resurfaced by the Accidental Tech Podcast.

The graphs show that Apple tended to increase the base memory every two years or so, but that this trend ended when Cook took over the company from Steve Jobs. Memory increased quickly until the Mac Plus was launched in 1986, notes Schaub. "1986 to 1990 were all about decreasing the entry Mac price," he says. "Then we get a pretty straight logarithmic line until Tim Cook became CEO and there has only been a single increase since."

all in one base ram chart
The correlation is interesting, but other variables such as market trends and changes in technology can help to account for the plateau in Cook's era. For example, Stuart McHattie notes that early all-in-one Macs saw a tenfold increase every six years. If that trend had continued from 2006 onwards when the base was 500MB, modern base model Macs would have reached 500GB. Yet today's consumer PC demand for RAM remains around 8GB to 64GB, and very rarely exceeds double digits.

Computers have also changed a lot over the last several years. RAM has gotten faster. Hard disk drives have been superseded by solid-state storage. Chips and components are more tightly integrated. Apple no longer relies on Intel processors to power its machines, and instead uses high performance system-on-a-chip (SOC) architecture, which fuses CPUs, GPUs, and unified memory into a single package. This is why the company feels confident in arguing that 8GB on a Mac is comparable to 16GB on rival systems.

laptop base ram chart
But that does not change the fact that Apple has offered iMac and MacBook Pro models with 8GB of RAM since 2012. Likewise, the MacBook Air has had the same base memory configuration since 2017. In addition, Apple's adoption of unified memory means that Macs cannot have their RAM upgraded after purchase, while Apple continues to pursue a strategy of vastly overcharging customers for higher memory configurations. Users often pay out $200 or more at checkout just to future proof their machines.

Apple's Mac memory configuration strategy is likely to become even more contentious if all upcoming iPhone 16 models turn out to include 8GB of RAM. (In the iPhone 15 series, only the Pro models have 8GB, whereas standard models have 6GB.) Why Apple is prepared to increase RAM in a smartphone but not in a multitasking Mac without users paying excessively for the privilege will be the overriding question on many consumers' lips.

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...
top stories 2025 04 19

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, CarPlay Bug Fix, and More

Saturday April 19, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
This week saw rumor updates on the iPhone 17 Pro and next-generation Vision Pro, while a minor iOS 18.4.1 update delivered not just security fixes but also a fix for some CarPlay issues. We also looked ahead at what else is in Apple's pipeline for the rest of 2025 and even the 20th-anniversary iPhone coming in 2027, so read on below for all the details on these stories and more! iPhone 17 ...
Apple TV Plus Feature 2 Magenta and Blue

Apple TV+ Available at Significantly Lower Price Until Next Week

Friday April 18, 2025 11:42 am PDT by
Apple TV+ is currently available at a much lower price than usual, but time is running out if you want to take advantage of the offer. In the U.S., new and qualified returning customers can subscribe to Apple TV+ for just $2.99 per month, for three months. Afterwards, regular pricing of $9.99 per month applies. The offer is available in the Apple TV app, and at tv.apple.com, through April...

Top Rated Comments

vipergts2207 Avatar
13 months ago
No surprise here. Cook has always been a bean counter. He’s not a products guy like Jobs was. Cook has perfected getting as much money from consumers’ pockets as possible, while Jobs had the philosophy of, make amazing products and the money will follow.”
Score: 89 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Orange Bat Avatar
13 months ago
Apple keeping to 8GB in low-end computers is a joke at this point. The only argument Apple has at this point for not going with 16GB is that people are willing to put up with it. And don’t get me started on starting storage at 256GB….
Score: 72 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ries Avatar
13 months ago

or...you know... a more sensible reason: plenty of consumers became fine with the base ram
They also would be fine with a intel Celeron, doesn't mean it is ok to charge over $1000 for it.
Score: 66 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Account25476 Avatar
13 months ago
Yet another proof (as if that wasn't enough) of Apple's greed.

Apple just remember that "you reap what you sow".
Score: 65 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JippaLippa Avatar
13 months ago
Is 8GB still enough today for VERY BASIC use? Yes (kinda).
Is 8GB a good idea for any sort of future proofing? Absolutely not.
I can't imagine buying a computer with 8GB of ram now and expect it to run fine in 2028...
Score: 62 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nt5672 Avatar
13 months ago
Another example of Cook's innovations.
Score: 51 Votes (Like | Disagree)