recommendations for ram and ssd size for Mac Mini M4 for Adobe Creative Suite user.

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recommendations for ram and ssd size for Mac Mini M4 for Adobe Creative Suite user.

With the new Mac Mini M4 I am jumping from PC to Mac. My PC has 16 GB ram, and a 512GB ssd for operating system, programs and Photoshop scratch disk. When I have CS apps loaded and running, as well as browser windows open, etc., my ram, and space on my ssd are nearly maxed out. I don't know how it would go with the MAC's unified memory. I am also leery about future system requirements for Adobe CS, and how AI will affect performance and memory requirements. I do mainly print media (InDesign, Photoshop, Acrobat, sometimes Illustrator) with occasional Premiere work for crowdfunding. I am thinking that maybe I should go with 24GB ram and a 1 TB ssd. Any thoughts? You input would be greatly appreciated.

Windows, Windows 10

Posted on Nov 12, 2024 6:11 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

VikingOSX

Community+ 2024

Level 10

116,789 points

Nov 13, 2024 6:38 AM in response to RayAK01

And adding to woodmeister50's comment about 32 GB RAM, I would not consider any internal storage smaller than 1 GB. When I ordered by M4 Mac Mini Pro, I chose 64 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD. Configure for the future where Apple's macOS and Adobe's Creative Suite will surely increase their appetite for RAM and storage.

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Answer 2

Nov 12, 2024 10:24 PM in response to RayAK01

If you are "nearly maxed out" with 16 GB of RAM, get more. Don't assume that unified memory will reduce RAM requirements – while the arrangement makes it efficient for the CPU to pass work to the GPU and back (they've both got high-speed access to RAM), there's no separate pool of VRAM for the GPU.

Even the version of the Mac mini that has a plain M4 chip can take 32 GB of RAM, and you may want to consider getting that much.

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Answer 3

MartinR

Level 7

21,697 points

Nov 13, 2024 7:02 AM in response to VikingOSX

+1 👍

I do considerable work in Photoshop & CaptureOne. Regarding the M4 Mini, for your uses, plus some "future proofing," I completely agree with @VikingOSX's recommendation.

While you should be fine with 32GB RAM at present, given that Adobe apps & macOS generally have increasing RAM requirements over the years, 64GB RAM would be a good idea.

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Answer 4

Nov 13, 2024 5:25 AM in response to RayAK01

My experience with Adobe apps is that you need to buy as much RAM as you can possibly afford. Would not attempt to use those apps for any serious work with anything less than 32 GB!

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Answer 5

tbirdvet

Level 6

14,483 points

Nov 12, 2024 6:21 PM in response to RayAK01

I suggest you look at YouTube. There are many tests using various apps that can guide you to what you need. I just got the M4 pro with 512GB which is all I need as one can always use external drives for additional storage. The new M4 is very powerful and much more capable than its predicesors.

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